54 Units Proposed—

Oakview Road Residents Raise Concerns

About Condo Complex

By Andrew Gorosko

Several Oakview Road residents have raised concerns about the possible adverse effects of a 54-unit age-restricted condominium complex that is proposed for that narrow, hilly, winding street near Newtown High School.

Those residents spoke at an October 20 public hearing held by the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) to field comments on Toll Brothers, Inc’s, proposal for Regency at Newtown at a 51-acre site at 21 Oakview Road.

Oakview Road links Berkshire Road to Wasserman Way and contains about a dozen houses. The road lies west of the high school’s new athletic field complex.

Aspects of Toll Brothers’ proposal for condo construction have been under consideration by various town agencies since February 2004. In an earlier version of the project, the developer had proposed constructing 80 condos. The developer is now seeking a special exception to the zoning regulations from the P&Z to build a 54-unit complex. The October 20 hearing is expected to resume on December 1.

After listening to a lengthy description of the construction proposal by several Toll Brothers representatives, resident James Knapp of 22 Oakview Road pointed out that the traffic study performed for the developer was conducted in the spring of 2004. Traffic flow has gotten heavier on Oakview Road during the past year, Mr Knapp said.

Mr Knapp predicted that despite measures that would be taken by the developer to shunt traffic traveling to and from the condo complex to the northern end of Oakview Road, motorists leaving Exit 11 of Interstate 84 will use Wasserman Way to reach the southern section of Oakview Road for access to the condo complex.

Mr Knapp proposed that the developer build a driveway to link the complex directly to Berkshire Road, instead of having the complex’s driveway intersect with Oakview Road.     

The Oakview Road resident said he has found many stone arrowheads in the Oakview Road area, pointing out that the area may have archaeological significance.

John Bickel of 17 Oakview Road said that the developer is seeking to “force fit” the complex onto the site, adding that it would be a high-density project served by the narrow Oakview Road.

Oakview Road was a dirt road until several years ago, when the town paved it after installing sanitary sewers beneath the road to provide sewer service to the nearby high school.

The narrow Oakview Road is a difficult road for motorists to travel, Mr Bickel said.

A 54-unit condo complex would become much more visible during the wintertime when trees are bare, Mr Bickel added.

Mike McCaffrey of 15-A Oakview Road told P&Z members that daytime traffic flow on Oakview Road has increased in volume.

Mr McCaffrey questioned the need for another local condo complex restricted to people over age 55, saying that the town already has such facilities.

Mr Knapp predicted that the town will be experiencing a “glut” of condo complexes for people over age 55.

Morgen McLaughlin of Alberts Hill Road criticized the architectural design of Regency at Newtown as proposed by the developer, terming it “cheesy.”

 People looking at the facades of the five-unit structures would see a multitude of garage doors, she said. Ms McLaughlin urged that the developer create a visually interesting design for the complex.

“They’re ugly. They’re ugly,” Ms McLaughlin said of the condo units as depicted in an architectural rendering presented to the P&Z by the developer.

P&Z member Lilla Dean pointed out that the P&Z does not have authority to oversee the architectural design of buildings, unless those buildings are located within a designated design district. Oakview Road is not within such a design district.      

 P&Z member Jane Brymer asked whether Toll Brothers’ architectural design could be submitted to the town’s Design Advisory Board for review.

P&Z Chairman William O’Neil responded that the advisory panel’s work involves reviewing commercial architecture, not residential architecture such as that presented by the developer.

      

Attorney Responds

In response to the public comments, attorney Robert Hall, representing the developer, said Toll Brothers would return to the P&Z with additional traffic flow information.

P&Z member Robert Mulholland urged that the developer perform another traffic count to gauge current traffic flow on Oakview Road.

Mr Hall pointed out that the developer agreed to offer open space land to the town along the Pootatuck River in response to river protection efforts by Trout Unlimited.

Toll Brothers will look into the archaeological aspects of the site, Mr Hall added.

Consulting engineer Tom Daly, representing Toll Brothers, said the state Department of Transportation (DOT) would not allow the developer to extend a driveway directly from the proposed complex to Berkshire Road. Also, a steep slope existing between the site and that road would pose difficult construction conditions for a driveway, he said.

Dan Walton, Toll Brothers’ project manager, said the condo units would have earth-tone coloration to soften the look of the complex.

In response to Ms McLaughlin’s criticism of the architecture, Mr Walton said that it is very expensive to build elaborate architecture in such a condo complex.

“We sell ‘curb appeal,’” Mr Walton said.

People want to live in attractive homes, but also do not want to spend a fortune to do so in their later years, Mr Walton said.

Mr Walton told P&Z members that he will provide them with more detailed plans on the complex.

The developer did not display any floor plans or elevation drawings at the October 20 session. Such plans are typically available at a public hearing.

Mr O’Neil asked the developer to better mark the site with stakes to allow P&Z members to the correlate the drawn construction plans with the actual terrain.

Construction Proposal

The developer proposes constructing 54 condominiums in 11 buildings on the site. Typical condos would contain 1,800 square feet of floor space and have two-car garages, according to the developer. All units would have full basements, with some units having walkout basements. The complex is designed for people over age 55.

A driveway would extend to the site from Oakview Road. A separate emergency accessway would connect to Oakview Road. The proposed condos would be arrayed around a private loop road. A spur road would extend from that loop road. Municipal sanitary sewers and a public water supply would serve the project. It would not have sidewalks.

About one-quarter of the site would be developed. Construction would occur on an upper plateau on the site.

Approximately 13 acres of open space land along the Pootatuck River on the western side of the site would be deeded to the town by the developer. The environmentally sensitive river is a spawning area for brook trout and is regulated by the state. Also, the developer would place an additional adjacent 8.4 acres under conservation easements, prohibiting any physical changes in that area.   

The project’s design would encourage all motorists entering and leaving the property to use the northern section of Oakview Road as a link to Berkshire Road, rather than using the southern section of Oakview Road, which connects to Wasserman Way near the often-congested Exit 11 interchange of I-84.

The developer has presented the P&Z with three alternate plans for linking the complex’s driveway to Oakview Road.

A stand of evergreen trees lying between the construction site and the eastbound lanes of I-84 would be partially removed to prepare the land for construction. The complex would be visible from I-84 and other areas, such as upper Wasserman Way.

“We’re not going to pretend it [complex] can’t be seen,” Mr Hall said.