New Haven Independent

Another resident asked about the danger of the radio emissions from the tower and how they might affect the many women of childbearing age. Then Kenneth Baldwin, of Verizon, explained to the questioners and the commissioners that it was not a tower, but…

…a four-foot antenna enclosed within a nine-foot box, atop a discrete building of no historical significance, where similar boxes had been placed already for cell phone transmission, and that all FCC health requirements for low impact radio frequency emissions had been met, Fishman and other neighbors had had their say.

Welcome to the proceedings of the City Plan Commission public hearings (commission staffer Joy Ford, at the center in the photo was preparing documents for commission chair Patricia King on her left and alternate Maricel Ramos-Valcarcel), an exercise in good old New Haven democracy, and patience.

There were no fewer than 16 items on the agenda, including Mike Szydlowski’s request for a “certificate of approval of location” for his company to relocate from Milford to Bernhard Road, near North Haven, from which location he sells and services street-cleaning and other heavy equipment for Connecticut’s cities. “The paperwork has been intense,” he said, “but the city’s been great. We want to come to New Haven because we avoid the traffic headaches on I-95, as so many of our customers, the cities to the north, can get to us.”

Ford and other City Plan employees said this turnout was typical of the monthly meetings. “Thank God,” said one staffer, who requested his identity not be revealed, “there are twenty-four hour groceries.”

From Hardware To… ?

But the featured fight — if the 20 Fair Haveners like Chris Ozyck (out of some 40 people in total) who raised their hands to speak on it — did not even happen. It was item 1395-04 on the agenda and tamely titled “One Grand Avenue, Site Plan review including Coastal Site Plan Review for 6 new dwelling units and related community space.” It is the plan of the current owners (David Vieau and his One Grand LLC company) of the historic 1885 Roland T. Warner Hardware Company building, which sits over the water at the Grand Avenue Bridge, to convert the building into six luxury dwelling units.

Local activists, such as the Quinnipiac River Community Group, have serious questions: architectural, environmental, and also about the uses to which the luxury apartments will be put —— Vieau is president of the Turning Point Foundation, a non-profit that runs transitional housing facilities for recovering addicts. But none of these questions was aired at the meeting.

Shortly after Timothy Lee (pictured), One Grand LLC’s lawyer, took his seat at the commissioners’ table to answer questions, local lawyer and Quinnipiac Avenue resident Marjorie Shansky (who asked not to be photographed) stood and formally filed on her own behalf an interventionary petition. “Before the commission proceeds to review the site plan,” she said, “I request a public hearing.”

“This is rather last minute,” said Chairwoman King. “I think we should ask the corporation counsel, who is not here, if a public hearing is appropriate.”

Richard Miller, the city’s chief engineer and a non-voting ex-officio member of the commission, asked for procedures that in the future would prevent such last-minute petitions from being “dumped on us” without warning.

“We’ve fulfilled all the requirements,” said Lee, clearly peeved, on behalf of his clients, whom he was retained to represent only two days ago, “and we expect the commissioners to rule. But will of course abide by your decision.”

Shansky rose again to remind the commissioners, “Your regulations absolutely permit a public hearing.” Her petition, which King and the other commissioners quickly began to peruse, says “Applicant fails to comply with Coastal Site Plan Review. And, furthermore, the design will not produce an environment that enhances its historic waterfront location.”

In light of the 20 people, many activists with the Quinnipiac River Community Group, who were in the room eager to speak and in consideration of the legal questions, Chairwoman King tabled the One Grand LLC controversy. Lee asked when the public hearing, if approved, would be held. The answer was Nov. 15, at the next regularly scheduled public meeting of City Plan

Farwell Draws A Point

In the hallway, outside the meeting room, Shansky and Anstress Farwell, an architectural historian, and head of the New Haven Urban Design League, were huddling up. “That is a gateway building,” said Shansky. “It is not only included on the list of New Haven’s historical resources, the building is on National Register of Historic sites. That is big time.”

The Warner building falls outside of the local Fair Haven historic district, and so that level of supervision was not available. Still, City Plan, said Shansky and Farwell, whom she brought to provide expert architectural testimony had the hearing proceeded, has an obligation to review the historical appropriateness of a building that’s in the National Register of Historic sites.”

“Have you actually seen the plan?” Farwell asked a reporter. Then she drew on a reporter’s notebook some highlights. “First of all they intend to raise the roof. They are also going to take off the cornice and remove the band around the center, which gives the waterside façade its integrity; they intend to remove every historical detail. On the water side alone the result is they intend to install 30 double-hung windows. Thirty! On the Grand Avenue side they are going to remove the doors, so there will be no access except from the parking lot in back, the only entrance. With no access from Grand, it destroys the natural way of the building’s relating to all the other structures on Grand, including the good new development going on the bridge like the Schiavones.”

In front of City Hall, Farwell and a reporter ran into David Vieau. “What the people at the Quinnipiac River Community Group meeting were worried about, it’s nothing. Really. They are adding up one and one and getting three,” he said.

“Even if we accept what they say and it’s only six luxury apartments,” concluded Farwell, “setting aside the issue of who’s living in them, still the design in its current state is going utterly to destroy the building architecturally and negate its contribution to the neighborhood.”

What should concerned New Haveners do between now and the public hearing (if scheduled) on Nov. 15?

“Come to the hearing,” was Marjorie Shansky’s advice.