The Planning and Zoning Commission is fine-tuning proposed zoning regulations in response to requests from residents for more control over bed and breakfast establishments and restrictions on blasting on the Thimble Islands.
The commission also discussed whether there is a need for additional design controls for single-family homes and if new retail establishments should have more green space.
Several residents expressed concerns during a public hearing when the first draft of the regulations was unveiled in June. Others contacted the commission following the hearing. The P&Z has been working to overhaul the regulations for several months, along with consultant Jason Vincent of Planimetrics.
“This has been a huge undertaking and I appreciate how hard our commission works and Jason too,” said Town Planner Shirley Rasmussen during a July 22nd work session.
“The light is at the end of the tunnel,” Vincent assured the commission.
The nearly 200-page draft of the regulations will be discussed again at the P&Z meeting on Sept. 16 and at a public hearing to be scheduled in October. Several changes were made to the draft in direct response to recent public input.
The issue of bed and breakfasts has been a thorny one since there are currently no regulations regarding their establishment. They presently fall under a loosely regulated definition of “roomers and boarders.” However, the new regulations would create a distinct category for bed and breakfasts.
Commission member Charles Andres was concerned about possible loopholes where people could claim they were only serving “boarders” and were not subject to P&Z regulations for bed and breakfasts.
Vincent said bed and breakfast facilities are business operations that clearly differ from homes that offer long-term rental. “The (new regulations for) bed and breakfasts give you a little more control,” he said.
A request at the public hearing to eliminate blasting and excavation on the Thimble Islands resulted in a proposed change that restricts blasting. Rasmussen said that blasting was done on Cut-in-Two Island West in order to excavate a basement. Cut-in-Two is one of ten islands owned by Christine Svenningsen.
When the developer brought plans for Cut-in-Two Island East earlier this summer, the P&Z asked that no blasting be done and the developer agreed. The home will not have a basement. The owner-developer is listed as John G. Chiarella, Jr., a landscaping entrepreneur, who married Svenningsen in June.
“We have a very scarce resource in these granite islands, so we should not blast them apart,” Rasmussen said.
“The islands are listed as a resource and we are required to protect them,” said commission member John Lust.
The Thimble Islands do not have special zoning and are designated as residential areas. “At one point we considered creating an island overlay zone but decided not to do it,” Vincent said.
People at the hearing also asked that solar panels on island homes be restricted because of glare issues.
Bill Tower, a Stony Creek resident who has a house on one of the Thimbles, asked for no blasting, no wind farms, no solar panels and a new notification system for island residents when work would be done on another island. Rasmussen said that island residents as well as anyone else could sign up for automatic e-mail notifications for meeting agendas, zoning hearings and other proposals via the town’s website .
Lust said the state Department of Environmental Protection is currently restricting the connection of new utilities on the islands. He said islanders will have to look at other energy alternatives if they need increased service. He said solar panels are becoming more prevalent throughout the state.
Vincent said the issue of solar panels will not be addressed in the new regulations.
The P&Z also said it would not be feasible to regulate architectural design of single-family residences, as was requested by some Stony Creek residents.
Vincent said such issues are not under the P&Z jurisdiction. The commission typically regulates design of commercial and retail structures. Vincent also said it may not be feasible for Stony Creek to be designated as a Village District, as was requested at the hearing.
“Design is important,” said Ellsworth McGuigan, who chairs the P&Z Commission. But he said that the P&Z members are not architectural specialists. He said a commission or committee could possibly be formed for the town or for specific neighborhoods.
Rasmussen said the new regulations will help with “some basic principles” regarding design, and suggested that an architectural review board could be created at a later date.
In regard to retail and commercial entities, the proposed regulations require fewer parking spaces than the current codes. The commission discussed whether it would be beneficial to add stipulations that new site plans must include additional green space and landscaping since there would be less pavement.
Andres said that unless the code is specific about green space, developers might increase the size of the building or paved area.
“It would be nice to convert the parking space (currently required) to landscaping,” Vincent said.
Rasmussen suggested looking at other towns to see how they deal with green space and parking requirements. Branford’s current parking space requirements are higher than surrounding towns.
Another change enacted was a reduction of the notification requirement for abutting neighbors when a property or zone change is proposed at an adjacent site. The commission agreed to reduce the 500-foot notification requirement to 100 feet.
Build wind mills in the sound!
These hypocrites, complaining about pollution but don't want to actually go green when its in their neighborhood.