(a) The purposes of the Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority shall be to: (1) Stimulate economic and transit-oriented development, as defined in section 13b-79kk, within Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority development districts; (2) encourage residential housing development within development districts; (3) manage facilities through contractual agreement or other legal instrument; (4) stimulate new investment within development districts and provide support for the creation of vibrant, multidimensional downtowns; (5) upon request of the legislative body of a member municipality, or the legislative bodies of the municipalities constituting a joint member entity, as applicable, in which a development district is located, work with such municipality or municipalities to assist in development and redevelopment efforts to stimulate the economy of such municipality or municipalities; (6) upon request of the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management and with the approval of the chief executive officer of a member municipality, or the chief executive officers of the municipalities constituting a joint member entity, as applicable, in which a development district is located, enter into an agreement to facilitate development or redevelopment within such development district; (7) encourage development and redevelopment of property within development districts; (8) engage residents of member municipalities, or municipalities constituting a joint member entity, as applicable, and other stakeholders in development and redevelopment efforts; (9) market and develop development districts as vibrant and multidimensional; and (10) provide financial support and technical assistance to municipalities to develop housing growth zones. (b) For the purposes enumerated in subsection (a) of this section, the authority is authorized and empowered to: (1) Have perpetual succession as a body politic and corporate and to adopt procedures for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business, as provided in section 8-169kk ; (2) Adopt a corporate seal and alter the same at pleasure; (3) Maintain an office at such place or places as it may designate; (4) Sue and be sued in its own name, plead and be impleaded; (5) Contract and be contracted with; (6) (A) Employ such assistants, agents and other employees as may be necessary or desirable to carry out its purposes, which employees shall be exempt from the classified service and shall not be employees, as defined in subsection (b) of section 5-270 ; (B) establish all necessary or appropriate personnel practices and policies, including those relating to hiring, promotion, compensation, retirement and collective bargaining, which need not be in accordance with chapter 68. For the purposes of this subdivision, the authority shall not be an employer as defined in subsection (a) of section 5-270 , and for the purposes of group welfare benefits and retirement, including, but not limited to, those provided under chapter 66 and sections 5-257 and 5-259 , the officers and all other employees of the authority shall be state employees; and (C) engage consultants, attorneys and appraisers as may be necessary or desirable to carry out its purposes in accordance with sections 8-169ii to 8-169ss , inclusive; (7) Acquire, lease, purchase, own, manage, hold and dispose of personal property, and lease, convey or deal in or enter into agreements with respect to such property on any terms necessary or incidental to carrying out the purposes set forth in this section; (8) Procure insurance against any liability or loss in connection with its property and other assets, in such amounts and from such insurers as it deems desirable and procure insurance for employees; (9) Invest any funds not needed for immediate use or disbursement in obligations issued or guaranteed by the United States or the state, including the Short Term Investment Fund, and in other obligations that are legal investments for savings banks in this state, and in-time deposits or certificates of deposit or other similar banking arrangements secured in such manner as the authority determines; (10) Enter into such memoranda of agreement as the authority deems appropriate to carry out its responsibilities under this section; and (11) Do all acts and things necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes of, and the powers expressly granted by, this section. (c) In addition to the powers enumerated in subsection (b) of this section, the Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority shall have the following powers with respect to authority development projects: (1) (A) To acquire by gift, purchase, lease or transfer, lands or rights-in-land and to sell and lease or sublease, as lessor or lessee or sublessor or sublessee, any portion of its real property rights, including air space above, and enter into related common area maintenance, easement, access, support and similar agreements, and own and operate facilities associated with authority development projects, provided such activity is consistent with all applicable federal tax covenants of the authority; (B) to transfer or dispose of any property or interest therein acquired by the authority at any time; and (C) to receive and accept aid or contributions from any source of money, labor, property or other thing of value, to be held, used and applied to carry out the purposes of this section, subject to the conditions upon which such grants and contributions are made, including, but not limited to, gifts or grants from any department, agency or instrumentality of the United States or this state for any purpose consistent with this section, provided (i) the authority shall provide opportunity for public comment prior to any acquisition, transfer or disposal in accordance with this subdivision, and (ii) any land or right-in-land, aid or contribution received by the authority under this subdivision shall be subject to the provisions of chapter 10; (2) To formulate plans for, acquire, finance and develop, lease, purchase, construct, reconstruct, repair, improve, expand, extend, operate, maintain and market facilities associated with authority development projects, provided such activities are consistent with all applicable federal tax covenants of the authority; (3) To contract and be contracted with, provided if management, operating or promotional contracts or agreements or other contracts or agreements are entered into with nongovernmental parties with respect to property financed with the proceeds of obligations, the interest on which is excluded from gross income for federal income taxation, the board of directors shall ensure that such contracts or agreements are in compliance with the covenants of the authority upon which such tax exclusion is conditioned; (4) To fix and revise, from time to time, and to charge and collect fees, rents and other charges for the use, occupancy or operation of authority development projects, and to establish and revise from time to time procedures concerning the use, operation and occupancy of facilities associated with such projects, including parking rates, rules and procedures, provided such arrangements are consistent with all applicable federal tax covenants of the authority, and to utilize net revenues received by the authority from the operation of such facilities, after allowance for operating expenses and other charges related to the ownership, operation or financing thereof, for other proper purposes of the authority, including, but not limited to, funding of operating deficiencies or operating or capital replacement reserves for such facilities and related parking facilities, as determined to be appropriate by the authority; (5) To engage architects, engineers, attorneys, accountants, consultants and such other independent professionals as may be necessary or desirable to carry out authority development projects; (6) To contract for construction, development, concessions and the procurement of goods and services, and to establish and modify procurement procedures from time to time in accordance with the provisions of section 8-169kk to implement the foregoing; (7) To borrow money and to issue bonds, notes and other obligations of the authority to the extent permitted under section 8-169oo , to fund and refund the same and to provide for the rights of the holders thereof and to secure the same by pledge of assets, revenues and notes; (8) To do anything necessary and desirable, including executing reimbursement agreements or similar agreements in connection with credit facilities, including, but not limited to, letters of credit or policies of bond insurance, remarketing agreements and agreements for the purpose of moderating interest rate fluctuations, to render any bonds to be issued pursuant to section 8-169oo more marketable; and (9) To engage in and contract for marketing and promotional activities for authority development projects under the operation or jurisdiction of the authority. (d) The Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority and the Capital Region Development Authority, established pursuant to chapter 588x, may enter into a memorandum of agreement pursuant to which: (1) Administrative support and services, including all staff support necessary for the operations of the Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority may be provided by the Capital Region Development Authority, and (2) provision is made for the coordination of management and operational activities that may include: (A) Joint procurement and contracting; (B) the sharing of services and resources; (C) the coordination of promotional activities; and (D) other arrangements designed to enhance revenues, reduce operating costs or achieve operating efficiencies. The terms and conditions of such memorandum of agreement, including provisions with respect to the reimbursement by the Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority to the Capital Region Development Authority of the costs of such administrative support and services, shall be as the Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority and the Capital Region Development Authority determine to be appropriate. (e) The authority shall have the power to negotiate, and, with the approval of the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management, to enter into an agreement with any private developer, owner or lessee of any building or improvement located on land in a development district providing for payments to the authority in lieu of real property taxes. Such an agreement shall be made a condition of any private right of development within the development district, and shall include a requirement that such private developer, owner or lessee make good faith efforts to hire, or cause to be hired, available and qualified minority business enterprises, as defined in section 4a-60g , to provide construction services and materials for improvements to be constructed within the development district in an effort to achieve a minority business enterprise utilization goal of ten per cent of the total costs of construction services and materials for such improvements. Such payments to the authority in lieu of real property taxes shall have the same lien and priority, and may be enforced by the authority in the same manner, as provided for municipal real property taxes. Such payments as received by the authority shall be used to carry out the purposes of the authority set forth in subsection (a) of this section. (f) Nothing in sections 8-169ii to 8-169ss , inclusive, shall be construed as limiting the authority of the Connecticut Municipal Redevelopment Authority to enter into agreements to facilitate development or redevelopment of municipal property or facilities.