The Water & Sewer Authority (WSA) is awaiting technical information from Teton Capital Company, LLC, of Old Greenwich, which is seeking sanitary sewer service from the town for its proposed Church Hill Village, a 72-bed assisted-living complex at a 3.97-acre site at 37 Church Hill Road (Route 6), on the eastern corner of Church Hill Road and The Boulevard.

Fred Hurley, town director of public works, told WSA members on October 12 that the Borough Zoning Commission (BZC) had approved the Church Hill Village project on October 11, with a prime condition of that approval being that the complex have municipal sanitary sewer service. The project also will require a public water supply provided by the Aquarion Water Company.

The BZC granted Teton three major approvals for the project - a site development plan approval, a special zoning permit, and a Village District certificate of compliance. A new set of borough zoning regulations on assisted-living complexes, which were requested by the developer and were approved by the BZC last spring, require that such complexes be served by sanitary sewer service and by a public water supply, among many other requirements.

Mr Hurley said that Teton has the various documents required for submission by a developer when seeking sewer service for a commercial project.

Among the information required for WSA review are: the sewage treatment capacity that the complex would require at the town's sewage treatment plant, as expressed in gallons per day; the typical sewage flow rate that would be produced; and the expected peak sewage flow rate, Mr Hurley said.

Mr Hurley said the 37 Church Hill Road property is within the town's central sewer service district, adding that lateral sewer lines extending to that property were installed when the central sewer system was constructed more than 20 years ago.

The WSA would review Teton's sewage disposal application based on the development plans which the firm submitted to the BZC for review, Mr Hurley said.

Also, WSA members authorized having an appraisal performed on the site to create data to be used in determining a "sewer benefit assessment." After a property owner receives sewer service, the owner pays off, across time, the sewer benefit assessment, which covers sewer-related capital costs. The property owner also pays periodic bills, known as sewer usage fees, based on the amount of sewage that is discharged into the sewer system.

The town's central sewer system started operating 20 years ago. It was constructed to resolve longstanding soil contamination problems caused by failing septic systems in central Newtown. The presence of sewers also has allowed various high-density development to occur in the sewer service area.

Church Hill Village is planned as a 12-building complex of interconnected structures. It would house frail elderly people, generally over age 75, who require assistance with the activities of daily living, including some nursing care. Senior Lifestyle, a Chicago-based corporation in the elderly housing industry, would operate the facility.

The complex would have buildings that enclose about 66,960 square feet of space. Most buildings would be one-story tall. The property would have two driveways. A main driveway at The Boulevard would be located about 150 feet north of The Boulevard's intersection with Church Hill Road. A service driveway on Church Hill Road would be situated 410 feet east of the intersection of Church Hill Road and The Boulevard.