To the Editor:

Mixed-use development at Fairfield Hills does not serve the interest of Newtown’s residents. Called the “new urbanism,” these projects attempt to reduce suburban sprawl and traffic gridlock by pairing commercial space with residential apartments to create a pedestrian-enabled lifestyle. They are strategically built next to retail centers with transit options. Sounds great — give up your car to shop and work where you live.

The problem is that we are a suburban community, whether we like it or not. Our retail is spread out through town and our transit system is nonexistent. Apartment dwellers will drive to work and to shop just like the rest of us, so mixed-use development only increases population density while failing to deliver on its objective. Envision all the people from apartments in Fairfield Hills traveling down Wasserman Way each morning and adding to the existing Exit 11 gridlock — in which case we would have only the failed promise of mixed-use to thank. Having lived through Sandy Hook’s transition from rural to suburban in my 47-year lifetime, it seems a bit premature to call Newtown urban. The solutions that may fit a city, simply do not match Newtown’s needs.

As we all strive to make Newtown attractive to companies and residents alike, I hope we understand the power of strategic differentiation. Trying to force-fit an urban center into Newtown feels very much like a second-rate “me too” strategy, replicating what’s fashionable elsewhere at the expense of the very asset that separates Newtown from its local competition: Fairfield Hills. I join many others in support of an entirely different vision: developing Fairfield Hills to serve the open space, passive and active recreation, cultural arts, and municipal needs of the town and its residents.

Imagine many years from now, a brilliant town center at Fairfield Hills. The jewel of Newtown, unlike anything offered by adjacent towns due to the availability of land, would be the first stop on any realtor’s tour. “The town had the wisdom to preserve the land for the people,” the realtors would boast. “There is a victory garden and trails for hiking, ball fields and pools, arts festivals and theater performances, book sales, road races, pumpkin displays, and more, all nestled in a 186-acre campus with town buildings.” The clients would beam in admiration of Newtown’s unique qualities that set it apart. Unknowingly, they would be thanking today’s residents for being smart enough to avoid being duped by a sexy urban trend, mixed-use, which does not fit Newtown and consumes town land at the town’s expense.

Let’s encourage economic development on private land along our main arteries and keep Fairfield Hills for the people. Once we “give away” (for $1 lease) town-owned land, we can never get it back. We need to chart our own path, not replicate Ridgefield or West Hartford. It may require time to realize the town center vision, but the future is in our hands. Say “no” to mixed-use housing at Fairfield Hills.

Kelley Johnson

16 Chestnut Hill Road, Sandy Hook            December 10, 2014