Laura Glesby Photo
Kensington Park: decidedly not the subject of Thursday night's meeting, despite efforts of some attendees
A second set of Kensington Square subsidized apartments is one step closer to renovations, as the city reviews the project’s effects on the Dwight neighborhood’s historical memory.
The affordable housing developer The Community Builders (TCB) met with neighbors Thursday night to discuss that second phase.
After upgrading a first phase of apartments in the Kensington Square area in 2017, TCB plans to renovate its remaining units in Dwight. A dozen New Haveners had another chance to voice their questions and reactions to the plans at the public meeting Thursday evening, thanks to a section of the National Historic Preservation Act.
Before TCB’s renovations can ensue, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act requires the city to screen the project’s “effects on historic resources — cultural, religious, or architectural,” according to Jaime Stein, the city planner who ran Thursday’s meeting.
The meeting, which was required under the Section 106 process, brought together a representative from TCB, a group of the developer’s fiercest opponents, and other invested neighbors to discuss the details of the planned renovations.
The renovations would occur building by building over the course of one year, according to TCB Project Manager Kristin Anderson.
A total of 96 units would be renovated at 45 – 47 Kensington, 58 – 60 Kensington, 84 Kensington, 88 Kensington, 91 – 93 Kensington, 95 Kensington, 107 Kensington, 384 Orchard, 390 – 392 Orchard, 14 Garden, 16 Garden, 1327 – 1329 Chapel, 1331 Chapel, 474 – 476 Elm, 477 – 479 Elm, 536 – 538 Elm, 558 Elm, 65 – 67 Kensington, and 59 – 61 Beers.
TCB would also rehabilitate parking lots at 1335 Chapel, 86 Kensington, 554 Elm, and 18 Garden. At 18 Garden, the developers plan to install a playground.
In this map highlighting TCB properties, buildings in blue and green are up for renovations.
Tenants would temporarily move to the Village Suites, or to other TCB apartments, for 30 days. TCB has pledged to cover all moving-related expenses, in addition to providing residents with a stipend for the inconvenience.
Anderson said in every building, the upgrades would include:
Fixing structural problems.
Restoring facades, stairs, railings, fences, and external wood surfaces.
Replacing roofs.
Landscaping.
Replacing bathrooms, kitchens, and floors in every unit.
Repainting units.
Abating asbestos.
Upgrading fire safety systems, including alarms and basements’ gypsum board and fire walls.
Bringing accessible units up to the most recent ADA code.
In some cases, replacing heating parts and windows.
Repairing historic features as determined by the Connecticut State Historic Preservation Office and National Park Service.
TCB had originally conceived of the second phase of its Kensington Square renovations as part of a broader plan to update and expand its Dwight units. Prior presentations combined the renovations with a controversial project to build a new affordable apartment building in place of Kensington Park, while developing alternative greenspaces in other parts of the city.
After a group of neighbors known as the Friends of Kensington Park launched a campaign — and a lawsuit — against TCB’s plans to raze the park, TCB announced that it would “decouple” the two parts of this plan and proceed with the final renovations while fighting the park advocates in court.
Clockwise from top left: TCB's Kristin Anderson and Friends of Kensington Park's Jane Comins, Patricia Wallace, and Victoria Vebell on Zoom.
At Thursday’s meeting, Stein implored community members to focus questions and comments on TCB’s renovation plans, and not on the potential destruction of Kensington Park.
Unable to criticize the park’s imperilment, members of the Friends of Kensington Park stressed that they support the inclination to upgrade affordable housing units — as they peppered Anderson with questions and comments about the renovations’ historical integrity, environmental impact, and maintenance plans.
Several park advocates argued that TCB’s reputation in the neighborhood for poor property upkeep and community engagement hasn’t improved, despite heightened outreach efforts from the organization.
Jane Comins said that “communication about this project has been poor right from the start.” She named a resident across the street from Kensington Square who “didn’t know about the [renovation] project that you’ve been ‘talking about since 2017.’”
“By the way, I support affordable housing,” Comins added. “The conditions these tenants are living in are outrageous and atrocious. I support the renovations despite my being upset.”
Victoria Vebell recalled that when she recently posted flyers for a Friends of Kensington Park event, “I was shocked on how bad things have gotten” for tenants. She asked Anderson whether TCB plans to allocate funds toward maintaining the benefits of the renovation. “When one owns an old building, there has to be continued maintenance on these old buildings,” Vebell said.
Anderson responded that TCB does have a maintenance budget for after the renovations. The purpose of the renovations is “to take care of some of those major issues that have been longstanding issues,” she said. She agreed that “they’re just in such need for major renovations.”
Returning to the meeting’s theme of historic integrity, park advocate and real estate agent Olivia Martson said that previous renovations to some Kensington Square properties — particularly at 384 and 390 Orchard St. — removed some of the buildings’ unique ornamentation. She urged TCB to consider restoring those decorative elements.
Martson also asked TCB to forgo vinyl siding and to install wooden fencing, rather than plastic, to be “more in character with the neighborhood.”
“That’s something for us to explore, to honor some of the historic stuff has been lost,” Anderson said.
Another member of Friends of Kensington Park, Patricia Wallace, asked Anderson whether the renovations will include solar panel installations.
Anderson replied that there are no current plans to build solar energy into the Kensington Square units. She noted that TCB plans to upgrade new appliances and boilers with more energy-efficient models, and that new insulation would also help save energy.
Wallace also asked whether TCB has an environmental plan for construction. “Presumably, you may be moving in some heavy equipment,” she said. Will any of it be diesel-powered? “What plans you have for the environmental issues from using that kind of equipment in the middle of a dense human community?”
Anderson said she didn’t have details on an environmental plan for construction at the moment, but she promised to come back to the Dwight Community Management Team with that information.