Court Appeal Expected—

P&Z Approves Condo Sales Trailer Placement

By Andrew Gorosko

Over the protests of residents from the Liberty at Newtown condominium complex, Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) members have approved a request from the developers of the planned adjacent Woods at Newtown condo complex to install a temporary sales office and model condo for the Woods project near the driveway entrance to the Liberty complex.

At a February 1 session, in a 4-to-1 vote, P&Z members approved an application from Bashert Developers, LLC, to position two construction trailers on a turnoff at property that Bashert owns at 166 Mt Pleasant Road. That site lies approximately 120 feet east of Liberty at Newtown’s driveway entrance at 178 Mt Pleasant Road. The site is in a P-1 (Professional) zone.

Following the P&Z approval, the president of the Liberty homeowner’s association told P&Z members that the group would soon file an appeal in Danbury Superior Court challenging the P&Z’s approval of the construction trailers’ placement near the Liberty driveway.

About 25 Liberty residents attended the February 1 session. Liberty residents have complained that the presence of the Woods’ construction trailers near the Liberty driveway entrance would pose traffic hazards, create an eyesore, and damage Liberty’s property values, among other complaints.

The developers of the planned 178-unit Woods at Newtown age-restricted condo complex want to install the two trailers in a highly visible place to serve as a temporary sales office and a model condo for the upcoming Woods project. The trailers would enclose about 3,700 square feet of space and have eight adjacent parking spaces.

Last June, Bashert Developers, LLC, of New City, N.Y., in Rockland County, received approval from the P&Z for the 178-unit Woods at Newtown complex on a 50-acre site.

The 96-unit Liberty at Newtown, which received P&Z construction approvals for a 40-acre site in August 2002, was constructed by Ginsburg Development Corporation of Valhalla, N.Y., in Westchester County.

Both the planned Woods at Newtown and the existing Liberty at Newtown are designed for people over age 55.

At the February 1 meeting, P&Z members only grudgingly approved the Woods application for the trailers’ placement along Mt Pleasant Road, saying that they could find no legal justification in the zoning regulation to deny the application. P&Z member Robert Mulholland dissented from approving the application.

Discussion

Before the vote, P&Z member Robert Poulin said, “I think this is a bad proposal,” concerning the need to remove mature trees for the trailers’ placement.

P&Z member Jane Brymer agreed, saying that Bashert should find another location on its 50-acre property for the trailers.

P&Z member Lilla Dean suggested that Bashert install the trailers near a former fast food restaurant nearby. The site near the Liberty entrance would be expensive to develop and also expensive to restore, she said.

“I don’t think it’s sensible, but it’s still their [Bashert] property,” she said.

Mr Mulholland said there are better places on the Bashert property to locate the trailers, suggesting a location nearer to the common driveway entrance lying to the east, which now serves The Homesteads at Newtown and will also serve the constructed Woods at Newtown.    

 P&Z Chairman William O’Neil agreed with other members’ criticisms of Bashert’s location for the sales/model trailers, but added that the zoning regulations offer no legal basis for denying the application.

“What basis do we have for denying the application?” he asked.

Mr O’Neil said he expects the presence of the two trailers would have a temporary adverse effect on property values at Liberty at Newtown. He said he does not expect that there would be much traffic volume generated by the trailers.

Mr Mulholland asserted, “We don’t have enough information to make a decision,” pointing out that the developer had not marked the site to show how the landscape would be altered, as had been requested.

Mr O’Neil suggested that the P&Z delay its decision, citing the need for a site restoration plan.

Burt Dorfman of Bashert, however, pointed out that the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) has already approved such a restoration plan.

Mr Poulin said he has philosophical problems with Bashert clearing mature trees at the site for the temporary placement of trailers.

Ms Dean said her review of the zoning regulations found no legal justification to reject the application.

Mr Mulholland urged that if the application were approved, the driveway entrance for the trailers be moved to the east side of the site to place it farther away from the Liberty driveway.

Ms Dean observed, “I think it’s dumb, but I don’t see anything in the regulations that can let us turn it [application] down.”

On that note, P&Z members voted, with Mr O’Neil, Ms Dean, Mr Poulin, and Ms Brymer voting in favor of the application, and Mr Mulholland opposed.

 P&Z members placed many conditions on the approval. The conditions include: that the trailers be allowed to stand for two years, after which they would be removed and the site would be restored based on IWC requirements; that the site be landscaped while in use; that the site be limited to eight parking spaces; that stormwater drainage control measures be taken; that tree removal be kept to a minimum; that site lighting be directed downward; and that exterior lighting be shut off by 9:30 pm nightly.

Following the P&Z’s action, Michell Tschantz of 13 Franklin Court, who heads the Liberty homeowners’ association, told P&Z members the group will file a court appeal challenging the P&Z action.

Such an appeal would seek a court injunction to block Bashert from installing the trailers near the Liberty driveway.

Numerous Liberty residents then sharply expressed their objections to the P&Z’s action.