With varied economic development as a goal, an engineering firm is proposing adding flexibility to the commercial/industrial zoning regulations by creating a zoning “design district” near the Exit 10 interchange of Interstate 84.

Solli Engineering, LLC, of Monroe is proposing the creation of the Exit 10 Commercial Design District (CDD) for land nearby that currently has B-2 (Business) and M-4 (Industrial) zoning.

The Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) has scheduled a public hearing on the zoning rule proposal for 7:30 pm, on Thursday, August 20, at Newtown Municipal Center, 3 Primrose Street.

The land affected by the proposal lies along both sides of Church Hill Road in the area between the eastbound lanes of I-84 and the Housatonic Railroad overpass. It also would affect land extending northward along the west side of Edmond Road.

Starting in 2016, the state Department of Transportation (DOT) plans to make a variety of road improvements along Church Hill Road, west of the Exit 10 interchange. That area has the town’s highest accident rate.

The $4 million project would include shifting the southern end of Edmond Road westward so that Edmond Road is part of a signalized four-way intersection with Church Hill Road and Commerce Road. The existing southern section of Edmond Road would be demolished.

Kevin Solli of Solli Engineering has submitted a proposed set of regulations for a CDD zone that would allow there to more different types of land uses than permitted by the current zoning regulations.

The P&Z already has several design districts, including the Sandy Hook Design District (SHDD) in Sandy Hook Center, the Hawleyville Center Design District (HCDD) in Hawleyville Center, and the South Main Village Design District (SMVDD) along South Main Street.

Such design districts generally allow more design flexibility in projects than allowed by conventional zoning regulations.

The design districts previously approved by the P&Z were based on sets of zoning regulations that town land use officials had formulated themselves, rather than being proposed by a private firm.

In its CDD zoning rule proposal, Solli would allow through the P&Z’s special permit process various principal land uses including: restaurants; restaurants with outdoor service and drive-throughs but excluding outdoor entertainment; hotels and conference centers with a maximum of 250 rooms; and financial institutions with or without drive-through facilities.

Also CDD zoning would allow the various permitted uses that the underlying B-2 zoning or M-4 zoning in the Exit 10 area would allow.

The proposed zoning rules include a lengthy section on drive-through windows at businesses.

The CDD application process would include review by the town’s Design Advisory Board (DAB).

According to the purpose and intent of the proposed CDD regulations, having such zoning rules in place would foster flexible development on land near the interchange of an interstate highway; would provide the P&Z with control over development while simultaneously encouraging mixed industrial, commercial, and business uses; and would ensure that development occurs with minimal negative effects on nearby areas and on natural resources.

Following a presentation of the proposed CDD zoning regulations by the applicant at the August 20 P&Z session, the public may ask questions about the proposal and comment on it.

The P&Z would later act on the proposal, either approving it, approving it with changes, or rejecting it.