Residents concerned about the potential negative effects of a major residential/commercial development proposed for a 35-acre site at 79 Church Hill Road this week explained to Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) members their environmental concerns about the project, which would create 224 rental apartments and more than 55,000 square feet of commercial space.

About 60 residents attended a February 14 IWC public hearing through which Trumbull-based development firm 79 Church Hill Road, LLC, is seeking a wetlands/watercourses protection permit for its Hunters Ridge proposal, where the residential/commercial access would be provided via four driveways extending from Walnut Tree Hill Road. There are about 275 property owners within 500 feet of the site who received formal notice of the IWC hearing by mail.

The Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) was scheduled to conduct three public hearings on the Hunters Ridge proposal on the night of February 15, after the deadline for the February 16 print edition of The Newtown Bee. (See related story.) The P&Z's review of such projects is much broader in scope than the IWC's, whose task is to prevent the contamination of wetlands and watercourses due to development.

At the February 14 IWC public hearing, representatives for the developer presented their general plans for protecting the environmental quality of three wetlands at the site.

Civil engineer James Swift, representing the developer, said that a large-diameter cross-country natural gas transmission line for the Iroquois Gas Transmission System bisects the site, noting that the buried gas transmission line's presence would figure into how the site is developed. The development site would have access to public water and natural gas lines, which exist beneath Walnut Tree Hill Road.

Mr Swift noted that the developer could pursue constructing as many as 370 rental apartments under applicable regulations, but has decided to proposed 224 dwellings. The 35-acre site would retain 15 acres of undeveloped area, he said. A walking trail would be blazed on the property, he added.

"I think we've done a very good job of keeping this [proposed construction] out of [environmentally] sensitive areas" and well away from wetlands, Mr Swift said.

Wetlands specialist Matthew Popp, representing the developer, presented information on wetlands protection at the site.

IWC members and town staff members requested additional technical information from the developer concerning groundwater quality, stormwater drainage, and soil conditions at the site.

Public Comment

James McManus, a Horseshoe Ridge Road resident who is a soil scientist, asked that the developer provide additional information to the town concerning soil testing at the site.

PJ Zeller of Old Farm Hill Road challenged the hydraulic data presented by the applicant and also raised issues about the project's effect on wildlife, and its effect on the Pootatuck Aquifer.

Duane Jones of Walnut Tree Hill Road noted that his domestic water well is in his front yard, across the road from the development site. He asked what effect a construction project would have on his well and his neighbors' wells. Mr Jones asked whether blasting would be needed for such development.

Virginia Gutbrod of Walnut Tree Hill Road raised issues about such a project's effect on local wildlife.

Attorney Peter Gelderman of Berchem Moses, PC, representing Responsible Development in Newtown (RDN), provided the IWC and the developer with an engineering analysis of the project's site design by Trinkaus Engineering, LLC, of Southbury.

That engineering study claims that the developer's IWC application does not include sufficient technical information for the IWC to evaluate the development proposal, among other criticisms. RDN is a citizens group concerned about Hunters Ridge's potential negative effects on the area.

Mr Gelderman presented IWC members with a petition from people concerned about the effects of the project. The lawyer added that the IWC cannot necessarily assume that Hunters Ridge would receive its requested municipal sanitary sewer service. The northern section of the site is within the town's "sewer avoidance area," he noted.

Mr Gelderman and attorney Mario Coppola of Berchem Moses are both representing RDN, according to RDN member Linda Jones of Walnut Tree Hill Road.

Beth Koschel of Evergreen Road raised concerns about her domestic water well being damaged due to the proposed construction project.

Kevin Koschel of Evergreen Road said, "There's just so many things that are wrong with this development." He said he is having his well tested to create reference statistics in terms of its yield and its purity. Mr Koschel urged the IWC to hire expert consultants to technically review the development application.

The IWC's public hearing on Hunters Ridge is scheduled to resume on March 14 at the Newtown High School lecture hall at 12 Berkshire Road.

Because it is proposed under the terms of the P&Z's Incentive Housing-10 (IH-10) zoning regulations, 20 percent of its dwellings, or 45 apartments, would be rented to income-eligible people as affordable housing at significantly lower prices than the 179 dwellings which would have market-rate pricing.

Also, IH-10 zoning allows such complexes to have a commercial component as an "incentive" for developers to create affordable housing. The developer thus proposes professional offices, a shopping center, and a restaurant.

The town, among other municipalities, is under a state mandate to increase its stock of affordable housing, as defined by state law.