The developer of a retail center under construction at 73-75 Church Hill Road, near Exit 10 of Interstate 84, is making some revisions to its pedestrian/traffic flow plans for the 3.3-acre site in view of Planning & Zoning Commission (P&Z) members’ public safety concerns.

Kevin Solli of Solli Engineering LLC of Monroe, representing developer Sunrise Church Hill Road LLC, at a December 20 P&Z public hearing discussed at length with P&Z members the developer’s request to increase the number of approved parking spaces at the site by more than half and to install two drive-up automatic teller machines (ATM).

P&Z members learned that the state Department of Transportation (DOT), which has jurisdiction over Church Hill Road (US Route 6), last April decided that the complex’s primary access point at Church Hill Road would be limited to vehicles entering, but not exiting, the property. When P&Z members had initially approved the project in October 2016, the developer’s plans called for traffic to enter and exit the property at that planned Church Hill Road driveway, which would be controlled by an existing traffic signal.

The December 20 hearing, following one on December 6, concerned the developer’s request for a modified special zoning permit to intensify development at the site. Sunrise Church Hill Road LLC is seeking P&Z approvals to increase the overall size of the structures built there from 12,170 to 12,227 square feet, increase the number of parking spaces from 74 to 113 spaces, and install two ATMs, among other requests. The 39 additional parking spaces would increase the paved area at the site by about 0.34 acres.

The 39 additional parking spaces would be constructed in the area that formerly held the southern end of Edmond Road. That road section was demolished as part of an ongoing DOT intersection realignment project. The new southern end of Edmond Road has been shifted to the west, connecting to Church Hill Road in the area between Newtown Pizza Palace and Wheels gas station/convenience store.

Flexibility

Mr Solli told P&Z members that by adding more parking spaces to the site, the developer would increase the property’s flexibility in terms of its business uses. “There aren’t any adverse (traffic) impacts associated with this development,” he said.

The developer has told P&Z members that the uses currently planned for the retail center require that there be 113 parking spaces at the site under the terms of the applicable zoning regulations.

P&Z member Corinne Cox, however, expressed concerns about traffic flow patterns there.

The project’s design meets applicable standards, Mr Solli replied, adding he does not expect there would be any traffic problems.

P&Z member Robert Mulholland, however, pointed out that when the P&Z approved the initial plans, the main driveway at Church Hill Road was planned as a two-way driveway, but now it is planned for entry-only. P&Z members were not notified after the DOT placed that restriction on the driveway, he said. A secondary access point at the property would be a two-way driveway that would connect the site to the new section of Edmond Road.

P&Z member Jim Swift asked about traffic control signs that would be posted on the property. If requested, the developer could install some “stop signs” on the site for traffic control, Mr Solli said.

Mr Mulholland pointed out that the retail center’s planned main parking area does not indicate crosswalks for pedestrians to use when crossing the parking lot between their parked vehicles and the retail building.

Mr Swift said the retail project is designed to attract motorists who are driving through Newtown on I-84. “I think it’s too intensive a use of this site,” he said of the project’s design.

Rob Sibley, town deputy planning director, said that the town Land Use Agency in April endorsed the DOT’s decision to allow entering traffic only at the Church Hill Road driveway .

Mr Solli told P&Z members that the retail center project has undergone extensive local regulatory review. The developer has received a modified wetlands protection permit from the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) for the expanded parking facilities, he noted.

Design Changes

Mr Solli said the developer would add directional signage for traffic flow on the site in light of the P&Z’s safety concerns. Such features would include a sign stating that traffic cannot exit the property onto Church Hill Road and also a stop sign to control traffic flow, he said.

Also, the developer would modify the design for a sidewalk in view of P&Z members' concerns about potential motion conflicts between pedestrians and motorists entering the site via the Edmond Road driveway to use the ATM's, Mr Solli said.

“This (design) is not safe,” Mr Mulholland observed, commenting on the flow of traffic on the site in relation to pedestrians seeking to cross that flowing traffic to reach a planned 100-seat restaurant there. In response, Mr Solli said the flow of traffic onto the property would not be high.

Of the DOT’s restricting the Church Hill Road driveway to entry-only traffic, P&Z Chairman Don Mitchell said, “It’s just kind of an unexpected complication to the traffic pattern... I have a problem with the internal circulation.”

P&Z member Benjamin Toby suggested that some of the parking spaces proposed for the area near Church Hill Road be eliminated for the sake of public safety. “I think the [traffic] flow thing is a big deal,” he said.

P&Z members expressed concerns that some drivers may attempt to exit the site via the Church Hill Road driveway, resulting in vehicular confusion.

Mr Swift expressed concerns that the mix of tenants that the developer now lists for the site is different than what had been stated before the initial approval. Initially, the developer said the project would hold a coffee shop with drive-through window service and store space. The project is now described as containing a coffee shop with drive-through service, a large restaurant, a pizzeria, a bank, and some store space.

“What a poor design this is, now that this [driveway] is one-way,” Mr Swift said.

“What can we do to [keep] pedestrians from getting hit and drivers from hitting them?” Mr Mitchell asked.

“It’s just going to cause problems,” Mr Mulholland said of the traffic design.

Initially, Mr Solli had sought P&Z action on December 20, but at the P&Z’s request, he granted a time extension for their review of the project. He said he would return to the P&Z on January 3 with some revised plans for the project.

In 2016, the developer sought and received P&Z approval to create a new zone, known as the Exit 10 Commercial Design District (X10-CDD), which allows the project to be constructed at 73 Church Hill Road, which has underlying M-5 (Industrial) zoning, and at 75 Church Hill Road, which has underlying B-2 (General Business) zoning.

Through that X10-CDD zoning designation, the developer gained P&Z approval for drive-through window service at a Starbucks coffee shop to be located at the northwest corner of the retail building. That 2016 development approval was the first time since 1958, when town zoning went into effect, that the P&Z has approved drive-through window service for an eatery.