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P&Z Plans To Rezone Hawleyville In Phases

BY ANDREW GOROSKO

Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) members intend to incrementally rezone

sections of Hawleyville in preparation for the planned sewering and

anticipated development of that lightly developed section of town.

P&Z Chairman Daniel Fogliano said March 18 he expects the P&Z will begin its

public hearings on the Hawleyville rezoning project in late spring.

Mr Fogliano said doing all the rezoning anticipated for Hawleyville

simultaneously probably would be too large a project to undertake at one time,

citing the complexity of the overall rezoning plan. Also, attempting to do all

rezoning work at once would be to confusing to the public, he said.

The P&Z's Hawleyville rezoning plan comes in response to a recommendation from

Community Development Director Elizabeth Stocker. She is urging that the P&Z

rezone sections of Hawleyville conform with an economic development plan for

that area which the P&Z endorsed last year.

Ms Stocker told P&Z members the Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA) has

approved a sanitary sewer service district for sections of Hawleyville. The

town is seeking state funding to subsidize sewer construction costs, she said.

The rezoning of Hawleyville actually already has begun, Ms Stocker said,

noting that in March 1998 P&Z members approved converting the zoning on a

60-acre parcel from one-acre and two-acre residential to EH-10 elderly housing

zoning for The Homesteads at Newtown, a 298-unit elderly housing complex

planned for Mt Pleasant Road in Hawleyville. That zoning change came at the

developer's request. Last September, the P&Z approved a site plan for the

planned 298-unit elderly housing complex including units for assisted,

congregate and independent living at 166 Mt Pleasant Road (Route 6). The

complex will be served by sewers and public water.

In light of the planned Hawleyville sewering there's a need for both rezoning

and the creation of new zoning regulations, Ms Stocker said.

"I recommend we go forward... before we have (new development) proposals on

the table," she said.

Ms Stocker recommends that the P&Z act promptly to rezone land along sections

of Route 6/Mt Pleasant Road because those areas will be the ones most likely

to undergo development pressure after water lines and sewer lines are

installed in the area.

Unlike the new sewer system in central Newtown, which is intended to rectify

groundwater pollution problems caused by failing septic systems, the sewer

system planned for Hawleyville is intended to foster economic development.

Rezoning

The Hawleyville economic development study calls for rezoning land north of Mt

Pleasant Road/Route 6 near the Bethel border from a basic R-2 (residential)

zone to a new proposed zone known as the Route 6 Design District (R6DD).

The Route 6 Design District zone is intended to provide commercial and office

uses, as well as higher density residential uses consistent with the site's

location on a major road. The intent of the proposed Route 6 Design District

zone is to provide support for economic development which strengthens the

local tax base without an undue burden of municipal services.

The Hawleyville economic development plan also calls for rezoning an area of

land north of Mt Pleasant Road/Route 6 which lies between the Homesteads site

and Hawleyville Road. That land would be rezoned from R-1 (residential) to

lower-density R-2 (residential).

The economic development study also calls for expanding an existing M-2A

(industrial) zone, which lies in the area north of Mt Pleasant Road, west of

Hawleyville Road and south of Interstate-84. That M-2A zone expansion would

extend eastward to the vicinity of Whipporwill Road, converting existing R-1

zoning to M-2A zoning.

Allowable uses of that area with M-2A zoning would be all the industrial uses

which are allowed in a M-2A zone, and especially corporate headquarters and

office space, plus retail sales, personal services, banks, restaurants and

nursery schools.

Ms Stocker also is calling for rezoning a piece of land lying north of

Whipporwill Road and Susan Lane and south of Interstate-84 from its current

R-1 (residential) designation to the lower density R-2 (residential)

designation.

Phased Approach

Ms Stocker suggested a phased approach for the Hawleyville rezoning project,

recommending that the first rezoning include the expansion of the M2-A zone in

the area north of Mt Pleasant Road, west of Hawleyville Road and south of

Interstate 84.

She suggested that the second rezoning phase include creating the Route 6

Design District north of Mt Pleasant Road near the Bethel town line.

As a third phase, she recommended rezoning the land which lies in the area

that is north of Mt Pleasant Road, east of the Route 6 Design District and

west of the M2-A zone. That land would be changed from its current R-1

residential zoning to the less dense R-2 zoning.

Ms Stocker said P&Z members will need to review the proposed new zone

boundaries, as well as review new zoning regulations for the M-2A zone and

Route 6 Design District zone.

Mr Fogliano said a P&Z committee will be formed to address the Hawleyville

rezoning project.

In a related matter, Ms Stocker told P&Z members that resident Steve Nicolosi

plans to apply to the P&Z to convert existing residentially zoned land off

Barnabas Road to a new zone type known as the Hawleyville Center Design

District (HCDD). The HCDD zoning designation was recommended for that general

area by the planning consultants who prepared the Hawleyville economic

development study that was endorsed by the P&Z in April 1998.

The P&Z has rebuffed three previous attempts by Mr Nicolosi to convert the

zoning for property off Barnabas Road from "residential" to "industrial." The

affected land lies between Barnabas Road and the Housatonic Railroad train

tracks in Hawleyville Center.

Economic Development

In April 1998, P&Z members backed an economic development study of Hawleyville

which foresees industrial, commercial and residential growth in that lightly

developed section of town near Exit 9 of Interstate 84. In endorsing the

"Interstate 84/Exit 9 Hawleyville Transportation and Development Study" P&Z

members made it an addendum to the 1993 Town Plan of Development and

Conservation.

The Hawleyville economic development plan expands upon and refines the 1993

Town Plan of Development and Conservation which calls for the

"industrialization" of Hawleyville.

The economic study analyzes Hawleyville's potential for economic development

through the year 2017. The study, which was prepared for the Housatonic Valley

Council of Elected Officials (HVCEO) by Barakos-Landino, Inc, of Hamden, finds

there is an opportunity for significant economic development, without

adversely affecting the basic character of Hawleyville or overburdening its

natural or built environment.

The study centers on a 1,200-acre section of Hawleyville, focusing on Exit 9

of Interstate 84. The planners suggest various development possibilities,

including: age-restricted housing, assisted-living facilities, medical office

space, single-family houses, mixed retail uses, corporate offices, a hotel,

conference center, open space land, a village center and industrial uses.

The proposed land uses would be created by private developers on

privately-owned land. The study describes the many road improvements which

would be needed in Hawleyville to facilitate its economic growth. HVCEO, which

oversaw the study's production, serves as the region's transportation planning

agency.

The planning study is based on the types of development which are logically

expected in Hawleyville due to market conditions and the limitations on the

land due to slopes, wetlands, soil types, and floodplains. In suggesting

several development scenarios for Hawleyville, the HVCEO is seeking to balance

the interests of developers, the town, and the region.

The Hawleyville study creates a conceptual framework, establishing a hierarchy

of planning policies to foster the controlled growth of that largely

undeveloped section of town. The study creates a public planning model for

future development, in effect, setting a municipal tone for economic growth.