The US Postal Service leases space in this building that houses
the Hawleyville Post Office from the Housatonic Railroad. The
years have taken a toll on the building and the USPS is
presently negotiating with the HRR to renovate the structure
and turn the eyesore into a positive development in the area.
Rob Finley, vice president of the Housatonic Railroad,
headquartered in Canaan, disclosed Wednesday, July 19, that the
company is currently negotiating with the United States Postal
Service to renovate the building owned by the company at 30
Hawleyville Road in which the Hawleyville Post Office now leases
space.
"The US Post Office looked around [the present location] and
decided they like where they are," said Mr Finley. "They don't
want to move to temporary quarters."
Relocating the Hawleyville Post Office to temporary buildings
erected nearby had been one option that the USPS had considered
earlier this year when it became apparent that ignoring the
dilapidated condition of the post office was no longer an option.
"The general idea, right now," said Mr Finley, "is taking the
back third of the present building and putting a new building on
that same footprint. The post office would move to the back of
the building into the new area." The front section of the
building, now partially occupied by the post office, would then
be rebuilt, as well. "Possibly we would look to put some kind of
retailer in that area," Mr Finley said, although steps toward
finding a retailer are still in the "very preliminary stages."
The Mead Group out of New Haven, an architectural company that
specializes in designing post offices, has drawn up the initial
plans. "The plans have been shown to Newtown's design board and
they have not indicated that there are any issues," said Mr
Finley. The plans were sent to the Newtown Design Review Board on
June 28. "They would like to see a few modifications and we are
now waiting for the specs from the architect," he said.
The feasibility report prepared by the architectural group shows
a new configuration for the building, while remaining within the
original footprint. The post office, which now faces the street
side, would be relocated to the rear of the building with the
front then faced north, toward the Hawleyville Fire Station.
Ample parking in back would be provided for post office
customers.
"We thought the building looked pretty good," said George
Reichert, a member of the Newtown Design Review Board. "We
suggested larger windows and a larger gable on the roofline on
the Route 25 side, to make it look like the front of a building,
even though it really is not. Because this building is part of a
design district, we want to minimize the curb cuts on Route 25.
We would like to see them share a common driveway with the fire
department, the lumber yard, and Hawleyville Deli."
The panel also recommended that the Housatonic Railroad contact
the owners of the Hawleyville Deli to consider shared parking
behind the building. "It would be nice to get one main access
[from Route 25] to the lumber yard, fire department, the post
office, and the deli," said Mr Reichert. "What we're doing is
creating a small village. [Connecting the parking areas] helps
develop pedestrian traffic between the buildings."
The recommendations made by the Newtown design review panel were
recently passed on to the Planning and Zoning Commission. The
plans have not yet been reviewed, according to Planning and
Zoning Commission member William O'Neill.
The biggest hurdle the Housatonic Railroad must now leap is to
negotiate a new lease rate with the USPS. Mr Finley does not
anticipate insurmountable problems in that area. "The postal
service is pushing us. They would like construction to begin in
the next few months, hopefully before the end of the year," Mr
Finley said.
"That's very exciting," said Hawleyville postmaster Mark Favale
of the news. "In the past five or six weeks there have been
several engineers and architects looking at the building," he
said. A copy of the feasibility report was provided to the
postmaster the week of July 24.
A builder for the project has not yet been selected, but several
companies are currently being considered, according to Mr Finley.
If all stays on schedule, the Hawleyville Post Office could be
putting its best foot forward by next spring and the eyesore that
lines the road could be only a memory.