Whose Vision Will Shape Newtown?

We pore over countless documents as we put together our weekly update on life in Newtown, and the information in most of these documents is of passing usefulness. What is important and pressing this week is old news next week, and much of what we read ends up inevitably as deleted bytes or recycled paper.  There are a few documents, however, that we keep close at hand because they take a longer view of community life and help us understand the town and its priorities. These include the Town Charter, the Capital Improvement Plan, the annual budget, and now the Fairfield Hills Master Plan. The document we reach for when we want a sense of Newtown’s collective vision for the future is the Plan of Conservation and Development.

Our reporting in recent weeks on the proliferation of condominium complexes in Newtown, both constructed and planned, has given us the sense that the future is quickly closing in on our community. Reading the opening words of Newtown’s “vision statement” included in the latest revision of the Plan on Conservation and Development paints a picture not particularly evocative of condominium development: “The goal of the Town of Newtown is to protect and enhance its picturesque, rural, historic New England setting and attributes.”

Newtown’s zoning regulations, interpreted and enforced by the Planning and Zoning Commission, are designed to meet the objectives of the Plan of Conservation and Development, yet much of P&Z’s work seems to have little to do with Newtown’s New England character. This is because there are other goals described in the plan’s vision statement, including community’s wish to “maintain a suitable variety of homes for its citizens, taking into account varying lifestyles and economic capabilities…”

Condominiums fulfill that wish for many Newtowners, yet they exist on our landscape not entirely through the intent and design of the Planning and Zoning Commission, which is elected to represent the community and its collective will as expressed in the town plan. The truth is that most of the high density development, both existing and planned for Newtown, has come about through the efforts of developers to get the P&Z to change local zoning to accommodate their plans, rather than trying to fit their development plans to existing zoning requirements.

This trend accelerated with the advent of EH-10 zoning, designed originally to allow high-density affordable housing for the elderly at Nunnawauk Meadows. The EH-10 zone is a “floating zone” that can replace other existing zones anywhere in town, so an area designated for low density two- or three-acre development can be quickly transformed into a condominium development. While the P&Z must approve, it is the developers who decide where the “floating” EH-10 zone comes home to roost. If you have condominiums in your neighborhood, they are there because a developer chose that location, not your elected representatives on the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Now in Sandy Hook, another condominium developer wants to take the process one step further. Having a plan that fails to meet the requirements of the EH-10 zone, or any other existing zone in town, he is asking P&Z to create an entirely new type of zone, the “Mixed-Income Housing District” (MIHD) that will accommodate his plans. The commission has an important decision to make.

As we plan our future as a community, we wish to encourage the Planning and Zoning Commission to continue its good work toward meeting all the goals set forth in the Plan of Conservation and Development. When there is confusion about whose vision to adopt for Newtown, let this important document be the guide.