Following environmental review at an August 22 session, Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) members approved wetlands/watercourses permits for separate projects at Lake Road and at Zoar Road.

After discussion, IWC members approved a development proposal from applicant Seelena Genna for 32 Lake Road, near the shoreline of the Lake Lillinonah section of the Housatonic River. The 2.01-acre property is on the northern end of Lake Road, near its northern intersection with Hanover Road.

Landscape architect Stephen Wing described the project to IWC members, according to IWC records. Mr Wing said he has been discussing the project with FirstLight, the electric utility that uses Lake Lillinonah as a reservoir for generating hydrolectric power downriver at Shepaug Dam.

The project includes constructing a retaining wall or seawall along Lake Lillinonah; building a 1,000-square-foot sitting area nearby; planting some vegetation, including flowering plants and trees; and installing stone material at an upper driveway. The four-foot-tall retaining wall would be built this fall when FirstLight draws down the water level in the lake. The project would be completed next spring.

Erosion and sedimentation control devices would be installed at the project.

IWC members approved the project, placing eight technical conditions on the planned construction work. Voting in favor were Chairman Sharon Salling, Craig Ferris, Michael McCabe, and Vanessa Villamil.

In other action, the IWC approved an application from Jonathan S. Bond, Sr, to dredge a pond at 17 Zoar Road in Sandy Hook. The pond is on rural property owned by Applebury Pastures LLC, which owns more than 100 acres in that area. Zoar Road is a dirt road that links Berkshire Road to Bennetts Bridge Road.

Mr Bond told IWC members that due to current high water conditions, the dredging would occur when the water level drops, possibly next year.

After discussing environmental protection measures to control erosion and sedimentation, IWC members unanimously approved Mr Bond using an excavator to dredge the pond, placing eight technical conditions on that work.

Also, applicant David Basak-Smith has withdrawn from IWC review a proposal to create a five-foot-wide switchback trail through existing vegetation on a steep 1.17-acre property at 71 Lakeview Terrace, near Lake Zoar.

The application had been on the IWC agenda for the past several meetings, but was repeatedly postponed at the applicant’s request. A resubmission is expected in the future.