Rosenthal Questions P&Z On Upzoning Plan

By Andrew Gorosko

In a lengthy discussion with the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) July 20, First Selectman Herbert Rosenthal, at the request of the Newtown Property Owners Association, raised the many concerns that association members have voiced over the P&Z’s controversial “upzoning” proposal.

Upzoning would increase minimum zoning requirements for extensive residential sections of town to protect groundwater quality.

Association members had sought to have the P&Z conduct a third public hearing on the upzoning proposal, but because the P&Z was unwilling to do so, association members instead asked the first selectman to raise their issues with the P&Z.  In addressing the P&Z, the first selectman referred to a detailed list of questions on upzoning formulated by the association. Association members attended the session to observe the interchange between Mr Rosenthal and the P&Z.

P&Z members did not act on the upzoning proposal. They are expected to do so at an upcoming session.

Following the meeting, association director Barry Piesner said he expects the P&Z will approve upzoning. Mr Piesner said if upzoning is approved, the association will file a lawsuit in Danbury Superior Court in seeking to overturn the measure. In the November 2001 town elections, voters who oppose upzoning will not vote for P&Z members who support upzoning, Mr Piesner said.

The P&Z has proposed upzoning to safeguard groundwater quality in the Pootatuck Aquifer, and to prevent groundwater contamination problems from worsening in the several communities along Lake Zoar. The measure affects the Aquifer Protection District (APD), which lies atop the Pootatuck Aquifer in south central Newtown, and also the several lakeside communities in Sandy Hook lying on the eastern edge of town along Lake Zoar, including Shady Rest, Pootatuck Park, Riverside, Cedarhurst, and Great Quarter.

The comprehensive upzoning proposal covers an aggregate area greater than 2,500 acres. It affects approximately 2,315 properties, almost 2,000 of which have dwellings on them.

Under the proposal, some residential properties with current ½-acre zoning would have zoning designations increased to either 1 acre or 2 acres, depending upon their location. Other properties with current 1-acre residential zoning would be increased to 2 acres. Such upzoning is intended to at least maintain, or potentially decrease, construction densities, and hence decrease existing and potential threats to groundwater quality.

Many property owner association members live in the communities along Lake Zoar that would be affected by upzoning. The predominant zoning designation in those areas is half-acre residential.

Upzoning was the subject of P&Z public hearings last February and December at which the proposal drew fire from property owners who said they are unconvinced the measure is necessary. Some affected residents say they fear that increasing minimum residential zoning requirements would damage their properties’ development potential, and thus reduce the value of their real estate.

Rosenthal’s Comments

“I do have some concerns about this [upzoning],” Mr Rosenthal told P&Z members, explaining that association members had urged him to raise their questions with the P&Z.

 Noting that the proposal would affect the zoning designations on about 2,300 properties, Mr Rosenthal asked how the community at large would benefit from creating a large amount of non-conformity to the zoning regulations.

P&Z Chairman Daniel Fogliano responded that the practical problems that property owners affected by upzoning would face would involve receiving approvals from the town health department for the placement of water wells and septic systems.

The driving force behind the upzoning measure is protecting groundwater quality, said P&Z member Heidi Winslow, adding, “This is not an anti-density thing.”

 Mr Rosenthal noted there has been little new construction in the past several years in the areas with half -acre residential zoning that would be affected by upzoning.

 Upzoning primarily affects home expansions involving an increase in the number of bedrooms in a dwelling, and also affects the ability to subdivide properties, Ms Winslow said.

“What are we really saving the town from by moving away from the half -acre zone?” Mr Rosenthal asked. P&Z members responded that the upzoning measure is based on protecting groundwater quality.

The first selectman asked P&Z members whether eliminating local half-acre residential zoning would affect the availability of affordable housing.

 P&Z member James Boylan said developing half -acre lots for residential use is not feasible without access to public utilities such as water service and sanitary sewers.

Elizabeth Stocker, the P&Z’s planner, said the town health department in 1996 decided that a residential one-acre lot is the minimum acceptable size for a dwelling that has a domestic water well and septic system.

The issue of affordable housing hinges on whether the town should allow the construction of condominiums, Ms Winslow said. Allowing condos in town would dramatically change Newtown’s appearance, she said. “It’s a difficult problem, “ she added.

Mr Fogliano said the health department works with property owners who have failing septic systems on small residential lots to get functioning septic systems in place on those properties. Upzoning is not intended to eliminate housing on half -acre lots, Mr Fogliano stressed. The P&Z chairman said he does not believe that creating non-conforming properties through upzoning will damage those properties’ resale value.

Broader Scope

Ms Winslow said P&Z members consider it more urgent to upgrade the zoning designations on residential areas than on other types of zones, such as commercial and industrial zones.

“We’re by no means done,” Mr Fogliano said, adding that rezoning other places, such commercial and industrial areas with small lot sizes, is the future work of the P&Z. Such rezoning would occur based on protecting groundwater quality.

“We needed a place to start… This is the first of several phases… of protecting our groundwater,” Mr Fogliano said.

The P&Z has heard much public comment on the residential upzoning proposal, Ms Winslow said.

“It’s been a process that’s been going on for several years. It dovetails with the aquifer protection issue,” she said. In June 1996, the P&Z upgraded development standards in the town’s Aquifer Protection District (APD), the area which lies above the Pootatuck Aquifer.

“We’re not being hasty,” Ms Winslow said.

The town has no interest in demolishing existing buildings which would be affected by upzoning, Mr Fogliano said. If anything, the effect of upzoning would be to discourage buildings from being knocked down, Ms Winslow said.

Mr Rosenthal suggested that the P&Z address the upzoning proposal when it revises the town’s decennial plan of development. The plan revision is scheduled for 2003.

“I think we have enough information to act [on upzoning]. I think most of the commission feels that way,” Ms Winslow said.

Mr Boylan said the proposed residential upzoning should have been done 5 to 10 years ago.

“We’re only doing this to do what’s best for the town and what’s best for the health and safety of the town,” Ms Winslow said.

Mr Rosenthal suggested that the P&Z exempt existing structures from the effects of upzoning.

The issue of upzoning is so complex that P&Z members decided to make the zoning changes with a “broad stroke,” Mr Fogliano responded.

Ms Winslow offered her view on the practical effects of upzoning. “This affects subdivisions,” she said. Property owners who want to subdivide land will be affected by upzoning because they would not be able to create as many new building lots on a given piece of land after upzoning is approved, she said.

  “Anytime you undertake something like this… it is a serious undertaking,” Mr Rosenthal said. Groundwater protection is important, he said, but added he hopes that upzoning is the right step to take.

 Mr Rosenthal urged that P&Z members solicit further comments from the public on upzoning.