Stock Building Supply—

P&Z Approves Lumberyard At Curtis Corporate Park

By Andrew Gorosko

The Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) has approved a building supply firm’s plan to create a wholesale lumberyard on Turnberry Lane in Curtis Corporate Park, off Toddy Hill Road in Sandy Hook.

At a September 21 session, P&Z members unanimously approved Stock Building Supply Inc’s proposal for a lumberyard at #2 and #6 Turnberry Lane.

The P&Z placed many conditions on the project, some of which stemmed from comments on the application that were made at recent public hearings by residents of the adjacent 20-lot Quarry Ridge Estates residential subdivision. The P&Z held public hearings on the project on August 3 and August 17.

Both the industrial park and the residential subdivision are located on a mined-out expanse of land that was formerly quarried by Newtown Sand & Gravel. The P&Z approved the industrial park in January 2001, and then approved Quarry Ridge Estates in March 2002.

Stock plans to convert the 30,184-square-foot building that has been used as a furniture warehouse by La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries for lumberyard use, as well as construct lumber storage structures on an adjacent lot. The lumber storage facilities would lie to the east and southeast of what has been the La-Z-Boy warehouse.

The 5.5-acre development site has M-4 (Industrial) zoning, where a lumberyard is a permitted land use. The site is in the environmentally sensitive Aquifer Protection District (APD), where various developmental safeguards are in force to prevent the degradation of the underlying Pootatuck Aquifer. The aquifer is the source of two local public drinking water supplies.

Stock, which is based in North Carolina, sells building supplies and tools to contractors. The firm operates more than 250 outlets in 30 states. The majority of Stock’s business involves the sale and delivery of building materials to contractors. Other business involves customers who would drive to the site.

P&Z Chairman William O’Neil said he had conferred with Conservation Official Rob Sibley about the wisdom of Stock’s plans to store diesel fuel in a 2,000-gallon above-ground tank on the site for use by the company’s delivery trucks and forklifts.

Mr Sibley said that such fuel storage is permissible in the APD, provided that fuel storage facilities are properly designed, according to the P&Z chairman.

Mr O’Neil noted that the two building lots where Stock will create the lumberyard must be consolidated into one lot for zoning purposes.

Mr O’Neil said the firm’s hours of business will be limited to 6:30 am to 5 pm on weekdays, and from 8 am to noon on Saturdays. Also, the P&Z is prohibiting the use of any outdoor public address system at the lumberyard, he said.

The lumberyard must install a fire hydrant for fire protection, he added.

Also, the facility must adhere to the “Dark Sky” lighting standards, which reduce the amount of light that is cast from the premises in the nighttime, he said. The lighting standards address light pollution.

The roofing on buildings at the lumberyard must have low-glare surfaces to cut the reflected glare to nearby properties, he added.

Outdoor storage areas at the lumberyard must be paved.

A major issue raised by Quarry Ridge Estates residents concerned the industrial noise that would be generated by the lumberyard, Mr O’Neil noted.

To lessen potential noise problems, the P&Z prohibited the use of any outdoor public address system, specified the business’s hours of operation, and required reduced volume levels on the “back-up beepers” that would sound when forklifts travel in reverse gear.

Ten-foot-tall trees would be planted along the site to create a visual buffer for nearby residents. The lumberyard will be enclosed by a green six-foot-tall chain-link fence capped with rows of barbed-wire for security purposes.

Conditions

P&Z members endorsed a special permit for the lumberyard project with 14 conditions of approval.

Among those conditions:

The existing 30,184-square-foot building on the site would be allowed to contain up 2,500 square feet of retail sales area.

Except for minimal security lighting on the property, site lighting must be shut off after work hours.

Stock must comply with the Design Advisory Board’s (DAB) recommendations concerning fencing and lighting, as well as glare reduction from the planned storage shed roofs.

Stormwater on the site must be channeled to stormwater treatment devices.

In view of the site’s location in the APD, the P&Z prohibits the permanent outdoor storage of commercial vehicles or construction equipment.

The maintenance of commercial vehicles and construction equipment is prohibited on the premises.

Stock must create an environmental protection policy for managing the property in view of its location of the APD, subject to P&Z approval. That policy would address interior operations, exterior grounds maintenance, and emergency spill cleanup procedures. Such a policy must be clearly posted on the site. The name and telephone number of the site’s spill response manager must be posted.

The waste dumpster on the site must be covered at all times and must be completely screened from view. The dumpster must bear a plaque noting its location within the APD.

If Stock adheres to all conditions of approval, there would be no significant adverse environmental effects on the aquifer, according to the P&Z.

Engineer William Carboni of Spath-Bjorklund Associates, Inc, of Monroe, represented the applicant.

Mr Carboni has stressed that the proposed lumberyard is a permitted use in a M-4 zone. “This is an allowed use at an industrial park,” he has said.

Quarry Ridge Estates residents who attended the two public hearings on the lumberyard application focused on issues including noise, traffic flow, nighttime lighting, sun glare, fencing, and lumber storage.

The nearest house in the Quarry Ridge Estates subdivision is about 260 feet away from the area where the lumberyard noise would be generated.

At the August 17 public hearing on the lumberyard, two Quarry Ridge Estates residents expressed concerns about a lumberyard’s negative effects on the neighborhood, including the degradation of residential character due to industrial noise and increased truck traffic in the area.

At the August 3 public hearing, nearby residents’ comments focused on nighttime illumination levels, noise, and the appearance of a lumberyard.