Date: Fri 13-Jun-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

P&Z-Hawleyville-rezoning

Full Text:

Hawleyville Rezoning Plan Draws Fire From Residents

BY ANDREW GOROSKO

A request to rezone land on both sides of Barnabas Road in Hawleyville from

residential to industrial has drawn fire from some nearby residents who

question the wisdom of allowing industrial uses on the land.

Applicant Steve Nicolosi, representing Buzzano Contracting, wants a change of

zone from Residential-1 to Industrial M-4 for about four acres he owns on the

north side and south side of Barnabas Road, near its intersection with

Hawleyville Road. Mr Nicolosi holds about 2.5 acres on the north side of

Barnabas Road and the remainder on the south side.

Attorney Robert Hall, representing Mr Nicolosi and Buzzano, explained the zone

change request to Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) members at a June 5

public hearing.

Mr Hall presented P&Z with letters from nearby property owners Doreen and John

Cash, and also from Elizabeth and Donald Nichols, stating they endorse Mr

Nicolosi's zone change request. The Cashes and the Nicholses requested P&Z

also rezone their residential properties to industrial property.

The zone change application submitted by Mr Nicolosi does not include the Cash

and Nichols properties. Mr Hall pointed out, however, P&Z has the discretion

to change the zoning of those properties, as well as Mr Nicolosi's land, in

granting a zone change.

Mr Hall said the town's plan of development calls for that section of

Hawleyville to serve as a village center, industrial and office/retail area.

Mr Nicolosi wants to build a "flexible," pre-fabricated industrial building

which would house five separate uses which are permitted in M-4 zones, Mr Hall

said.

The proposed building would be similar to but not as large as a prefabricated

industrial building at 72 Grays Bridge Road in Brookfield. That facility is

known as Graysbridge Business Center. It is across the street from the

Brookfield Public Works Complex.

The industrial zoning proposed for the land on Barnabas Road is an appropriate

use for that land, Mr Hall told P&Z members.

Mr Nicolosi, a contractor in the radon reduction industry, said, "I need to

grow and expand my business. I need ... additional space."

The Hawleyville location is a good one due to its proximity to Exit 9 of

Interstate 84, he said.

Mr Nicolosi said he has received letters of interest from two firms that want

to move into a prefabricated industrial building in Hawleyville. One firm is

in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning industry and the other is a

plumbing business, he said. Buzzano Contracting needs about 3,000 square feet

of space in a new building, he said.

Opposition

Attorney Hugh Lavery, representing Jeanette and William Ferry of 58 Barnabas

Road, said the proposed zone change would have a major negative effect on

them.

Mrs Ferry said Hawleyville has been a rural area. Changing the zoning on the

land next door would not be beneficial to her and her husband, Mrs Ferry said.

The Ferrys have lived at 58 Barnabas Road since 1958.

Mr Lavery asked John Klopfenstein, the owner of Curtiss & Crandon Realtors,

for information on property values.

Mr Klopfenstein estimated the value of the Ferry's residential property would

drop by 20 to 25 percent if it were located next to industrial property. Also,

it would take much longer to sell the residential property if it were next to

industrial property, he said.

"Please reject this [proposal] as quickly as you can," Mr Lavery said.

Resident Jennifer Wolbach of 5 Old Hawleyville Road said she did not receive

sufficient formal notice of the public hearing, noting she received less than

the required ten days' notice.

Ms Wolbach is vice president of the North Newtown Homeowners Association, a

Hawleyville-based organization.

Ms Wolbach, who has lived in Hawleyville almost 20 years, explained she has

spent much time and money improving her property. Mr Nicolosi bought property

in April and now he wants a zone change for it, Ms Wolbach said, terming the

matter "unconscionable."

Ms Wolbach objected to the look of pre-fabricated industrial buildings, saying

they are visually "horrible."

"We're not prepared to accept an M-4 industrial zone change for that

property," she said.

"This is being stuffed down our throats," she added.

Lilla Dean, head of the homeowners association, reminded P&Z members that the

association had proposed a Hawleyville zone change last year, but P&Z members

turned down that request, citing an ongoing planning study of Hawleyville's

economic development potential by the Housatonic Valley Council of Elected

Officials (HVCEO).

Ms Dean urged P&Z members to wait until more planning work is done before

acting on the Nicolosi zone change request.

Last January, P&Z members unanimously turned down the homeowners association's

zone change request. In that request, the association proposed rezoning from

R-2 Residential to P-1 Professional a 183-acre section of Hawleyville bounded

on the east by Hawleyville Road, on the west by Farrell Road, and on the south

by the Maybrook railroad tracks right-of-way.

The association did not have any ownership interest in that land. That zone

change proposal drew strong criticism from the owner of a large portion of the

land who did not want it rezoned.

The association sought the zone change to prevent the acreage from being put

to uses its members consider undesirable, such as multifamily housing.

P&Z members said the final results of an ongoing study on the economic

development potential of Hawleyville should be completed before any zoning is

changed in Hawleyville. P&Z members also said the association had not proved

the zone change was warranted.

Hawleyville As Gateway

Resident Penny Meek of 40 Butterfield Road told P&Z members that Hawleyville

is a "gateway" to Newtown, which makes a first impression on visitors.

Pre-fabricated industrial buildings are ugly, she said.

The HVCEO planning study on the economic development of Hawleyville should be

completed before any action is taken on a zone change request, she said.

Resident Edward Rudisill of Butterfield Road said there are about 400 acres of

land in Newtown which already have industrial zoning. Mr Rudisill suggested

the applicant use such land for prefabricated industrial buildings rather than

rezone Hawleyville land from residential to industrial.

P&Z is expected to act on the zone change request at an upcoming meeting.

If the zone change is approved, the applicant would a need a site plan

approval from P&Z to build an industrial building.

In mid-1995, a section of Hawleyville was proposed for rezoning to allow a

100,000-square-foot exhibition hall called the Connecticut Exposition and

Performance Events Center (CEPEC) to be built there. The P&Z rejected that

zone change request after strong public protests from Hawleyville residents.