The Borough Zoning Commission (BZC) has approved the Aquarion Water Company’s plans to build an above-ground 1,100-square-foot pumphouse on the 3.1-acre site at 12 Church Hill Road, where the Newtown Hook & Ladder Volunteer Fire Company is building a 16,000-square-foot firehouse.

BZC members on June 10 voted to 3-0 to approve the project, with Chairman Douglas Nelson, David Francis, and Lucy Emerson Sullivan voting in favor. Member Michael Guman of 38 Main Street recused himself because his residence lies within 1,000 feet of the 12 Church Hill Road site.

The BZC members approved issuing Aquarion a special zoning permit for the pumphouse project following their third public hearing on the matter, having also held hearings on May 13 and April 8.

Before the commission approved the project, Mark Fois, representing Aquarion, described certain developmental details that had been requested by the BZC.

Mr Fois explained the landscaping aspects of the project, describing the locations of plantings. The landscaping for the pumphouse would be similar to the landscaping planned for the firehouse, he said.

On June 3, Aquarion received an endorsement for the pumphouse project from the Borough of Newtown Historical District Commission.

Mr Fois told commission members that Aquarion and Hook & Ladder expect to soon reach an agreement under which Aquarion would buy a permanent easement from Hook & Ladder to allow it to use a section of Hook & Ladder’s site for its pumphouse.

Hook & Ladder President Rick Camejo said that Hook & Ladder members on June 8 endorsed a proposed easement for the site. That document is now under legal review, he said.

Mr Fois said that after the pumphouse is built, Aquarion’s existing antiquated pumping station, which is located underground near the police station at 3 Main Street, would be deactivated.

Aquarion wants to build the new pumphouse to better regulate the water pressure in its water supply network.

Mr Fois said that besides pumps, the new pumphouse would hold an electric generator that would occupy about one-third of the interior space at the facility.

In the event that the firehouse should lose electrical service, the pumphouse generator would be used to supply the firehouse with electricity, Mr Fois aid.

The pumphouse will be designed for a service life of about 50 years, he said.

In approving the pumphouse, BZC reviewed a long list of criteria used in its decisionmaking.

Among the BZC’s findings are that the presence of the pumphouse: will be in harmony with the neighborhood; is consistent with the borough zoning regulations; will not significantly impair nearby property values; will not pose traffic hazards; will not cause health hazards; is consistent with the 2014 Town Plan of Conservation and Development, and is in harmony with nearby architecture.

The BZC placed several conditions on its approval. The commission is requiring that heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning equipment be positioned on the southeast side of the pumphouse; that the generator’s ventilation equipment be positioned on the southeast side of the building; that the project’s landscaping maintenance plan be submitted; and that the permanent easement be filed publicly after it is final.

The new Hook & Ladder firehouse would replace the antiquated town-owned firehouse at 45 Main Street that the fire company now uses.