Condo Developer Proposes

Pootatuck River Open Space Corridor

By Andrew Gorosko

The developer of a proposed age-restricted condominium complex off Oakview Road has offered to donate approximately 13 acres along the environmentally sensitive Pootatuck River as open space for passive recreation, as part of its plan to build 59 condos on a 51-acre site.

Engineer Thomas Daly, representing Toll Brothers, Inc, told Conservation Commission members at a June 8 public hearing that the developer is willing to designate as open space 13 acres comprising the riverbed of the Pootatuck River and adjacent land along the river, as part of its Regency at Newtown condo proposal for people over age 55. The development site is at 21 Oakview Road, near Newtown High School.

Such a donation of open space land would be made to the town or to a private land trust. A public accessway to such property would be determined by the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z), which makes decisions on open space acquisitions.

The Pootatuck River in that area is a Class 1 Wild Trout Management Area, one of only eight such fisheries in the state, where wild trout reproduce naturally due to cold, clear, clean water conditions.

The Conservation Commission, serving as the town’s wetlands agency, reviews the environmental aspects of construction proposals as they affect wetlands and watercourses. The Conservation Commission makes recommendations to the P&Z on open space acquisitions.

Earlier proposed as a 60-unit condo complex, Toll Brothers now proposes constructing 59 dwellings on the site. The elimination of one unit came in response to Conservation Commission members’ concerns about the possible destabilization of a steep slope. That construction work would have occurred within 100 feet of the Pootatuck River, which is an area regulated by the wetlands agency. 

Mr Daly said that redrawn plans for the project now have all the stormwater drainage that is collected from the roofs of the 12 buildings at the condo complex being diverted into stormwater control structures on the property. Earlier plans allowed some of that roof drainage to flow across the terrain.

Conservation Commission member Dr Philip Kotch asked whether the developer has experience in constructing multiple-unit buildings atop steep slopes, in asking for assurances that the structures would not slide westward down the steep slopes toward the Pootatuck River.

Dr Kotch expressed concerns about the presence of a series of retaining walls on the steep slopes, which although they are not within the 100-foot-wide regulated area near the Pootatuck River, might pose some slope hazards. He asked the developer to demonstrate that proposed construction work on the steep slopes will not adversely affect the Pootatuck River.

Toll Brothers representatives said they would make additional subsurface test borings on the site to ensure that soil conditions are suitable for the construction they propose.

James Belden of 2 Pumpkin Lane, representing Trout Unlimited, a private, nonprofit conservation group, said the stormwater control design for the project appears to be sufficient.

Mr Belden asked how much tree removal would be required for the construction project. He further recommended that any open space land on the site be clearly marked to make it obvious which land is open for public use.

Conservation Commission Chairman Sally O’Neil asked the developer whether removing mature trees from the site would create siltation problems in the Pootatuck River.

Mr Daly responded that tree removal on the site would be minimized. During construction work, measures would be taken to prevent drainage water from flowing down the steep slopes into the river to the west, he said.

Of the 51-acre site, 14 acres are steep slopes, Mr Daly said. About ten percent of those steep slopes, or 1.4 acres, would be regraded as part of the project, he added. The top ends of those slopes would be regraded.

The project would require five acres to be cleared of trees, he said. When completed, the site would have about five acres of new lawn, he added.

Environmental scientist William Root, representing Toll Brothers, said, “The river is going to be very sufficiently protected by the [construction] measures proposed.”

The project would be served by a public water supply and municipal sanitary sewers. The Conservation Commission’s public hearing on Regency at Newtown will resume on June 22.