On Church Hill Road—

Veterinary Hospital

Plan Progresses

By Andrew Gorosko

In their role as the borough’s planning commission, members of the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) have endorsed a proposal to convert some former Taunton Press office space at 52 Church Hill Road into a veterinary hospital.

P&Z members unanimously endorsed the conversion proposal at an August 4 session.

The application is scheduled for a Borough Zoning Commission (BZC) public hearing at 7:15 pm on Tuesday, August 16, at Edmond Town Hall, 45 Main Street. The applicant is seeking a special permit for the project from the BZC.

Philip Clark of Claris Construction Inc, representing the applicant, explained the building conversion proposal to P&Z members. Documents filed with the P&Z list the name of the firm seeking approval as Newtown Veterinary Specialists.

P&Z Chairman Lilla Dean noted that several previous attempts by the firm to create such a veterinary hospital in town have fallen through.  

In February 2010, the P&Z approved the construction of a new 16,500-square-foot building known as Newtown Veterinary Hospital for a 3.2-acre site at 164 Mt Pleasant Road. That project, however, never materialized.

Also, two previous attempts to create such a facility in Sandy Hook Center and inside Woodbury Hall at Fairfield Hills also failed to materialize.

In October 2008, the P&Z revised its zoning regulations to allow a multi-specialty veterinary hospital as a permitted land use at Fairfield Hills. But in November 2009, the Glen Mountain Holding Company, LLC, announced that it had failed to achieve financing for that project and had dropped plans for it.

In June 2007, the P&Z approved some zoning rule changes that would have allowed a veterinary hospital as a permitted land use in the Sandy Hook Design District (SHDD) in Sandy Hook Center. But plans for that facility there also fell through.

At the August 4 session, Mr Clark said the applicant has a lease signed with the owners of 52 Church Hill Road to rent the property. The 12-acre site is on the south side of Church Hill Road, immediately west of the Housatonic Railroad overpass.

The existing structure on the site would be modified and renovated to serve as a veterinary hospital, Mr Clark said. The site currently has 77 parking spaces.

George Benson, town director of planning and land use, noted that the BZC has modified its zoning regulations to allow a veterinary hospital as a permitted land use in the borough.

Ms Dean polled P&Z members, finding that they endorse converting the office building for use as a veterinary hospital.

According to documents filed with the town, the facility would be served by public water and public sewer service.

The Taunton Press formerly employed 85 people at the site. The veterinary hospital would have 26 workers. The facility would be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, allowing it to provide emergency care for pets.

The veterinary hospital project approved by the P&Z in February 2010, which was never built, involved a wide range of health services for pets, including emergency care, surgery, internal medicine, and cancer treatment, plus laboratory services.