Police Commission Conditionally Endorses Traffic Plan For Church Project

By Andrew Gorosko

The Police Commission has conditionally endorsed the traffic-control aspects of Grace Christian Fellowship’s proposal for a new church in Hawleyville.

Police Commission members, serving as the local traffic authority, on September 4 endorsed the traffic aspects of the church project, provided that the town fire marshal’s office approves the church’s proposal for a secondary accessway for emergency vehicles at the site.

Grace Christian Fellowship Church has submitted plans to the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) describing a new church that the group wants to build on a 13.7-acre site in a R-2 zone at 4 Covered Bridge Road in Hawleyville, near Exit 9 of Interstate 84.

The project is scheduled for an October 4 P&Z public hearing.

Last May, the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) approved a permit for regulated construction work at the site.

The congregation currently occupies a 13,500-square-foot church about one mile away at 174 Mt Pleasant Road (Route 6). The group wants to build a new larger church at Covered Bridge Road to meet the needs of its expanding congregation.

Plans submitted by the group call for a 32,191-square-foot church, of which 29,053 square feet represents the main level, 2,086 square feet would be covered space, and 1,052 square feet would be a mezzanine. The church would hold a main assembly hall containing 518 seats for church services, plus related facilities.

Vehicular access to the site would be provided via a curving driveway that enters the property directly from Hawleyville Road (Route 25). That driveway would intersect with Hawleyville Road approximately 350 feet south of the Exit 9 off-ramp of eastbound Interstate 84.

The driveway would have separate exit lanes for left-turning and right-turning vehicles. A stop sign would control traffic exiting the driveway. The driveway would cross a wetland on a bridge.

Emergency access to the site would be provided via Covered Bridge Road, a dead-end street that extends from the west side of Hawleyville Road.

Police Chief Michael Kehoe said September 4 that the area where the church driveway would intersect with Hawleyville Road has good sight lines for motorists.

Because Hawleyville Road is a state road, the State Traffic Commission will be reviewing the traffic aspects of the church proposal, Chief Kehoe said.

Police Commission Chairwoman Carol Mattegat said she would endorse the project provided that the fire marshal approves the church’s proposal for emergency vehicles’ secondary access to the site via Covered Bridge Road. Police Commission members concurred.

Traffic engineers Barkan & Mess Associates of Branford conducted a traffic study for the project. “The amount of new traffic added to [Hawleyville Road] will not adversely affect traffic operations in the study area,” according to the traffic engineers.

The site plan for the project calls for 156 marked vehicle parking spaces, situated around the church, plus areas where “pervious pavers” would be installed to provide several dozen spaces of overflow parking on the site. Such pavers are rigid enough to allow vehicles to park atop them, but contain holes to allow stormwater runoff to flow through them and enter the underlying soil.