Curtis Corporate Park—

P&Z Continues Review Of Lumberyard Proposal

By Andrew Gorosko

In response to nearby residents’ concerns, the applicant for a lumberyard at Curtis Corporate Park has provided the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) with details on how the lumberyard would affect people living nearby.

At an August 17 public hearing, engineer William Carboni of Spath-Bjorklund Associates, Inc, of Monroe, representing the applicant, provided those details to P&Z members as a result of concerns that were expressed by some residents of the adjacent 20-lot Quarry Ridge Estates residential subdivision at an August 3 hearing.

Both the industrial park and the residential subdivision are located on an expanse of land that was formerly mined by Newtown Sand & Gravel. The P&Z approved the industrial park in January 2001, and then approved Quarry Ridge Estates in March 2002.

Stock Building Supply, Inc, wants to create the lumberyard on Turnberry Lane, off Toddy Hill Road in Sandy Hook. The firm wants to convert the 30,184-square-foot building that has been used as a furniture warehouse by La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries for lumberyard use, as well as construct lumber storage structures on an adjacent lot.

The site lies north of the turnaround circle at the end of Quarry Ridge Road. The proposed lumber storage facilities would lie to the east and southeast of what has been the La-Z-Boy warehouse.

The 5.5-acre development site is at #2 and #6 Turnberry Lane. It has M-4 (Industrial) zoning, where a lumberyard is a permitted land use. The North Carolina-based company sells building supplies and tools to contractors. The firm operates more than 250 outlets in 30 states. The large majority of Stock’s business involves the sale and delivery of building materials to contractors.

Neighbors’ Concerns

On August 17, Mr Carboni addressed the concerns that were expressed by nearby residents at the August 3 hearing, including noise, traffic flow, nighttime lighting, sun glare, fencing, and lumber storage.

 The existing building on the site would be used for lumber storage, sales areas, and vehicle parking. A new drive-through storage building would be constructed, as well as adjacent storage structures. The lumberyard’s operating hours would be 6:30 am to 5 pm on weekdays, and 8 am to noon on Saturdays.

Besides the several trucks that would deliver stock to the lumberyard daily, other trucks would transport stock from the lumberyard to area contractors, Mr Carboni said. Other traffic would include customers who drive to the lumberyard.

The lumberyard would be enclosed by a green six-foot-tall chain-link fence capped with rows of barbed-wire for security purposes, he said.

The roofs on structures at the facility would be designed to limit sun glare, he said.

The applicant’s interpretation of applicable zoning regulations determined that fuel storage would be allowed at the site, Mr Carboni said. Stock wants to store diesel fuel on in the site in a 2,000-gallon above-ground tank. Such fuel would be used by delivery trucks and lumber forklifts used at the site.

At the August 3 hearing, P&Z member Lilla Dean questioned the wisdom of storing diesel fuel at the environmentally sensitive site, saying that she would research fuel tank issues. Ms Dean did not attend the August 17 session.

The project would have no significant effect on groundwater quality in the area, Mr Carboni has said, noting that safety features would be installed on a fuel storage tank.

The site is above the Pootatuck Aquifer and located in the town’s environmentally sensitive and use-restricted Aquifer Protection District (APD).

Mr Carboni pointed out that although it is recommended by the federal government, the use of “back-up beeper” warning devices is not required on forklifts when they travel in reverse.

The nearest house in the Quarry Ridge Estates subdivision is about 260 feet away from the area where the lumberyard noise would be generated, he said.

The noise levels at the lumberyard would not be unreasonable for an industrial park, he said. Also, the amount of traffic traveling to and from the site would be “reasonable” considering its use as a lumberyard, he said.

P&Z member Robert Mulholland pointed out that forklift noise would involve a “high, shrill obnoxious beep-beep” sound when the vehicles are backing up.

P&Z Chairman William O’Neil noted that the town zoning enforcement office would seek to have the nearby Curtis Packaging Corporation cut the glare that emanates from new nighttime lighting fixtures that have been installed at its factory parking lot, in response to a Quarry Ridge Estates resident’s concerns expressed at the August 3 hearing.

Mr Carboni stressed that the proposed lumberyard is a permitted use in a M-4 zone. “This is an allowed use at an industrial park,” he said.

Nighttime illumination at the lumberyard would be limited, he said. Trees would be planted on the site to visually buffer the view of the lumberyard.

Public Comment

During the public comment section of the August 17 hearing, two Quarry Ridge Estates residents expressed concerns about a lumberyard’s negative effects on the neighborhood.

Richard DeWald of 5 Quarry Ridge Road said his primary concern is the noise that would emanate from a lumberyard. “There’s a question of residential character,” he said.

The lay of the land in that area constitutes an “amphitheater,” he said. The area consists of a large basin that was created after years of surface mining by Newtown Sand & Gravel.

Mr DeWald asked whether Stock would employ a public address system on its premises. He also asked whether Toddy Hill Road could adequately handle the increased flow of truck traffic related to a lumberyard.

Mr DeWald urged P&Z members to consider the concerns of Quarry Ridge Estates residents when reviewing Stock’s application for a special permit.

Robert Brown of 15 Toddy Hill Road, which is located in the Quarry Ridge Estates subdivision, said Toddy Hill Road already carries heavy traffic, and a lumberyard would generate more traffic in the area.

Mr Brown said he is concerned that added traffic and increased noise levels would adversely affect the neighborhood. The basin-shaped area is echo-prone, he said.

The back-up beepers on forklifts would pose noise issues, he added.

In response to the residents’ concerns, Mr Carboni said he does not know if Stock would use a public address system at the lumberyard.

Industrial parks generate traffic and noise, he said, noting that the proposed lumberyard would be an industrial use within an industrial zone.

P&Z members closed the public hearing on the Stock application, and are expected to act on it at an upcoming session.