Thomas Breen Photo
320 Canner St.
Yale’s Karen King updates neighbors.
The Yale Divinity School has decided not to purchase a single-family home near its Prospect Hill campus, citing neighbor concerns about taking $20,000-plus off the city’s annual property tax rolls.
Yale Community Affairs Associate Karen King delivered that news on Monday night during the regular monthly meeting of the East Rock Community Management Team at mActivity gym on Nicoll Street.
She reported that the divinity school has nixed its prior plans to purchase a single-family house at 320 Canner St.
Part of the reason, she said, was critical feedback received from St. Ronan and Edgehill neighbors.
“The divinity school recently informed the Ronan-Edgehill neighborhood association that they would not be purchasing 320 Canner,” she said on Monday. “We appreciate everyone’s feedback on that. It was taken into serious consideration when the divinity school was making its final decision.”
The two-story, privately-owned Canner Street house was last assessed by the city at $481,810. At the city’s current 42.98 mill rate, the home provides $20,708 in property taxes to city coffers every year.
Monday night’s East Rock Community Management team meeting.
In January 2018, King and her Yale colleague Stephen Brown told the East Rock management team that the divinity school planned to purchase the Canner Street house and convert it into the new home of the Andover Newtown Seminary. A small, historic congregational seminary previously based out of Newton, Mass., Andover was absorbed by the Yale Divinity School in 2016.
But one year later, King delivered the news that the divinity school would not be following through on the planned acquisition.
Tom Krattenmaker, the divinity school’s communications director, confirmed via email that the school’s decision not to buy 320 Canner was influenced by neighborhood concern about taxes.
“We considered the neighborhood’s concerns very carefully,” he wrote, “and ultimately decided to support their request not to proceed with the purchase of the Canner Street property. We care a great deal about the health of New Haven and realize there are real concerns about property taxes. We are exploring other options for Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School that would not have the same implications as the purchase of the Canner Street property.”
Sarah Drummond, Andover Newtown Seminary’s academic dean, told the Independent via email that the school’s decision not to purchase 320 Canner means the small seminary’s staff and 30 students will have to wait a bit longer before having a single center for their weekly classes, Bible studies, and worship services. They currently are based out of the divinity school’s main Prospect Street campus.
“But we are making the most of it,” she wrote. “We are proud descendants of wanderers, and our 213-year-old school has relocated on three previous occasions. Of course, the last one was almost 100 years ago…”
King and Krattenmaker both said the school has not yet decided where it will look next to house the Andover seminary.