A major mixed-use development planned for a 42-acre site off Hawleyville Road (Route 25), near the Exit 9 interchange of Interstate 84, has gained final approval from the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z), marking the land use agency’s endorsement of one the largest local development projects in memory.

Following discussion at a December 17 session, the five voting P&Z members unanimously approved a special permit for Covered Bridge Newtown, LLC’s, plans for a 180-unit rental apartment complex contained in six three-story buildings on Covered Bridge Road, plus a diner at 13 Hawleyville Road.

P&Z members voting in favor of the apartments/diner complex were Chairman Robert Mulholland, Jim Swift, Donald Mitchell, Frank Corigliano, and Fred Taylor.

On November 19, the P&Z had approved a special permit for Grace Family Church, Inc’s, proposal to construct a new church off Covered Bridge Road, as part of the mixed-use project.

The apartments/diner component and the church component of the mixed-use project received wetlands/watercourses protection permits from the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) on December 9 and November 18, respectively.

The P&Z’s December 17 approval of the apartments and the diner marks the last local regulatory hurdle for the overall project. Anthony Lucera of Brookfield, doing business as Covered Bridge Newtown, LLC, is the developer for the apartments and the diner.

The apartments, diner, and church would be built on a 42-acre site lying west of Hawleyville Road and south of the Exit 9 interchange of Interstate 84. The apartments would be situated on 21 acres, the diner would be built on four acres, and the church would be constructed on 17 acres. The church, which now owns all 42 acres, would sell the parcels for the apartments and the diner to development firms.

The new 24,900-square-foot church would replace Grace Family Church’s existing church at 174 Mt Pleasant Road (US Route 6) which is about half that size.

Grace Family Church, which formerly was known as Grace Christian Fellowship, in 2007 received town land use approvals to build a new church off Covered Bridge Road, but never constructed the building.

The magnitude of the mixed-use project, and especially the amount of traffic that it would generate in Hawleyville, drew concerns from residents who attended that many public hearings held by the P&Z and the IWC. The P&Z started its hearings in August, holding seven hearings on the apartments/diner aspects of the project, and a lesser number of hearings on the church proposal. The IWC began its hearings in September.

Incentive Housing

In voting to approve the apartments/diner components, P&Z members decided that the project is consistent with the terms and intent of the 2014 Town Plan of Conservation and Development.

P&Z members also agreed that the plans are consistent with the terms of the Incentive Housing–10 (IH-10) zoning regulations.

Both the apartments and the diner were submitted for review under the terms of the IH-10 zoning rules, a set of land use regulations which the P&Z created in January covering the designation of af-fordable housing in such high-density, multifamily complexes.

Under the IH-10 rules, at least 20 percent of the dwellings in such a complex must be designated for low- and moderate-income families and individuals.  Thus, the 180-unit complex will contain 36 dwellings that will be designated as affordable housing, reserved for people who can prove they qualify for the lower rents offered.

In practical terms, that might mean that a one-bedroom affordable unit would rent for about $1,200  monthly, while a one-bedroom market-rate unit would rent for about $1,550 monthly.

The high construction densities planned for the mixed-use project are made possible by the town’s planned extension of sanitary sewers to the area. In February 2014, voters at a town meeting approved expanding the Hawleyville sewer system to stimulate economic development in that area.

As part of its approval, the P&Z is requiring Covered Bridge to strongly pursue state approval to install a traffic signal at the intersection of Hawleyville Road and Covered Bridge Road. That intersection would provide vehicular access to the church and the apartments.

The developer’s traffic engineer has told P&Z members that the amount of traffic that would travel through that intersection after the complex is fully built would not be sufficient for the state Department of Transportation (DOT) to approve traffic signal installation. P&Z members nevertheless required the developer to formally seek approval for a traffic signal. If a signal is approved, the developer would cover all traffic signal-related costs.

Discussion

In a discussion before the P&Z approval occurred, Mr Mitchell said the town needs the type of development proposed by Covered Bridge.

Mr Mitchell said the project amounts to “a great location and a great thing for the town.”

Mr Mulholland said that a major issue in reviewing the development proposal was the preservation of water quality in Pond Brook. Pond Brook traverses the site, carrying water from Taunton Lake to the Lake Lillinonah section of the Housatonic River.

Mr Mulholland said the applicant has been very cooperative and responsive to town requests for changes to the development proposal, making those changes as requested.

Also, Mr Mulholland stressed the importance of having a traffic signal installed at the intersection of Hawleyville Road and Covered Bridge Road. “It’s a hot button (issue) and not something we are going to drop,” he said.

The chairman said due to the planned locations of the church and the apartment complex, those facilities likely will not be visible to people passing by on Hawleyville Road.

Mr Corigliano acknowledged the applicant’s responsiveness to the P&Z’s concerns, but added that he remains concerned about the potential negative traffic aspects of the project.

Mr Mulholland said that the 36 units of affordable housing planned for the complex are “welcomed” because they will aid the town as it seeks to meet state standards for the minimum percentage of af-fordable housing units available in town. Such dwellings are designated as affordable housing units for at least 30 years.

The developer plans to construct a new covered bridge to replace the deteriorated covered bridge that crosses Pond Brook at the site.