Site Cleared For Office Building Construction

By Andrew Gorosko

Workers have been clearing a site for a new office building at 7 Berkshire Road, across the street from Newtown High School’s new athletic field complex.

The planned structure will the fourth office building to be constructed in that area during the past several years.

Last June, the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) approved construction plans.

P&Z members approved the application from TNT Offices, LLC, and Michael Bodetti for a special exception to the zoning regulations to build a 7,500-square-foot office building on the east side of Berkshire Road, near Exit 11 of Interstate 84. The office building will contain multiple offices.

At a public hearing, a neighboring property owner had urged that the P&Z require sufficient landscaping on the office building site to visually screen the building.

P&Z members later discussed the landscaping requirements for the property at length, eventually deciding how many trees and what type of trees should be planted on the property, as well as how those trees should be configured on the site. Discussion had focused on locations where trees would be planted and on desirability of hardwoods versus softwoods for landscaping.

The site lies in the town’s Aquifer Protection District (APD). Consequently, the development plans underwent added review by the Conservation Commission and the P&Z to ensure that activities proposed for the property would not contaminate the underlying Pootatuck Aquifer. The aquifer is the source for two local public drinking water supplies, plus numerous domestic water wells.

The P&Z toughened its aquifer protection regulations in 1999, requiring stricter controls on development lying above the aquifer.