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Developer In The Waiting Game With USPS

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Developer In The Waiting Game With USPS

By Nancy K. Crevier

Developers Steve Nicolosi and Mark Murphy are not the only ones anxiously awaiting the United States Postal Services’ decision regarding the replacement of the Hawleyville Post Office, formerly located on Route 25.

Phil Clark of Claris Construction in Newtown is feeling very positive about his meetings with representatives of the USPS concerning property he has proposed to renovate to house a new Hawleyville Post Office at 115 Mt Pleasant Road.

“It seems to meet all requirements and I believe a post office would work at this site,” said Mr Clark, who lives in the historic Sunset Tavern on Currituck Road and was a former patron of the Hawleyville Post Office until its closing this past February. “My wife and I were very disappointed when the post office closed, and that planted the seed. I started thinking we had this location available that might work,” Mr Clark said.

Claris Construction is no stranger to large building projects, Mr Clark said, noting the firm was the architect and builder of the Newtown Youth Academy at Fairfield Hills, and is also involved in a large airport hanger project in Oxford.

He sat in on the March 5 town forum hosted by the USPS and came away convinced that his proposal would be a good fit for what the USPS and the townspeople were seeking, he said. “What I heard, was that people were concerned about the time line for reopening the post office, and that they were interested in preserving the historical character and culture of the facility,” Mr Clark said.

His proposal features a country store look to the façade, and incorporates a brick fireplace now present in the building into the design. He was told that a similar layout, including a nonworking fireplace, had been approved in a Vermont post office. “But,” he said, “it is the USPS that makes the final design decisions.”

During a site walk of his property with USPS officials last month, Mr Clark said that he was left with the impression that they were satisfied the renovation would meet the USPS criteria, including parking and truck accessibility.

“This property is only .7 miles away from the former Hawleyville Post Office,” Mr Clark pointed out. “It is very easy on, easy off from the highway and has great visibility and sight lines. There is also a lot of available parking here,” he said.

As an architect, Mr Clark would like to develop the other building on the site to mirror the character of the proposed post office. “I’d love to create a small destination area here, the post office on one side, and maybe a soda fountain/ice cream type place on the other. People could drop off their mail, then get an ice cream or snack. It would be nice,” he said.

He is also confident that should his proposal be selected by the USPS later this month as the future Hawleyville Post Office, that he could have the facility ready for business by early fall. “What’s driving it are the requirements of the USPS and the town. I have met preliminarily with the Newtown Planning and Zoning, the Conservation Commission, and the building inspector, and at first blush it appears that this is definitely a place that a post office could go,” Mr Clark said. It should not be a problem to pull necessary permits in a timely manner should he get the go ahead, he said.

“I live in the area, and I invest in the area. It’s my town and my post office. I understand that as a developer in this market that you have to accept what comes to you. But I do have a positive feeling about this,” Mr Clark said. Now, it is just a matter of waiting.

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