Date: Fri 09-Aug-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

selectmen-P&Z-growth

Full Text:

Selectmen To P&Z: Tighten Up The Rules

B Y A NDREW G OROSKO

In light of continuing residential growth, the selectmen are asking Planning

and Zoning Commission (P&Z) members to consider creating tighter land use

regulations to control growth more strictly.

Following lengthy discussion August 5, the selectmen unanimously approved a

motion stating they are deeply concerned about the local impact of residential

growth. The selectmen request that P&Z members consider what level of growth

is sustainable and practical from a financial and public safety standpoint.

The selectmen further ask P&Z members to review town land use regulations to

determine whether the development rules should be tightened to better control

residential growth.

The selectmen's recommendation to the P&Z comes amid continuing calls for a

residential development moratorium by residents who are concerned that growth

is coming to Newtown too rapidly.

First Selectman Robert Cascella said selectmen have discussed the effects of

residential growth in the past but now feel it is necessary to make a formal

recommendation to the town's land use agencies on the growth question.

Besides the P&Z, members of the Conservation Commission also should consider

revising their regulations concerning development in wetland areas, Mr

Cascella said.

Many developmental questions appear to hinge on the environmental issues that

lie within the Conservation Commission's bailiwick, he said.

But Selectman Gary Fetzer said the Conservation Commission's work isn't truly

environmental in nature. Mr Fetzer asked that the Conservation Commission's

chairman attend a future selectmen's meeting to explain that land use agency's

role in developmental matters.

But Mr Cascella noted the Conservation Commission functions in an

"environmental" role because it rules on the construction work that allows

developers to cross wetland areas with roads and driveways.

Elizabeth Stocker, the town's community development director, said "People

have been concerned about the pace of growth, specifically residential

growth."

The residential growth the town has been experienced is driven by economic

conditions more than any other single factor, she said.

Newtown has been "discovered" as a desirable place to live by people from

southwestern Connecticut and from sections of New York State across the

Connecticut border, she said. Ms Stocker said she receives many requests from

people out of the area interested in relocating to Newtown.

P&Z members are considering rule changes to encourage development that is

harmonious with the environment, Ms Stocker said. These would involve:

reducing the maximum allowable slope of driveways; altering the dimensions of

building lots; and modifying rules on the removal of gravel from building

lots, she said. The town engineer, conservation official, and zoning

enforcement officer are reviewing the rules on gravel removal, she said.

"The bottom line is 'We cannot stop the subdivision of land,'" she said. The

subdivision of land is an administrative function of the P&Z which must be

granted to applicants, provided that they meet applicable regulations, she

said.

"This region is growing faster than any (other) region in the state," she

said.

But, she added, there are no state laws which specifically allow towns to

manage their growth, such as placing a limit on the number of building permits

granted in a given year.

Limits To Growth

Town Attorney David Grogins pointed out the town already has significant

limits on growth built into its land use rules. The town doesn't allow

conventional multi-family housing, except for housing for the elderly, he

said. Also, the town doesn't permit cluster housing, he added. The town limits

the number of houses that can be built on a dead end street to 15, he said.

Selectman Gary Fetzer said the P&Z's August 1 elimination of rear house lots

in one-acre residential areas places a limit on potential growth.

Although state laws don't allow moratoriums to expressly stop growth, local

land use rules could be strengthened through measures such as "upzoning" in

which the minimum lot sizes in an area are increased due to environmental

factors, according to the first selectman.

Mr Fetzer posed a philosophical question about residential growth. How much is

too much, he asked, pondering whether P&Z members have in mind an ideal growth

rate for the town.

But Mr Grogins responded that any ideal growth rate the town could pose would

require the town to show strong justifications for why that rate shouldn't be

exceeded. Proposing such an ideal growth rate would amount to flirting with

"exclusionary zoning" in which zoning rules are illegally created to expressly

limit growth through such devices as five-acre minimum lot sizes, according to

the attorney.

Regulations concerning the maximum slope of driveways can effectively limit

potential growth, he said. Cutting the maximum slope of new driveways from a

15 percent to a 12 percent grade would limit growth, he said.

The town doesn't have the legal authority to directly limit growth or to

directly raise the money to pay for the municipal costs of growth, Mr Grogins

said. P&Z members apparently are seeking limits to growth based on public

safety questions and good planning practices, he said.

"There's also the issue of private property rights which we have to be very

mindful of," he said.

Mr Grogins cited legal cases in which municipalities, in effect, have been

fined hundreds of thousands of dollars after the courts ruled that

municipalities illegally denied individuals building permits.

"It has to be balanced," Mr Grogins said of individuals' rights to build and

municipalities' rights to regulate construction.

Mr Cascella said he believes a majority of the public wants the town to

tighten its land use rules to better control growth.

Tightened rules would mean better-built houses, better-designed neighborhoods

and better-quality streets, he said.

People who feel that tightened regulations aren't sufficient to deal with the

residential growth question can pursue moratoriums by having the state

legislature pass a law allowing such moratoriums, Mr Grogins said.

State law now allows moratoriums in certain specific circumstances and for

limited periods of time, he said. State law doesn't allow blanket moratoriums

which prohibit the subdivision of land, he said.

If the town were to enact a subdivision moratorium, it would result in

expensive legal challenges to the action, Mr Grogins said.

Land use regulations can be tightened, he said. If people aren't happy with

the rules, new people can be elected to the P&Z, Mr Grogins said.