The Board of Selectmen have hit the “reset button,” starting over the matter of the discontinuance of paper street Reservoir Road, at its June 3 meeting.

The discontinuance of the paper street was originally approved by the previous BOS under former First Selectman Dan Rosenthal. However, it turns out that all the steps of the process had not been followed so now the Board of Selectmen is looking to redo the process.

“This time we’ll dot all the I’s and cross all the T’s,” said First Selectman Jeff Capeci.

While this process is going on, 20-60 Castle Hill Road developer George Trudell, who had requested the road discontinuance as part of his effort to develop 20-60 Castle Hill Road, has withdrawn his application before the Borough of Newtown Zoning Commission while the road discontinuance issue wends its way through the necessary boards. Trudell told The Newtown Bee on June 5 that once the road is discontinued, he intends to reapply with the same design plans as the application he withdrew.

The main item that was missed were signs that need to be placed for 30 days at both ends of the discontinued section of Reservoir Road.

A paper street is a street that has not been developed, and only exists as a line on a map of where it should be. Discontinuing a paper street essentially removes it from the map.

Town Attorney Jason Buchsbaum outlined that the process would begin with the BOS starting an 8-24 referral to the Planning & Zoning Commission. The referral charges P&Z with drafting a report within 35 days on whether or not the road discontinuance meets the Plan of Conservation and Development. If the P&Z Commission does not respond in 35 days, it is considered an automatic approval. The town must also place signs at each end of the road to be discontinued, for a period of 30 days. The time for the P&Z to generate its report and the time for the signs will be done simultaneously, meaning both will be done in time for the BOS meeting of July 15, when the selectmen will receive the P&Z report, if any, and make its final decision on the road.

Land Use Director Rob Sibley at a previous meeting said that the road, like many roads in town, was established in the 1800s, and was adopted by the town in 1952. He said it hasn’t been in use “for at least 100 years,” and that it’s unimproved so it “only exists in maps.” Sibley also noted that the discontinuance of the road “only goes into effect if all approvals [from the Inland Wetlands Commission, Borough Zoning Commission, and the Planning & Zoning Commission] are obtained.”

Trudell said he needs the road to be discontinued because it allows him to develop all the homes he wishes to place on the property in one section, and leave the other section undisturbed.

The proposed homes will be built on roughly 40 acres of the

132 acre property, with none of the homes located on roughly 75 acres nearest the lake. All 117 homes will be clustered together, with roughly 25 to 50 feet between them.

The discontinuance has met opposition, particularly from the Newtown Conservation Coalition, a group formed to oppose several developments within town including 20-60 Castle Hill Road and 6 Commerce Road.

NCC founder Dave Ackert spoke during public participation, saying the property is currently “undisturbed, quiet, and peaceful, and you can’t hear neighbors arguing in their back yards” from the area of Reservoir Road. Ackert and NCC have voiced opposition to discontinuing the road over concerns of preserving its historic value as part of what has been referred to locally as the Rochambeau Trail, also known as the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route, which historians say goes through Reservoir Road. The route marks the path where General George Washington’s and General Jean-Baptiste de Rochambeau’s armies traveled during the Revolutionary War.

He noted his group’s advocacy has been important, as if they didn’t speak out at the Inland Wetlands Commission meeting on 20-60 Castle Hill Road, “that property would have been flooded every rain storm” by runoff from the proposed development.

Ackert told the selectmen that the area that is proposed to remain undeveloped is “very steep” and could be “undevelopable.”

“He has submitted no maps, so when he says it’s better for the town to conserve that area, we believe him,” said Ackert. “I’d like to see the maps to prove it, and if not, we should call his bluff.”

Not every resident who spoke at the meeting was an NCC member or even opposed to the development.

Resident Dennis Brestovansky spoke and said he did not agree the proposed development was “high density,” and said he considered it “an attractive option” for the town to preserve the area.

“I think it would be a nice thing for Newtown, provided it preserves the history of the area and meets zoning regulations,” said Brestovansky.

Trudell told the BOS during a presentation that he feels the development would be the best option for the town, and will preserve far more of the untouched natural space than any other option to develop the property.

He noted that the cluster housing regulation he was using was approved by Newtown’s Borough Zoning Commission in 2012, and the regulation had the Castle Hill property in mind. He pointed towards a May 8, 2012 Newtown Bee article, “Borough Cluster Housing Approved,” for background on the regulation.

“At the hearing, Mr Mitchell presented mapping that showed the location of some rugged land off Castle Hill Road owned by the Bridgeport Roman Catholic Diocesan Corporation which has frontage on Taunton Lake,” that article states. “The ROSD rules would create a mechanism through which residential development could occur on such a site well away from that environmentally sensitive lake’s shoreline, he said. If such sites with R-1 (Residential) zoning were to be developed under the terms of the town’s subdivision regulations, there would no ‘special permit’ review performed by regulators, as is required under the ROSD rules, he said.”

Trudell also noted that while the town discontinuing Reservoir Road would be giving him the narrow strip of land the road would have been on, he’ll be “giving it right back” as part of a conservation easement on the property.

This conservation easement allows residents to walk on and utilize the trail, and will leave it undisturbed “in perpetuity,” which will be protected by deed restrictions on the land.

Trudell also noted that as required by state regulation, he had an archeological survey done on the property, digging 184 holes throughout the area, and it came back with no artifacts found to reveal evidence of Rochambeau’s troops.

In spite of this, Trudell said his plans would remain “very sensitive to the history of the property.”

Selectmen asked a number of questions concerning the road, including Selectman Dan Cruson asking how close the nearest home in the development will come to the trail.

Trudell said the closest was 75 feet, with the rest “flaring away further” from the trail.

Selectman Michelle Embree Ku asked if the road were not discontinued, could the developer build similar cluster housing on both sides of Reservoir Road, which Trudell answered he could.

Embree Ku also asked that if there were any grants available for improving historic sites such as the Rochambeau Trail, could that be made part of the conservation easement agreement, and Trudell indicated he would be agreeable to that.

“There’s no reason why we wouldn’t do that,” said Trudell.

Embree Ku also asked about whether the development could be affordable housing, to help Newtown meet its commitment to reach 10% affordable housing, a goal it is far off from. Trudell said his plans call for multi-generational homes with various amenities, and that the property is not zoned for affordable housing.

Trudell said that he and land owner Joseph Draper “understand [the property] is a gem of Newtown, and understand everyone has feelings on the property,” but he “came in from day 1” looking for a development that would be “sensitive” to the vulnerable areas near Taunton Lake and preserve as much of the land as possible.

“The area we’re building on is fields; it’s been tilled and farmed,” said Trudell. “We’ve been sensitive to the trail, sensitive to the Indians who may have homesteaded or fished there, and sensitive to the neighbors. We thought this was the best plan for the town and the best plan for us. We have no intentions to develop the other side [of the property that they are currently planning to preserve] unless pushed.”

The P&Z commission was expected to meet on June 6 (after this issue of The Bee went to press) but the 8-24 referral was not on the agenda. Its only other meeting within the 30 day period would be the Thursday, June 20 meeting.

Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.