Planning Consultant Draws Future Land Use Map

By Andrew Gorosko

The town’s planning consultant has proposed a “future land use map” for Newtown, depicting a range of local land uses for the decade leading up to 2013.

The multicolored scale map is based upon the Planning and Zoning Commission’s (P&Z) evolving revision to the Town Plan of Conservation and Development, which is scheduled for publication next fall.

The draft map is on display at the town land use office at Canaan House at Fairfield Hills. A copy of the map also will be posted in a scalable graphics format on the town’s website, www.newtownct.org/.

The color-coded map was drawn by Harrall-Michalowski Associates, Inc, (HMA) of Hamden, the P&Z’s consultant for the town plan revision.

The map illustrates the proposed pattern of conservation and development for the town for the coming decade, recommending various locations for residential growth, commercial development, business districts, industrial growth, municipal facilities, conservation and open space areas, civic uses, institutional uses, and specialized zoning districts.

 The map is largely based upon existing land use and development patterns, environmental and natural features, physical features, current zoning, and planning analysis, according to HMA. The map’s graphical content reflects comments that have been by residents at public sessions on the town plan revision, HMA adds.

Balance

To protect the local quality of life, a balance between development, the conservation of open space and natural resources, and the preservation of local historical and cultural resources is necessary, according to HMA. As such, the protection of environmentally sensitive areas and the conservation of open space have been major aspects of the town plan revision and its depiction on the future land use map, according to HMA. About 30 percent of the town’s land area remains vacant land.

While development is necessary to address tax base issues and the town’s economic well-being, a balance between development, conservation, and preservation is a central aspect of the town plan revision, according to HMA.

Although the specific goals to be listed in the revised town plan are not yet final, some general goals have become apparent, according to the planning consultant.

These general goals include the preservation of community character, open space, and recreational resources; the creation of “greenway” linkages between open space land and residential areas; the conservation and preservation of historical resources; promoting economic development to attract new businesses and retain existing businesses in the pursuit of a balanced property tax base; enhancing commercial corridors; and promoting community improvements in the Borough, Sandy Hook Center, and the hamlets of Hawleyville, Botsford, and Dodgingtown.

 HMA points out that successful future development is dependent upon creating zoning regulations, subdivision regulations, and design guidelines that explicitly state and enforce the P&Z’s vision for the future as expressed in the revised town plan.

Categories

HMA analyzes existing and potential local land uses based on various categories of use.

“Low-density residential” uses are areas that have single-family houses on lots that two acres or larger. Such areas are located throughout town and have been under development since the 1980s. Such areas have zoning designations of R-2 and R-3. Most local remaining developable land falls within that category. HMA stresses the need to protect open space and natural resources in such areas.

“Medium-density residential” areas contain homes on lots ranging from one-half to two acres. Such areas typically are located within the Borough and along the town’s older collector roads. Such areas were developed from the 1960s to the 1980s. Most such areas have R-1/2 and R-1 zoning designations. “Relative to the balance of Newtown, little vacant developable land is available for future development within this land use category … In-fill development should be sensitive to neighborhood character and patterns, and provide for open space or community facilities needs and linkages,” according to HMA.

Relative to the town’s overall population density, HMA also describes “medium-high density residential” areas. Such areas have a residential density of less than one-eighth acre to less than one-half acre. Such development is found in the Borough, Sandy Hook Center, some of the older communities along Lake Zoar, and in the few areas with multifamily zoning. Very little land is available for new development within such areas, according to HMA.

“Industrial uses” include a variety of manufacturing and warehousing businesses situated along the South Main Street corridor, Commerce Road, Edmond Road, Barnabas Road, and the intersection of Route 34 and Toddy Hill Road.

“Commercial/office uses” include retail and service firms. Such uses generally are located along South Main Street, the Borough, Commerce Road, Sandy Hook Center, Hawleyville, Botsford, Dodgingtown, and along the western end of Route 6, plus scattered locations.

HMA points out that most local institutional land uses are municipally owned, including schools, town government offices, and the public works department. Houses of worship, cemeteries, and fire stations are among the private institutional uses.

HMA notes the many land uses that the town is planning for Fairfield Hills, the 186-acre property that the town is buying from the state. The town plans to use Fairfield Hills for municipal, recreational, community, economic development, and open space purposes. Fairfield Hills served as a state psychiatric institution until December 1995.

Local park and open space uses include town and state parks, plus various open space areas throughout the town that are owned by the town and by private land trusts, according to HMA.

Significant private open space areas include two golf courses and privately held open space parcels. HMA points out the continuation of such uses is an important visual aspect of the town’s character.

The few agricultural uses that remain in town similarly are important to the town’s visual character, it adds. Notably, a large portion of the Fairfield Hills property, which the town is not buying from the state, has been designated as a state agricultural preserve.

Most of the former Bridgeport Hydraulic watershed lands in Newtown have been purchased by the state for open space protection, HMA notes, adding that a significant water company parcel remains on Swamp Road.

Districts/Corridors

In analyzing local land uses, HMA describes a variety of areas that would figure in future development.

HMA suggests the creation of a South Main Street Corridor Design District, representing the area along South Main Street extending from Borough Lane southward to the Monroe town line.

HMA recommends mixed uses along that corridor, including commercial, office, and service uses, and where appropriate, housing uses. Such a development paradigm would “bring vitality and an uplifted visual quality to the town’s primary commercial area,” according to HMA.

The planning consultant points out that land use rules need to be created that protect adjoining residential areas, while enhancing the corridor. Development proposals for sites along the corridor should address the need for intersection and driveway improvements there, it adds.

HMA recommends that the P&Z support the Borough Zoning Commission’s proposal for Village District zoning regulations in commercial/professional areas in the Borough. HMA also supports the P&Z’s Sandy Hook Design District zoning regulations for Sandy Hook Center. The planning consultant recommends that the P&Z support mixed-use development in those areas, incorporating landscaped public plazas and “pedestrian-friendly” environments.

HMA recommends that the services provided by town’s three mixed-use hamlets –– Hawleyville, Botsford, and Dodgingtown –– be reinforced. HMA views the Planned Commercial Development zone in Hawleyville and the Hawleyville Center Design District as key commercial growth areas.

HMA views potential in-fill development of the Edmond Road and Commerce Road areas as important sources of job growth near the town center.

The six-mile-long Route 34/Washington Avenue corridor, which extends from Sandy Hook Center to the Monroe town line, is an important visual component of the town’s community character, which should be preserved, according to HMA. A nearly five-mile-long section of Route 34 has no commercial uses, which is unusual for a state road in this part of Connecticut, it points out.

HMA depicts major wetland and watercourse corridors on the proposed future land use map as areas that should be protected as natural resources amid future growth.

The proposed future land use map also depicts aquifer protection areas, where zoning regulations are in effect that limit the types of development allowed above the Pootatuck Aquifer. The aquifer is a major underground source of local drinking water.

HMA’s proposed future land use map is subject to revision in the coming months as the P&Z puts the finishing touches on the town plan revision.