Date: Fri 05-Apr-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

Tamarack-Sanford-Echo-Valley

Full Text:

Neighbors Concerned About Road Improvement Plans

B Y K AAREN V ALENTA

Can the town accept money from a developer and use it to purchase road

equipment or make offsite improvements on town roads?

That question, now being investigated by Town Attorney David Grogins, was

among the proposals made during Monday night's Board of Selectmen meeting when

two dozen residents of Tamarack, Sanford and Echo Valley Roads assembled to

protest the town's plans to widen parts of the dirt roads in front of the

planned 33-acre Tamarack Woods development.

Town Engineer Ron Bolmer said it is the town's intention to ask the developer,

M&E Land Group, to widen Tamarack and Sanford roads to 18 feet in front of the

11-house subdivision and gradually narrow it to blend in with the rest of the

existing roads which vary from 12 to 18 feet wide. The wider sections of road

would involve a 700-foot long section of Tamarack Road and 1,600 feet on

Sanford.

"The intent is to make the road wide enough so that cars don't have to back up

and pull over if they meet cars coming from the opposite direction. It will

provide enough room for two cars to pass," Mr Bolmer said. "It shouldn't have

any effect on anyone else's properties except for the developers'."

The residents disagreed.

"There is a safety issue here," said Mae Schmidle of Echo Valley Road. "Ever

since Albert's Hill Road was widened, the speed of cars has gone up

dramatically. If you widen Tamarack and Sanford roads in areas in front of the

development, the same thing will happen. No one will slow down when they reach

the narrower portions."

"How wide the road is - that's the least important issue," said Lou Reda of

Tamarack Road. Echo Valley will become an arterial road to Hanover. The ends

of the roads are where the bottlenecks are - the money should be spent there."

Some residents said the roadwork would cause drainage problems, adding to the

runoff already taking place because, they said, the roads are improperly

graded.

"It would be better to spend the money from the developer on a smaller

grader," said Larry Haskel of Tamarack Road.

Robert Hall, the attorney representing M&E Land Group owners Larry Edwards and

Tom McGuire, said the developers are willing to give the town $164,000 to be

spent on road improvements or a grader if it's decided not to widen the road

in front of Tamarack Woods. But the town already "is on thin ice" when it

requires improvements be made on a public road by a developer, Mr Hall warned.

"We won't do offsite improvements," Larry Edwards said. "But we will give the

money to the town and let you do with it as you wish."

"Sanford Road is one of the most scenic roads in Newtown. I'd like to see that

maintained," said Jim Wright of Tamarack Road. "The (roadwork) maps show

drainage across my property, feeding into my pond, which I will resist. I

won't accept this road runoff, soil, and silt in my pond."

Author/horticulturist Sydney Eddison said there are endangered wildflowers

along the road. "We've seen quite enough changes already," she said.

Lillian Strickler of Tamarack Road recommended that a study be done by King's

Mark Environmental Review Team, an agency that serves 83 towns in western

Connecticut in the review of sites proposed for development. Her letter, to

Conservation Director David Thompson, had been forwarded to First Selectman

Bob Cascella who said it is a request which should be addressed by the

Planning & Zoning Commission.

"A roadwork agreement - should there be one - between the developers and the

Board of Selectmen is only a first step," Mr Cascella said. "The developers

still must go to P&Z for final approval of the subdivision."

"Our job is to assess the long-term financial impact of the proposal and the

long-term safety issues," he said. "Maintenance costs are higher for dirt

roads. We don't have the proper equipment to crown out dirt roads. There have

to be some road improvements that the town feels necessary while still

allowing for the integrity of a neighborhood."

"To me this is an issue we should decide on a neighborhood level," said

Selectman Gary Fetzer. "Do we put 18-foot wide roads in front of the

development or do we want to take the money and improve other sections that

need work?"

Mr Bolmer said he is concerned about having the town make those offsite

improvements.

"Some people are saying leave the roads as they are. Others are saying fix the

bad spots," he said. "But what about the people who own the properties at

those bad spots - how do they feel and what kind of a reception will we get?"

Selectman Jim Mooney said no solution will make everyone happy.

"Change is not always welcome but there has to be a compromise," he said.

The selectmen voted to table the matter, to do more research, and put it on

the agenda of the April 15 meeting.