Costco Team Charts Wetlands Impact

The question is: Can Costco’s 44-acre commercial development be built without adversely impacting the on-site wetlands and the downstream properties?

The first session of public hearings conducted by the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) adjourned Thursday after about three hours. The Costco development team took most of that time to present their plans for the project, which include Costco and seven other commercial buildings at Exit 56. The team discussed wetlands and outlined a comprehensive stormwater management plan.

The development team said the projects will have a direct impact to on-site wetlands, but they will create new wetlands and enhance existing ones to compensate for the loss.

One issue not discussed Thursday was the amount of impact to buffer areas which surround the wetlands. That was one of the issues previously raised by consultants representing the Branford Land Trust.

IWC chair Daniel Shapiro (pictured standing) asked the peer review consultants Thursday to review the comments about buffers for their next report.

The IWC will resume the hearings Feb.11, and attorneys for the environmental groups will present their concerns. The peer review consultants hired by the IWC spoke briefly Thursday and will discuss their reports at the next meeting.

About 120 people attended the first session of the hearing, including a number of attorneys, engineers and consultants.

Town attorney Bill Aniskovich attended the hearing, as did First Selectman Jamie Cosgrove, who ran two years ago on a platform of bringing Costco to Branford.

No members of the public asked to speak when given the opportunity late in the evening when only a few residents remained. There will be additional opportunities for public comment at the next hearings.

The Role of the IWC

At the outset, Chairman Shapiro outlined the task of the commission and gave an overview of how the hearings will proceed.

“The commission aims to apply our regulations in a fair and uniform manner across the town, meaning everyone conforms to the same standards, none higher none lower,” Shapiro said.

The IWC was established in Branford in 1974 according to state regulation to protect and preserve inland wetlands and watercourses.

Shapiro said commission members must be “fair and independent” and not predisposed either for or against the projects, but make their decision based on facts presented during the hearings.

He also explained the standing of the two intervenors, the Branford Land Trust and the Branford Citizens for Responsible Development (BCRD), saying “They will be heard on equal standing with the applicants,” he said.

“We’re going to have a fair hearing for everybody involved, and hear anybody who wishes to be heard,” Shapiro said. He said the hearings will only involve wetlands issues and not issues like traffic.

“The purpose of the public hearing is a fact-finding mission,” Shapiro said, adding “it’s not to determine majority crowd sentiment.”

When Shapiro asked the commissioners if any had a conflict of interest, Richard K. Greenalch spoke up. “I think it’s best I step out at this time,” said Greenalch, who is an alternate recently appointed to the commission. He said he had expressed support for the Costco plans during the Planning and Zoning (P&Z) public hearings on the Master Plan last year. He also said he had worked for a construction company that could possibly be involved in the other seven buildings, which have not been identified.

That leaves the seven full members of the commission to hear the testimony.  Stephen Gangi, the other alternate, was not at the meeting, and there is a third alternate slot that is vacant.

In addition to Shapiro, the other IWC members present Thursday were John Rusatsky, Suzanne Botta, Peter Bassermann, James Killelea, James L. Goggin, and Merle Berke-Schlessel.

The Development Team

Costco attorney Thomas Cody (pictured), of the Robinson & Cole law firm in Hartford, began the power point presentation with an explanation of the three separate applications that represent the three undeveloped properties in the Master Plan.

The Planned Development District (PDD) and Master Plan were approved by the P&Z Commission July 9 by a 3-2 vote. Click here to read about that. 

The three undeveloped properties include properties owned by Wayne Cooke and the Cooke family corporations (the photo above shows the existing Hilltop property in the upper right hand corner) who own a 22.36-acre site where Costco plans to build; Charles E. Weber Jr. and Al Secondino, and their 595 Corporate Circle corporation, who own a 16.56-acre parcel where six buildings are proposed; and trustee Peter G. Mandragouras, who owns a 1.73 acre site, where one building is proposed. Here is the primary access road.

Cody said the site will be developed in at least three phases.

The development team discussed the Costco property, and then discussed the 595 Corporate Circle and trustee properties since the three hearings are separate but sequential.

The power point presentation and many other materials dealing with the Costco applications can be found on the website for the Inland Wetlands Department. 

Wetland Impacts

Michael S. Klein (pictured), a wetlands scientist with Environmental Planning Services LLC of West Hartford, gave an historical overview of the site, which has been used mostly for agricultural purposes. 

Klein, who has been studying the properties for 26 months, said they tested the soils to see if a project could be designed that would not increase the volume of stormwater discharge. He said the soils are very poor for stormwater infiltration. ​“We instituted an extensive boring program on the site,” he said, testing to see if infiltration was possible. He said the water does not perk into the soil ​“It’s really not feasible to develop a system that would provide for no volumetric increase in storm water discharge,” Klein said.

Members of the development team stated that the increase in stormwater volume discharge would not have an adverse effect.

Klein described the six wetland areas on the 44-acre site. He said Costco and the other buildings will result in direct wetland impacts totaling 4,960 square feet, and that the development team will mitigate that impact by creating new wetlands and enhance existing ones.

The IWC requires that wetland disturbance must be mitigated at a 2:1 ratio. Klein said the mitigation the Costco team is proposing is substantially more than they are required to do. The plans call for 9,900 square feet of wetland creation; and 22,550 square feet of enhancement, which are improvements to the existing wetlands. 

“We think this is an extraordinary plan that significantly increases the environmental quality and biodiversity of the property,” Klein said.

Stormwater

Michelle Carlson (pictured), an engineer with BL Companies in Meriden, reviewed the layout of buildings, parking, and the stormwater drainage and treatment measures.

“The proposed layout of the buildings, parking and circulation patterns are a result of a long process we went through to explore the various design alternatives, all with the goal of minimizing the wetland impact,” Carlson said. She described four alternative plans and the amount of direct wetland impacts with each, ranging from a high of 11,287 square feet, to a low of 4,960 square feet for the plan that was chosen.

Although not mentioned at Thursday’s hearing, the IWC in 2008 rejected a proposal to build a shopping complex on Cooke’s property because it involved the loss of 7,740 square feet of wetlands. That proposal was made by Churchill and Banks developers of Rhode Island. That proposal did not involve any additional properties. Click here to read that story. 

Carlson said the Costco property includes 3,468 square feet of direct wetland impacts; the 595 Corporate Circle plan has 1,492 square feet of direct wetland impacts; and the trustee property has no direct wetland impacts. She said there would be work in the upland review area (the buffer areas) for the trustee property, but did not give the amount of disturbance.

She also said the team reduced the amount of impervious surface (paving and building areas) as requested by P&Z during the hearings on the Master Plan. The town requires a maximum impervious surface ration of no more than 60 percent. She said the plan now has a ratio of 59.6 percent. Costco’s proposed 158,000 square feet warehouse calls for 638 parking spaces.

Carlson discussed the proposed stormwater drainage system. She said the plans were developed based on 10-year storms, as required, but they also looked at the figures for 100-year storms. “Even in a 100-year storm event, none of the roads will be overtopped” by stormwater with the new system, Carlson said.

“The stormwater is ultimately being put into the existing municipal system on East Industrial Road,” she said.

“It’s our professional opinion that the increase in the volume from the site will not have any adverse downstream impacts on stormwater conveyance systems,” Carlson said.

She described the onsite stormwater system and treatment system, the landscape plan, and the erosion sedimentation control plan. She said they will keep all excavated soils onsite and will not export them to other locations. The stormwater system will include catch basins, hydrodynamic separators, sediment forebays, micro pools and stormwater management basins.

Carlson said the stormwater from the site eventually drains to the Branford River Watershed and the South Central Shoreline Watershed.

Carlson mentioned the peer review comments submitted by Milone & MacBroom consulting company in the initial review. ​“It’s our opinion that the comments were minor in nature,” she said, and that some changes were made to the plans as suggested.

Buffers?

One issue not discussed Thursday night was how the projects will impact the buffer areas which surround the wetlands. Buffers are also known as upland review areas, which are the 100-foot areas surrounding wetlands.

The buffer impact issue was raised in a letter from attorney Timothy B. Yolen, of the Yolen & Perzin law firm in New Haven, who represents the Branford Land Trust. The letter was sent to the IWC last week when the Land Trust requested to intervene in the proceedings. The IWC granted that status Thursday night.

In his letter, Yolen cited reports from Dr. Peter Raymond, professor of Ecosystem Ecology at Yale; and LANDTECH, an environmental engineering firm from Westport, that was hired as consultants by the Land Trust. Both expressed concerns about the amount of wetland buffers that will be paved for parking lots and access roads. Among other concerns expressed by LANDTECH in the letter was that ​“A large proportion of the existing vegetated wetland buffer around the site’s wetlands will be replaced with paved parking areas and access ways. In some areas, there will be no remaining wetland buffer. In many areas, remaining buffers will be less than 20 feet in width.”

The full reports from the Land Trust’s consultants are expected to be filed with the IWC no later than five business days before the next hearing.

The Land Trust requested intervenor status out of concern for the environmental impact of the Costco complex. Click here to read that story. The Land Trust owns 22 properties that are downstream from the proposed development site, including the 104-acre Van Wie Woods and Van Wie Pond.

A grassroots group of residents, Branford Citizens for Responsible Development (BCRD), were granted intervenor status last month. They are represented by Attorney Keith Ainsworth, an environmental attorney with Evans, Feldman & Ainsworth law firm in New Haven.

Following the Costco presentation Thursday, both Ainsworth and Yolen (pictured L-R)  told the IWC they would prefer to make their full presentations at the next hearing since it was getting late.

Peer Reviews

Shapiro asked the peer review consultants from Milone & MacBroom to make a few remarks about their initial findings. The engineering and environmental company, based in Cheshire, was hired by the IWC to compile a peer review of Costco’s plans. As is customary, the fees for peer reviews are paid by the applicant, which in this case is Costco.

Ted Hart, an engineer with Milone & MacBroom, said he has not had sufficient time to review the responses from Costco to their initial peer report, and that they will be submitting another report soon.

Shapiro asked the peer review consultants to review and comment on the remarks about buffers that were made by the interveners. “What’s the effect of activities in upland review areas and how does that tie to an effect in the wetlands?” Shapiro asked.

In general, the IWC has a timeframe for conducting public hearings, but that may be extended if the applicants agree. After the hearings are complete, the IWC will deliberate and discuss the issues before reaching a decision.

If the IWC approves the Costco projects, the site plans must then be reviewed by the P&Z Commission, which would also hold public hearings.

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