Date: Fri 10-Apr-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

P&Z-Fairfield-Hills-zoning

Full Text:

Town Prepares For Fairfield Hills Future With Zoning Changes

(with map)

BY ANDREW GOROSKO

Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) members are considering comments made

April 2 at two public hearings about the P&Z's proposed rezoning of Fairfield

Hills, the 600-acre former state psychiatric institution near the geographic

center of Newtown.

The P&Z fielded public comments on its detailed descriptions of how the land

could be used after the millennium.

The state is seeking to sell or lease approximately 185 acres at Fairfield

Hills. The town's rezoning the land would place certain limits on how the

property could be developed if it is sold to a private party by the state.

However, if the state retains ownership, the state will not be subject to town

zoning regulations. It is unclear whether the provisions of rezoning would

apply to the land if the state leases out the property.

Under the proposed rezoning, existing residentially zoned land would be

converted to land zones called: Fairfield Hills Adaptive Re-Use (FHAR),

Conservation/Agricultural (CA), and Industrial (M-5).

In a letter to P&Z members, Richard Nuclo, head of state assets management for

the Office of Policy and Management (OPM), writes OPM expects that the 185

acres at Fairfield Hills being marketed by the state will probably have some

"mixed use." P&Z members want to limit the land marketed by the state to 165

acres.

Mr Nuclo writes that some existing buildings likely will be rehabilitated for

new uses or be demolished, and that some new construction will take place.

Mr Nuclo urged that the P&Z be flexible in allowing the land uses permitted at

Fairfield Hills.

In the future, a master plan on the redevelopment of Fairfield Hills' core

campus will be submitted to the P&Z for its consideration.

Some new land uses would require that Fairfield Hills' road network be

modernized and new parking areas be built, according to Mr Nuclo.

Golf?

Resident Stephen Adams of Great Ring Road, a former P&Z chairman, said he does

not want a golf course built at Fairfield Hills, noting he does not consider

golfing to be a form of "passive recreation" such as nature walks and hiking.

"It's a pretty intensive use," he said, adding he fears the Pootatuck aquifer

would be contaminated by the various chemicals used on a golf course.

State Rep Julia Wasserman said there is little prospect that land that has

been designated as open space by the state will be changed to some other

land-use designation, noting the large number of approvals which are needed to

do so.

Mrs Wasserman stressed her strong opposition to permitting golf courses on

open space at Fairfield Hills with CA zoning. She said, however, that a

compact golf course might be possible on land with FHAR zoning.

Mrs Wasserman noted that the land beneath the area proposed for FHAR zoning

does not contain either primary or secondary aquifer recharge areas.

Resident Jill Chandler of Queen Street asked what will happen to the wildlife

that populates open space areas near the Queen Street area when Fairfield

Hills is redeveloped. There are already enough golf courses in Fairfield

County, she said. Open space is what's valuable, she added. Golf courses are

not open space, she said. Children don't play and picnic on golf courses, Ms

Chandler said. Building a golf course is "not in the best interest in

preserving the flavor of the town," Ms Chandler said.

A Rock Ridge Road resident said a golf course would be a great recreational

use at Fairfield Hills. Strides are being made to limit the damaging effects

of chemicals used on golf courses, he said. Golf courses are open areas that

generate income, he added.

Resident Lou Carbone of Taunton Lake Drive said although Danbury's Richter

Park Golf Course is adjacent to a municipal reservoir, Danbury has not had any

pollution problems stemming from the use of golf-course chemicals.

New School

First Selectman Herbert Rosenthal told P&Z members the public school system is

considering building a school on town-owned land near Watertown Hall at

Fairfield Hills.

Mr Rosenthal suggested that town-owned land near Watertown Hall have the FHAR

zoning designation rather than CA zoning.

Mr Adams urged P&Z members to encourage the Borough Zoning Commission to make

changes to its rules, which mirror the changes being made by the P&Z. About

one-sixth of Fairfield Hills lies in the Borough of Newtown.

FHAR Zone

The proposed FHAR Zone would have a minimum lot size of 150 acres. FHAR zoning

is intended to permit the conversion and reuse of the former Fairfield Hills

Hospital campus in harmony with the character of the existing campus and

surrounding neighborhood. The proposed zone is intended to allow the economic

reuse of the site while encouraging the conservation of the site and

preserving the cohesive layout of the main campus.

The proposed FHAR zone would generally incorporate Fairfield Hills' core

campus south of the bypass road which is now under construction. That property

now has residential zoning with a one-acre minimum lot size.

Certain "permitted uses" would be allowed in the FHAR zone provided that an

applicant obtains a special exception to the zoning regulations from the P&Z.

These permitted uses include: retail sales, shopping centers and wholesale

businesses, all limited to a maximum 40,000 square feet of floor area;

educational facilities with accessory housing; light manufacturing; bulk

storage; warehousing; office space; medical and dental offices; laboratories;

corporate headquarters; printing establishments; laundry services; dry

cleaners; publishing establishments; restaurants; commercial or public

recreational facilities; fitness centers; museums; libraries; theaters; movie

theater complexes; houses of worship; banks and financial institutions;

hospitals, multiple family dwellings which include affordable housing; adult

congregate-living complexes; assisted-living complexes for the elderly;

multiple-family housing for the elderly; parking structures; hotels; motels;

conference centers; nurseries and greenhouses.

CA Zone

Another zone proposed by the P&Z is the Conservation/Agriculture (CA) zone.

The proposed zone is intended to provide for the long-term maintenance of land

in an undeveloped state by limiting its use to wildlife habitats, farming,

foresting and passive recreation. Such a zone is intended to preserve and

protect: existing and potential drinking water supplies, plant and animal

wildlife, unique natural features, watersheds, aquatic life, vistas and

sensitive archaeological sites. Land with such zoning would be intended for

passive recreation and to retain a local agricultural industry.

Permitted uses in CA zones would include forestry, pedestrian hiking trails,

natural wildlife habitat, nature preserves, and open-space areas.

Land uses which would be permitted by special exceptions to the zoning

regulations would be: crop farming, bicycle trails, equestrian trails,

playgrounds for children's outdoor games and recreation, and outdoor sport

fields.

Approximately 250 acres at Fairfield Hills has been designated by the state

for conservation, open space and agricultural uses. A move is underway to

designate about another 50 acres for such uses.

M-5 Zone

Besides the proposed FHAR and CA zones, P&Z members are proposing that the

northern tip of the Fairfield Hills property be rezoned from Residential (R-1)

to Industrial (M-5).

The state has proposed providing a low-cost, long-term lease to the town for

the industrial development of 37 acres the state owns at the end of Commerce

Road.

In 1995, the town acquired land at 6 and 8 Commerce Road for $130,000 for a

site to build a fork off Commerce Road for access to the 37 acres.

Roughly 100 acres of Fairfield Hills lies in the Borough of Newtown, and thus

is not subject to the P&Z's proposal for CA zoning.

The state closed Fairfield Hills as a psychiatric institution in 1995 as the

Department of Mental Health (DMH) pursued its policy of patient

"deinstitutionalization." Following the hospital's closure, P&Z members began

to realize that dense residential development might occur at Fairfield Hills

under its current small-lot residential zoning designation. Consequently, they

formed the subcommittee to study rezoning the land.

The state has agreed to give the town 22.6 acres at Fairfield Hills, including

the 32,348-square-foot Watertown Hall, which is a former dormitory for

Fairfield Hills workers, and a multi-bay garage.

Also, the state is expected to give the town a 21.6-acre strip of land along

Deep Brook, which would serve as a greenway or linear park for passive

recreation.