Diana Stricker Photo
Developer Alex Vigliotti is requesting a zoning map amendment to create a 115-unit condominium complex under the new Incentive Housing Overlay District (IHOD) affordable housing regulations.
“It would be the first one in town,” said Town Planner Harry Smith. “We’re really looking for input from the public.”
According to conceptual plans submitted with the application, Vigliotti hopes to convert two office buildings on Summit Place into condos; and construct two new condo buildings on an adjacent vacant lot. Some of the offices are currently occupied; some are not. The top photo shows one of the office buildings. The proposed condos are located in the Branford Hills section of town.
Smith said the state program was created to encourage towns to build homes for moderate income families, often called “work force housing.” At least 20 percent of the units must be affordable for households earning 80 percent or less than the median income for Branford. Those figures are likely to be discussed at the hearing.
The Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission has scheduled a public hearing on the Summit Place proposal Nov. 19 at 7 p.m. Smith told the Eagle that the commission has to decide if they want to move forward with the IHOD program and approve the map amendment. “That’s the big decision,” he told the Eagle.
A Different Kind of Affordable Housing
The IHOD program was created by the state in 2007 as an incentive for towns to develop new affordable housing regulations, particularly for moderate income families. Branford received a state grant of $50,000 to update zoning regulations, including incentive housing. The updated local regulations went into effect in 2011.
Smith said the IHOD regulations exist in Branford, but no areas have yet been designated on the zoning map that would fall under the IHOD program. Smith said the local program has not yet been approved by the state because there is no map designation. Vigliotti’s proposal would be the first, if the P&Z approves it. Smith said the incentive housing program differs from the state’s previous affordable housing programs.
Vigliotti is well-known for several projects in Branford, one of the most recent being the Founders Village senior citizen apartment complex in the heart of town. That project came to fruition after a court stipulated settlement in 2009 that resolved years of legal battles between Vigliotti and the town. P&Z and the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) denied his earlier Founders Village plans three times. One of those earlier plans included an affordable housing component. However, the proposed Founders Village affordable housing component was not the same as the state’s new IHOD incentive housing program. Click here for a 2009 story with links to previous stories.
Summit Place
The properties in question at the Nov. 19 public hearing are located at 14, 21 and 22 Summit Place, which in days long past was the site of the Summit Drive-In movie theatre. The area is zoned Commerce Park, which is a commercial designation. The Summit Place cul-de-sac is across from McDonald’s on Route 1. Properties in the vicinity include Branford Hall Career Institute, single-family residences, Thimble Island Apartments and the Jefferson Woods condominiums.
“It’s an area of town with a lot of housing already,” Smith said.
Lots 14 and 22 are each about 1 acre, and each site has an existing office building. Lot 21 is a vacant 3.49-acre site that is adjacent to lot 22. Vigliotti has owned the properties since 2001.
Diana Stricker Photo
The above photo shows the second office building.
According to the state IHOD regulations, 20 percent of the units must be deed-restricted for moderate income housing for 30 years. The Branford regulations require deed restrictions for 40 years. The incentive housing designation allows denser housing projects.
If the local map amendment is approved, Branford could apply for state IHOD approval, which could involve more incentives for the town. Smith said monetarily, the state incentives are “not a lot,” but there are other incentives such as allowing the town to have design review approvals for exterior facades.
The state’s original IHOD plans called for more lucrative monetary incentives for towns, but those incentives were adversely affected by state budget constraints.
If Vigliotti’s request for a zoning map amendment is approved, the developer would be required to submit detailed site plans to both the IWC and P&Z.
According to Branford’s zoning regulations, “The primary purpose of the Incentive Housing Overlay District is to encourage the development and maintenance of affordable housing in both residential and business districts that have the transportation connections, nearby access to amenities and services, and infrastructure necessary to support more concentrated levels of development.”
In 2011 a developer expressed interest in the IHOD program and proposed building 12 condominiums at the corner of Mona Avenue and Route 1, on the western end of Branford. However, the application was withdrawn by the developer.
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