Zoning Rule Changes Sought To Allow Up To 250 Condos

By Andrew Gorosko

A development firm that wants to build an age-restricted, multifamily housing complex on a 175-acre tract lying north and west of Route 302, is seeking Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) approval for zoning rule changes that would increase the potential number of dwellings on the site from the current limit of 150 units to 250 units. 

Developer KASL, LLC, is seeking to have the P&Z revise its EH-10 (Elderly Housing) zoning regulations to increase the maximum allowable number of dwellings on such a site from 150 to 250. Such a limit of 250 units would apply to properties that are larger than 100 acres. Properties that are less than 100 acres would still be limited to a maximum of 150 units, under KASL’s zoning rule change proposal.

The site eyed for development currently now has R-2 (Residential) zoning, which is designated for single-family housing on lots of at least two acres.

In order to develop its steep, wet, rugged 175-acre site for high-density, age-restricted multifamily housing, KASL also would need P&Z approval to change the zoning designation for that property from R-2 to EH-10. The site lies north and west of Route 302 (Sugar Street) in the vicinity of Robin Hill Road.

The P&Z has scheduled a public hearing on KASL’s proposal to revise the zoning regulations. The session is slated for 7:30 pm November 20 at Canaan House at Fairfield Hills.

Stephen Wippermann, who is the vice president of KASL and its spokesman, could not be reached for comment.

Last April, Mr Wippermann, representing KASL, LLC, and IBF, LLC, met at Edmond Town Hall with several dozen property owners who live near the development site to discuss their concerns about the project. Mr Wippermann excluded a reporter who had attempted to cover that session.

The two limited liability corporations have not yet submitted development plans for town review of the envisioned complex. Such a venture would be the largest local residential development project in years.

The property proposed for condominium development is bounded on the north by Scudder Road, and on the south by Route 302. Access to the site would be provided from Scudder Road and from Route 302. A Route 302 driveway to the site would be located somewhere along the north side of Route 302, at some point west of Route 302’s intersection with Key Rock Road.

An emergency access way to the site would connect to the western developed section of Robin Hill Road, off Rock Ridge Road. The eastern developed section of Robin Hill Road would not be used for access. The interior section of Robin Hill Road, which links that road’s two developed sections, is now simply a trail through the woods.

A conceptual drawing of the complex prepared by Spath-Bjorklund Associates, Inc, Monroe, depicts a curving interior through-road extending over rugged terrain, linking Scudder Road to Route 302. That through-road would have a dead-end road extending from it.

Last April, when discussing the development firms’ projected construction for the site, Mr Wippermann had spoken in terms of 200 condos, not 250 condos.

Under that proposal, the 28 buildings depicted would contain 200 age-restricted condominiums for people over age 55. That project would include 17 buildings with five condos each, five buildings with 16 units each, three buildings with eight units each, two buildings with four units each, and one building with three units.

The three eight-unit buildings and the five 16-unit buildings would be three stories tall. The other 20 buildings would be two stories tall.

Last April, P&Z members unanimously rejected a developer’s requested zoning regulation change that would have allowed finished basements in such multifamily age-restricted developments.

According to the conceptual design prepared by Spath-Bjorklund, the proposed condo development would be served by large-scale community septic systems. There is no sanitary sewer service or public water service in that area. The site is in the town’s sewer-avoidance area. Most multifamily complexes are served by sanitary sewers.

Change Of Zone

In a letter that Mr Wippermann had provided to the people who attended the informational session last April on the development proposal, he explained that KASL, LLC, and IBF, LLC, planned to submit an application to the P&Z for a change of zone, which, if approved, would change the 175-acre property’s zoning designation from R-2 (Residential) to EH-10 (Elderly Housing).

EH-10 zoning is designated for high-density, multifamily housing for people over age 55. EH-10 is the zoning designation at Walnut Tree Village on Walnut Tree Hill Road, The Homesteads at Newtown on Mt Pleasant Road, Nunnawauk Meadows on Nunnawauk Road, Ashlar of Newtown and Lockwood Lodge on Toddy Hill Road, and Liberty at Newtown on Mt Pleasant Road.

Among the various forms of residential development possible, EH-10 development provides the town with the greatest tax benefit, and produces the least volume of traffic and least demand for public services, according to Mr Wippermann.

Without receiving a zone change from R-2 to EH-10 from the P&Z, the developers could not proceed with planning for the type of age-restricted project that they have in mind.

The developers would require wetland approvals from the Conservation Commission, as well as a “special exception” and “site development plan” approvals from the P&Z.

In his letter, Mr Wippermann explained that the development proposal, as depicted in the Spath-Bjorklund drawing, would change as planning for a complex evolves.

“The application process will involve many changes and, we think, will take about two years,” the letter states.

Mr Wippermann has met with town land use officials in the past to discuss the prospects for developing the 175-acre parcel.

Community Development

Community Development Director Elizabeth Stocker has said that any proposal for such an age-restricted housing complex would have to provide evidence of whether there is sufficient regional market demand for such construction. The town already has several complexes designated for people over 55.

The P&Z would weigh the specifics of any development proposal for the site, she has said. Without knowing the details of such a project, it is premature to say whether such a complex would be beneficial to the town, she has said.

Ms Stocker said this week that she will submit a report to the P&Z after reviewing KASL’s rule change proposal to allow up to 250 dwelling units in an EH-10 complex.

Mr Wippermann’s past letter to property owners near the development site stated, “In the event that a zone change application is not successful, we would then pursue one for affordable housing. We are confident such a [affordable housing] proposal would be successful under state and/or local regulations, and would involve [a construction] density at least as great as one under EH-10.”

The Connecticut Affordable Housing Appeals Act provides a state-sanctioned regulatory mechanism for developers to pursue construction of affordable housing complexes in cases where they encounter local opposition to such complexes. At least 30 percent of the units in affordable housing complexes are designated for people falling under certain income limits.