Environmental Review—

Wetlands Agency Approves Retail/Office Building

By Andrew Gorosko

The Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) has approved a development application from a real estate firm that wants to construct a two-story commercial building in a B-2 (Business) zone at 164 Mt Pleasant Road.

IWC members unanimously approved the environmental protection aspects of the proposal at a February 11 session.

The project would now be subject to a site plan review by the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z).

Acme Realty of Scarsdale, N.Y., is seeking to construct a commercial building that would be suited for both retail and office uses. The B-2 zoning at the site allows for retail and general business uses. The structure would enclose roughly 30,000 square feet of space, according to architectural plans for the project.

Mike Struna, the owner/broker of Advantage Realty/Commercial of Bethel, represents the project for the applicant.

The 3.2-acre site, which is on the north side of Mt Pleasant Road, lies to the east of a long driveway that leads to the Homesteads at Newtown assisted-living complex.

Town Conservation Official Rob Sibley said this week that the applicant demonstrated that the project meets applicable state environmental guidelines.

Mr Sibley said the applicant also agreed to the IWC’s recommendations that “low-impact” development techniques be employed as an environmental safeguard. Such measures include constructing curbless parking areas, allowing stormwater to infiltrate into the soil through the turf, and allowing existing drainage patterns to remain in place on the site.

 Construction plans call for the removal of 920 cubic yards of earthen material from the 164 Mt Pleasant Road property to prepare it for construction.

The commercial building would be positioned at least 100 feet back from Mt Pleasant Road, and would be constructed at a slightly higher elevation than the street.

The site currently holds a vacant dilapidated single-family house, detached garage, and shed, which would be demolished to make way for new construction. The site is lightly wooded and has stone walls. The appraised value of the property is $737,174, according to town assessment records. Nuevo Pueblo, LLC, is listed as the owner.

Mr Struna has said the proposed building would likely hold a mixture of retail uses on the ground level and office uses on the upper level. The developer probably would not construct the building until tenants are committed to occupying the space, Mr Struna has said.

The application approved by the IWC concerns the construction of the commercial building, the creation of parking lots, the placement of a new driveway, and the installation of stormwater drainage facilities on the site. The project would be served by a public water supply and sanitary sewers.

A prime concern among IWC members was the quality of the stormwater that would be discharged from the site to a nearby wetland, with the goal of preventing any additional pollution from entering that wetland which lies south of the site.

In approving the environmental protection plans for the project, IWC members required that the erosion and sedimentation controls as illustrated on the project’s plans, and where deemed necessary by the conservation official, be installed on the site before construction starts and be maintained on the site as required by the conservation official.

Also, the conservation official must be notified one week before construction starts, and notified again when the project is completed.

A copy of the plans that were approved by the IWC must be kept on the site.

Also, the site plans may not be changed, unless modifications are requested by the applicant and approved by the town.