New Haven Independent

Shah testified before the Board of Alderman Legislative Committee (pictured) Monday night to call into question what he called a “double standard”: a Dunkin’ Donuts franchise was approved in his neighborhood, but a similar one in the Hill was denied “on the basis that the franchiser had no dialogue with the neighbors…” Shah wrote in a letter to the Board of Aldermen.

Late last year, the Board of Zoning Appeals held a public hearing on a proposed Dunkin’ Donuts at the corner of Norton Street and Derby Avenue in West River. The plot of land, formerly owned by Holy Word Foundation Ministry, is within a block of the Berger Apartments for the elderly and disabled. Shah said he was concerned the residents of that building and the children walking to nearby Barnard School would be put in danger by the new traffic. The bus stop going downtown is on the other side of the street from Berger, and so is the corner store. Shah said the residents cannot deal with that intersection becoming more dangerous.

“The Board of Zoning Appeals has to look deeper into the area, not just look at the address on a map, but come into the neighborhood and look around,” Shah said.

When property is being developed or renovated, the owner has to present a plan to the Board of Zoning Appeals. Notices are sent out to homeowners who live within a 500-foot radius of the proposed development. Shah rents an apartment on the corner of George and Winthrop; so, he said, he never received a notice.

“In other towns, whenever there is a proposed developement, you drive by, and there are signs, like the size of billboards, advertising the hearings,” Shah said.

It was Kevin Ewing, president of the West River Neighborhood Services Corporation, who told Shah about the meeting last December. Ewing said he received a phone call from Mike Piscitelli of the City Plan Department the day of the meeting. Ewing then contacted Shah, and they were able to get two residents of nearby Berger Apartments to come testify.

The Board of Zoning Appeals often makes decisions based on how many people were mobilized to speak at a public hearing. With only a one-day notice, Shah said, the opportunity for people to speak out was denied to his constituents.

“I know that the people of the Berger apartments would have come, they would have mobilized and had a lot to say,” Shah said. “To them, it’s a serious slap in the face. It’s like, we know there’s 3-500 seniors not even a half a block down the street, and we’re going to just drop a Dunkin Donuts there.”

But it was too late to stop the development, according to a letter from City Plan Director Karyn Gilvarg to Shah. The right to appeal a BZA decision expires 15 days after it appears in newspaper legal notices.

Morris Cove Alderwoman Arlene DePino said she too has experienced frustration over poorly publicized hearings. She said she reads the legal notices in the New Haven Register every day to make sure she doesn’t miss anything.

East Rock Alderman Roland Lemar said Shah’s grievance calls into question a greater issue: that tax-paying residents are left out of the process when public hearing notices are only sent to home owners. Committee Chair Bitsie Clark agreed.

The committee then proposed the Board of Aldermen hold a workshop to discuss how to spread the word about public hearings throughout the community.