P&Z’s Work On Town Plan Update Progressing

By Andrew Gorosko

The Planning and Zoning Commission’s (P&Z) plans to complete its decennial update of the Town Plan of Conservation and Development appear to be on track, with completion of the wide-ranging document slated for the end of December.

Since early 2010, P&Z members have been working to revise the voluminous, comprehensive, advisory document, which provides the land use agency with general guidance in its decisionmaking.

The current town plan took effect in March 2004. Although the state requires municipalities to update their town plans or city plans at least once every ten years, local officials opted to expedite the process and produce a revised document by the end of 2012.

In the past, the town had hired planning consultants to manage the town plan revision project. The town paid approximately $100,000 in consulting fees for the town plan update that was published in 2004.

But due to municipal budget constraints, the current revision project is being handled by P&Z members and by town land use agency staff.

P&Z Chairman Lilla Dean said she expects that the town plan section on housing will be the subject of a public hearing soon, probably at a November 1 P&Z session.

Of the P&Z’s progress in revising the lengthy town plan, Ms Dean said, “In general, I think it’s going pretty well.”

P&Z members currently are working to update the town plan section on transportation, she said.

Other town plan sections yet to be considered cover land conservation and economic development, she added.

After the P&Z finishes its work on the town plan, the Legislative Council would review the document, Ms Dean said.

Ms Dean said the format of the revised town plan will be simpler than that of the current town plan. Town land use officials have said that a simpler format would make the document more usable.

George Benson, town director of planning and land use, said a draft version of the revised town plan would become available for review before the final version of the document is published. Besides printed copies, the completed document would be available on the Internet, he said.

During the ongoing town plan revision, Mr Benson, Ms Dean, and P&Z member Jane Brymer have met as a committee to review proposed text changes.

The 2004 town plan includes information on population growth, population change, household characteristics, housing growth, development patterns, development trends, community character, conservation, natural resources, open space, housing goals, economic development, community facilities, transportation, future land uses, parks/recreation, and the Borough of Newtown among many other subjects.

The P&Z often cites whether a given development proposal adheres to or conflicts with the tenets of the town plan when, respectively, approving or rejecting those development applications.   

The 2004 Town Plan of Conservation and Development is available for review at the town’s website on the Internet. The address is www.newtown-ct.gov/Public_Documents/NewtownCT_POCD/toc.