P&Z Backs Borough Village DistrictZoning Rule Changes

By Andrew Gorosko

Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) members have endorsed the Borough Zoning Commission’s proposed revisions to its Village District zoning regulations –– the set of land use rules that are intended to keep future commercial development in the borough in “aesthetic harmony” with existing architecture.

P&Z members on November 20 endorsed the proposed Village District zoning rule changes without opposition. The endorsement came with minimal discussion. The P&Z serves as the borough’s planning agency, and makes recommendations on proposed borough zoning rule changes.

The initial Village District regulations, which the borough zoners approved last May, are intended to preserve the appearance of borough areas with “business” and “professional” zoning designations. The rules seek to “protect the distinctive character, landscape, and historic values” of the area by placing various restrictions and controls on commercial development.

The pending proposed changes to the Village District regulations concern how the borough zoners interpret their regulations, how public views in the area would be maintained, and also address nighttime illumination standards, according to Borough Attorney Donald Mitchell.

Mr Mitchell has told P&Z members that procedural questions have arisen about the legal validity of the Village District zoning regulations. While some borough commercial property owners are making plans for new development, those legal questions linger, he said. Those questions have prompted the borough zoners to seek reenactment of the rules, with some revisions, according to Mr Mitchell.

Following the initial Village District rules’ passage last spring, borough commercial property owners filed three lawsuits in Danbury Superior Court in seeking to overturn the rules. The property owners claim that the regulations are vague, would damage development potential, and hurt property values.

The lawsuits were filed by Pepper Partners and CPCI, which own commercial real estate on Church Hill Road; Eton Centers, LLC, which owns the shopping center at 5 Queen Street that formerly housed a Grand Union supermarket; and by Robert Hall, who owns the Newtown General Store building at 43 Main Street.

Areas covered by the Village District overlay zone include properties with “business” and “professional” zoning designations lying along both sides of Church Hill Road between the Housatonic Railroad overpass and Wendover Road; areas with “business” zoning lying along both sides of Queen Street between its intersection with Church Hill Road and the traffic signal at the main entrance to Newtown Shopping Village; and the several individual properties with “business” zoning lying along the west side of Main Street between Newtown General Store and the intersection of Main Street and Sugar Street.

A 1998 state law allows zoning commissions to create specialized zoning districts, in which the aesthetic aspect of areas that are visible from public roads may be controlled through zoning regulations.