By Richard Kaufman
Sentinel Reporter
The Brunswick School campus on King Street is in a position to expand, thanks in part to a friendly neighbor.
Paul Tudor Jones of the Tudor Investment Corporation recently reached out to Brunswick Headmaster Thomas Philip to gauge the school’s interest acquiring the Tudor property. The hedge fund plans to move its Connecticut offices closer to the rail line to accommodate the movement of Tudor employees between Connecticut and the firm’s growing presence in Manhattan.
Because of the school’s close proximity to the existing Tudor offices, also on King Street, Jones’ first call was to Philip. Subsequent meetings were held by the Brunswick Board of Trustees at the beginning of July, and it was decided that the school would go forward in trying to acquire the property.
Brunswick has now reached an agreement in principle with the Tudor Investment Corporation to purchase its campus-like property, Philip informed Brunswick families and students in a letter on July 17.
“In the broadest terms, the Tudor acquisition would ‘give us room’ to realize strategic goals to which Brunswick has long been committed, with only a small effect on the size and constitution of our current student body and community of families,” Philip said in the letter.
The property, bounded by King Street on the west and by Cliffdale Road on the north, encompasses 43 acres and several buildings. The acquisition has the potential to nearly double Brunswick’s square footage of classroom space on King Street, and would allow the addition of as many as four new playing fields, including the construction of a state-of-the-art track on the existing campus. The school would also add several units for faculty housing.
In the letter, Philip highlighted several important commitments the school will stick to, should the purchase come to fruition. Most notably, Philip said the school should remain as close as possible to its present size and that tuition should not be increased to cover any additional operating expenses.
“In support of this wonderful and reaffirming commitment, board members have already pledged generous gifts that will help to underwrite a portion of the acquisition cost,” Philip said. “Over the longer term, Brunswick will seek additional philanthropy to cover the balance.”
Because Brunswick is a private, educational entity, they’re exempt from property taxes according to state law. Board of Estimation and Taxation chair Michael Mason said the exemption would have an impact on the town’s bottom line.
Since the Tudor property would be repurposed from commercial use to educational use, the case still needs to be reviewed and approved by the Greenwich Planning and Zoning Board.
“We will make every effort to work closely with all town oversight groups as we move forward and if/when all approvals are granted, would not expect to utilize the site until Fall of 2018 at the earliest,” Philip said.
Philip concluded his letter by acknowledging Jones for his outreach and thoughtfulness in keeping the school in mind. He also thanked the Board of Trustees for their “foresight and generosity” regarding the matter.
“I am hopeful in the support we will encounter from our parents and alumni as we work over the next several months to make this opportunity a reality.”
