by Jeff Mill, Middletown Press (CT)

The town is proposing to buy a 5.5-acre parcel of land along the Connecticut River that could be used to house a visitor’s center, a museum detailing the quarrying of brownstone and, possibly, a riverfront restaurant.

The town has been working for years to acquire the property, the site of the former Connecticut Tar & Asphalt Co.

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The property, which is actually the combination of three parcels of land, was formerly an oil-tank farm. It is owned by the estate of John Balletti, officials said.

The town has already used a $200,000 state grant to determine the presence and level of petroleum oil lubricant contamination on the site, First Selectwoman Susan S. Bransfield said following the selectmen’s meeting.

“That property has been reviewed and tested — thoroughly tested — and we have developed a solid plan for cleanup,” Bransfield said. The town has secured money to pay for it, too, she said.

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For the entire article, see

http://www.middletownpress.com/news/article/Portland-seeking-to-buy-land-along-Connecticut-12439245.php