Urging The Borough Zoning To Vote ‘No’ On Castle Hill
To the Editor:
The Borough zoning meeting on 11/20 regarding the proposed 117 cluster home development off of Castle Hill Road was the last meeting for public participation before the board decides the fate of 100 plus acres of heavily forested land and meadow land sitting within the one mile square region known as the Borough. I don’t envy their task. The developer has shown up at each and every meeting with a full staff of paid professionals to assure their plan is heard and to try and allay any fears that the plan is ill conceived — from a traffic standpoint, from an environmental one, from tax burden to the town, from a historic preservation one etc…
Many residents have showed up at meetings to help bring some sense to this overly aggressive plan to develop this land. There is no price tag one could put on the value of the forested land that the developer is proposing to raze and forever change. The disregard to cut and destroy these native forests and open meadow/shrub land is completely lost on me and many others.
If developers had a much better track record, assuring careful protection of the land from the impacts of development, then there would be very little to worry about. Unfortunately, many residents are worried as there are far more questions than answers.
In contemplating this land, here are my unanswered questions:
Why should the rights of a landowner usurp the common good of the rest of the population and degrade the water, views, and traffic?
Why don’t the folks downhill of the development have a much louder and more powerful say in the matter?
Do we still need these homes with the other housing developments scheduled to happen in Fairfield Hills and at Exit 9 to accommodate our growing population?
How does destroying 30 plus acres of trees and wildlife fit within the POCD for the town?
Why not try to build extremely eco-sensitive homes taking into account the best in low impact development?
What else can be done with this land?
There are many more…
Why are we so passionate about this land?
Well, the land also comprises open pasture/field land which comprises shrub land and a vital habitat for our native birds — which is why places like Bent of the River and Holcombe Hill in town are so critical. This type of shrub land habitat is the most scarce in our region and one reason why bird populations have plummeted according to The Audubon center.
It is a sad state of affairs when the rights of landowners to develop takes precedence over the destruction of an intact environment — to which there are fewer and fewer places to be set aside — especially in the Borough. To the Borough Zoning Commission, please vote no on this current proposal. Put the onus back on the developer to either come back with a less aggressive plan or let them pack it up and take their plan somewhere else.
Thank you,
Dan Holmes
Newtown
“Why should the rights of a landowner usurp the common good of the rest of the population and degrade the water, views, and traffic?” Simple – because the the landowner purchased the land and may dispose of it as they wish (in a manner consistent with zoning regulations). Feel free to get your nimby friends to pony up the cash, buy it and deed it over to the town.
I wonder if you are capbale of making a comment without calling people names? I also wonder if you even know what ‘nimby’ stands for (the Borough is in all of our back yards – SMH)? Finally, I wonder if you are even aware that some well-funded neighbors did make an offer on the property, for 2X what the owners paid for it….and the greedy owner/developer wouldn’t even come to the table to consider it…..
Would be nice if those posting would use their names. 1st I heard of a 2x offer, can you back that up with proof, and the details?
Dear Wingeey,
Can you be more specific about the amount offered and, if possible, when the offer was made? Thanks!
FYI: According to Town records, the 2013 purchase price was about $3.6M. According to https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm, $3.6M in 2013 is equivalent to just over $4.9M in 2024 dollars.
Quite aware of what nimby means, and in this instance its used as an adjective and not a noun – so there was no name calling. If the land was so important to you and your (adjective utilization) nimby friends you should have bought it BEFORE it was sold to the developer. Developers don’t make money engaging in undeveloped land transfers. So the train had long left the station by the time the “well-funded” neighbors allegedly offered that money.
Bruce is making his list and checking it twice…
Bingo!
It is fair to say if you disagree with Bruce your name is on a list.
Actually Bruce, it’s pretty easy to figure out who wingeey is- he writes a fair number of letters to the Bee on this subject and when commentators rub him the wrong way he’ll show up post haste to engage.