Criticism about the traffic effects and the size of a 74-unit condominium complex proposed for Washington Avenue in Sandy Hook Center has resulted in the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) seeking more technical information from the applicant on the project.

P&Z members held a public hearing on July 9 on the application from developer/builder Michael Burton of Sandy Hook, doing business as River Walk Properties, LLC, for the project known as The River Walk at Sandy Hook Village.

In 2009, Mr Burton gained P&Z approval to build a 24-unit condo complex there, known as The River Walk, but that project was never built due to the economic downturn.

Mr Burton is now seeking a special permit for the project under the terms of the Incentive Housing-10 (IH-10) zoning regulations, which the P&Z created in January. The project is the first application for an IH-10 multifamily housing complex that the P&Z has received for review.

In 2009, P&Z approved the 24-unit project under the terms of the Affordable Housing Development (AHD) zoning regulations. The AHD zoning rules do not allow the high construction density possible under the IH-10 regulations.

The River Walk project is proposed for the west side of Washington Avenue on seven lots totaling 11.8 acres. The parcels are #10 through #22 Washington Avenue. The site lies generally east of the meandering Pootatuck River, which is a trout stream.

Under the terms of IH-10 zoning, 15 of the 74 condo units would be designated as affordable housing, reserved for residency by low- and moderate-income people. The 15 units would be sold to eligible people at prices much lower than the 59 market-rate units.

The public policy goal of building such complexes is to provide diversity in the local housing stock.

The applicant has gained a preliminary approval for municipal sanitary sewer service for the project from the Water & Sewer Authority (WSA), and has received a wetlands/watercourses protection permit from the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC). The Police Commission, in its role as the local traffic authority, has endorsed the River Walk project.

The applicant made a two-hour presentation on July 9 to the P&Z explaining the many details of the proposed multifamily complex.

Project Details

The River Walk condo complex would include a meeting room, clubhouse, and fitness center for its residents. The complex would consist of two large buildings and five smaller buildings. A pressed-concrete sidewalk and decorative streetlights, similar in appearance to those present in Sandy Hook Center, would be extended along Washington Avenue to the condo complex to facilitate pedestrian traffic to and from the Sandy Hook Center businesses district.

P&Z members last week discussed technical aspects of the vehicle parking at the site, asking the applicant to provide more information. 

According to the applicant’s traffic engineering firm, the site would have two access points at Washington Avenue. The northern driveway would be only an entrance, while the southern driveway would function as an entrance and exit.

The entrance-only driveway would be located to the west of the Washington Avenue intersection with Crestwood Drive. The exit-entrance driveway would lie north of the Pearl Street-Washington Avenue intersection.

According to the traffic consultants, the nearby four-way signalized intersection of Washington Avenue, Riverside Road, Glen Road, and Church Hill Road currently has traffic delays during peak traffic-flow times. The presence of a new condo complex “will not have a significant [traffic] impact to the [four-way] intersection,” according to the traffic engineers. 

However, the presence of a condo complex would result in longer traffic delays for northbound vehicles on Washington Avenue, which are approaching that intersection during weekday morning peak traffic-flow times, they add.

The traffic engineers note that recent state improvements to the four-way intersection have enhanced overall travel safety and the functioning of that intersection.

P&Z Chairman Robert Mulholland said that the nearby Pearl Street serves as a travel shortcut for many motorists, adding that Pearl Street would experience an increase in traffic as a result of the River Walk project.

Architect Kevin Bennett, representing the applicant, termed the project “a residential design that would work in the Sandy Hook district.”

P&Z members Michael Porco, Sr, and Jim Swift expressed concerns about the height of a three-story apartment building that would be located near Washington Avenue.

Mr Bennett responded that appropriate landscaping would visually “break up” the mass of that structure.

The applicant is expected to provide P&Z with illustrations to show how that building would appear as seen from Washington Avenue.

“This building doesn’t lend itself to the area,” Mr Porco said.

Mr Mulholland added that reducing the proposed three-story structure to two stories could make for a significant visual difference. The zoning regulations on building sizes for Sandy Hook Center seek to maintain “a certain look,” he noted.

Public Comment

Patricia Goldbach of 4 Pearl Street told P&Z members that she is concerned about the prospect of increased traffic in her neighborhood due to the presence of a condo complex. Also, motorists tend to speed in the area, she said.

Ms Goldbach noted that drivers traveling in Sandy Hook often use Pearl Street as a shortcut. The residential Pearl Street connects Washington Avenue to Philo Curtis Road.

Ms Goldbach asked whether the development proposal includes a traffic signal for the intersection of Washington Avenue and Pearl Street. It does not.

Ms Goldbach noted that Pearl Street has no sidewalks, a feature that makes pedestrian travel safer.

She stressed that the presence of a condo complex will increase Pearl Street traffic.

Jean Sander of 211 Walnut Tree Hill Road said she is “adamantly opposed to this large development.”

Ms Sander said that Mr Burton “does beautiful work,” but added that “This is more than triple [the size of] the earlier [condo] approval.”

“This is going to be a huge complex, and I don’t feel this is going to be appropriate for our small village of Sandy Hook,” she said.

“This will increase existing traffic problems,” Ms Sander added.

Ms Sander she that she and another person had been circulating petitions and gathered 53 signatures of Sandy Hook residents against the construction proposal.

“We oppose the large number of units proposed,” she said.

Petition circulators will obtain more signatures, she said.

“It’s just the size, the humongous size,” she said.

Lincoln Sander of 211 Walnut Tree Hill Road told P&Z members that he does not oppose the type of housing proposed by Mr Burton, but he does oppose “the large size of this project.”

Constructing 24 condos or 38 condos at the site is more “realistic,” he said, adding, “The proposal is too big.”

Traffic in Sandy Hook has increased significantly, he said. The new Sandy Hook Elementary School building, which is now under construction at Dickinson Drive, will open in August 2016 and traffic in Sandy Hook Center will increase, he said.

Linda Jones of 16 Walnut Tree Hill Road questioned the size of the project, adding that existing construction density in the area is already an issue. Traffic in the area has increased, she said.

“I think parking is going to be a disaster,” she said of the River Walk proposal.

“This [project] is too big…It should be scaled down for the setting,” she said.

Rob Manna of 100 Glen Road, speaking on behalf of the Sandy Hook Organization for Prosperity (SHOP), voiced support for the River Walk project. SHOP is an organization comprising Sandy Hook Center business owners.

Robert Karl of 7 Washington Avenue asked P&Z members how the applicant could submit to the P&Z architectural drawings of the project which lack basic information on building dimensions.

After Sandy Hook School opens, traffic will increase in the area, he predicted. He also spoke in opposition to the three-story height of proposed construction.

“I oppose this. I just think downsizing would be more appropriate,” he said.

Sharon Doherty of 3 Fir Tree Lane said that the proposed condo complex would help the Sandy Hook Center economy. Ms Doherty is a member of SHOP, and is the proprietor of PJ’s Laundromat at 110 Church Hill Road. 

Victoria Drought of 78 Church Hill Road raised the issue of decreased property values stemming from the presence of the proposed complex.

Bryan Atherton of 7 Black Walnut Drive voiced his support for the River Walk proposal, adding that, “We need [construction] density.”

Mr Atherton, who is a real estate broker, told P&Z members that he represents 79 Church Hill Road, LLC. That firm has proposed a multifamily housing complex for 79 Church Hill Road, which is near Exit 10 of Interstate 84.

Joseph Tartaglia of 88 Church Hill Road said, “I think [more] traffic is good … I support this project and I think it’s very vital as a stimulus to this town.” Mr Trataglia is the proprietor of Figs Wood-Fired Bistro, a restaurant at 105 Church Hill Road. 

Mr Mulholland asked that the applicant provide additional information on “peak hour” traffic flow in the area near the development site. He also asked that the applicant provide information concerning existing traffic conditions on Pearl Street.

The applicant is expected to provide information about building dimensions on the architectural drawings, as well as more information about on-site parking facilities.

The P&Z public hearing on River Walk is scheduled to resume on August 6.

The River Walk development application to the P&Z is on file for public review at the Land Use Agency offices in Newtown Municipal Center, 3 Primrose Street.