P&Z Asked To Reject Sterling Ridge Condos in Historic District

At a recent meeting of the Planning & Zoning (P&Z) commission, neighbors, historians and attorneys urged the commission to reject a developer’s plan for a condo development that would sit near the town’s historic Harrison House, located in an historic district. 

With passion and sometimes anger in their voices, speakers reminded the P&Z that yet another condo development was historically, legally and aesthetically wrong for the town’s Canoe Brook Historic District.

The P&Z meeting in late July centered on a public hearing for the condo development, which is called Sterling Ridge, the adoption of a new Alex Vigliotti development on Brushy Plains Road and the selection of Chuck R. Andres, an attorney, as the new P&Z chairman.   

Attorney Peter Black, a former president of the Branford Historical Society, told the P&Z, “You don’t have a dog in this fight,” referring to a prior legal settlement that centers on developing the same property. The P&Z signed off on that agreement and Black says it is binding.

The legal issue centers on whether that agreement is binding or not in light of revised regulations instituted years later. That issue is likely to be discussed at the P&Z meeting to be held Thursday at Canoe Brook Senior Center. 

In addition, Virginia Page, the current president of the Harrison House, says blasting near the back of the house, built in 1724, might well imperil it. Plans call for construction of three buildings on the southern half of the property, totaling 12 condos. Some of the condos would be used for the handicapped.

Those opposing the development told the P&Z that it was time for the P&Z to take history into account; that in recent decades the commission has failed to make a commitment to historical preservation, unlike nearby Guilford, which showcases its historic buildings. Click here to read the story. 

The site in question is a 3.45 acre lot at 26 Cherry Hill Road located between Route 1 and Main Street. As part of the Canoe Brook Historic District the acreage is on the National Register of Historic Places. Much of the western edge of the 26 Cherry Hill Road site directly abuts a portion of the property where the Harrison House is located at 124 Main St.

Andres formally closed the Sterling Ridge public hearing at the July meeting. No decision was reached because several commissioners said they needed “legal direction.” Bill Aniskovich, the town’s attorney, did not attend the meeting. 

Before the meeting ended, Andres said the commission would not meet in August but did plan to contact Aniskovich regarding the legal issues raised at the hearing. 

The Primary Legal Question

Bernard Pellegrino (pictured), a land use attorney, represents the developer. He told the commission that in his view the primary legal question, and one the town counsel will have to explore, is whether a statutory change in the law enacted in 2011, which extends the time frame for a permit, site plan and wetlands approvals, applies to this case. 

“We relied on that in purchasing the property,” he said. ​“Our position has been and continues to be that the permit was still valid.” 

This is not the position of Christopher Smith, a land use expert at the law firm of Shipman & Goodwin in Hartford. Smith said there was a court settlement, it was well-recorded in the land records ​“and now they want to change it.” 

“Assuming you need a criteria, it is the old criteria,” he said. ​“You are being asked to reverse your prior decision and in addition the developer is putting an additional five new units and a parking lot behind Harrison House and the Trapasso house. 

Smith (pictured) told the commission that in his opinion, Ann Trapasso, an abutter whom he represents and the Historical Society, could have won that case. “You give up something in a settlement. Now they are coming back and added five more units. That doesn’t smell right. And from a legal standpoint the commission should call a time-out.

“This is a substantial, material change. You are legally within your bounds to say you will not do this.”

He added and others agreed that this type of condo construction will have an adverse impact on the abutters, on the Harrison House and on the nature of the area. 

When he concluded, Andres asked if the commission is governed by the current, updated regulations or the 2004 regulations?

“In my opinion, the existing permits are under the older act,” Smith responded.

Smith said the historical society and Trapasso appealed a 2005 P&Z decision and the court settlement resulted in a revised P&Z plan for Sterling Ridge in 2007.

Sterling Ridge has gone through several revisions and at least three owners since the project was initially proposed 12 years ago. The land was purchased in August 2014 by Alan Genn of Greenwich through his 26 Cherry Hill LLC corporation for $500,000.

“It’s a new owner, but that doesn’t mean they’re absolved from what was approved before,” Smith added.

Historical Society’s View

John A. Parese, an attorney representing the Branford Historical Society, told the commission that Branford regulations do have time limits. “You can come back within five years and that was not done.”

Again Andres asked if the commission should consider this application under the old regulations or the new ones.

“It seems to me this was under the old regs and the old regs should apply,” Parese said.

Clare Torelli, a member of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM), said she was not speaking as a member of the legislative body. She told the commission she lived in this section of town and raised her children there. “I attended classes in this building,” she said of the Canoe Brook Senior center, a former public school. She peered at the design for the proposed condos, saying, “This is not an historic-looking building.”

As for the disabled units, she paused and then said: “There is nothing like exploiting the disabled to get your project approved.” Developers, she said, “make their money and they are gone. Do you truly believe this is what Branford needs, to ruin a beautiful area with a set of condos?”

Torelli and Parese and others were concerned that the 1724 Harrison House could be permanently damaged as a result of blasting. The historical society, although a party to the prior settlement, was not notified about the proposed changes.

Black, who helped negotiate the original settlement for the historical society, said: “We had an agreement. It was a meeting of the minds. We can live with it. The commission approved it,” he told Andres. “All of us were parties to that lawsuit. And now a new buyer comes and says we don’t want to do this anymore.”

Jacey Wyatt, a landscape architect, said the proposed condos look bad for this area. “I see such a legal mess in this. Architecturally this is a historic district. This project is so wrong for this neighborhood.  I recommend that the commission stand up for what’s right. The neighbors and the historic society don’t want this project here,” she said. She said she would help to find other places in Branford for the project. Wyatt is running for first selectwoman in the November election on an independent line. 

Pellegrino Backs Off On Two Units

Pellegrino agreed that more units were added to this version of the development because it would help to defray the costs for the developer. Yes, he said, “developers are here to make money. That is what they do. But if increasing the development by two units is too much we would have no objection to removing two units from the building,” he said, sensing the mood of the room.

“If that issue might have you vote not in our favor we would want to change that,” he said backing off the initial original plan.

After everyone had spoken who wanted to, Andres closed the public hearing.

Smith, who represents Trapasso, told the P&Z that two additional abutters have formally opposed the project.

“Do you have 20 percent?” Andres asked, referring to property abutters within 500 feet of the development who may formally oppose a development. If so, this would mean that four out of five P &Z members instead of three out of five members would be needed to approve the PDD project.

Smith replied, “I think we have 20 percent.” 

Brushy Plain Road Development

Meanwhile, in another area of Branford, Developer Alex Vigliotti’s plan to create an open space residential subdivision on 18 acres of property at 271 Brushy Plain Road was approved.

Plans call for building 13 homes in addition to one existing home on the site, which is not far from North Branford. According to the plans, 6.3 acres will be donated to the Branford Land Trust for use as open space.

Bill Horne, chair of the Land Trust’s acquisition committee, said the Land Trust has agreed to accept the land.

Harry Smith, the town’s new planner, explained to the P&Z the 21 conditions attached to the new Vigliotti sub-division. It was approved unanimously.

A New Chair After 30 Years

The last item of the meeting centered on the selection of the next chair. Andres, 59, is a zoning and land use attorney at LeClairRyan in New Haven, a large law firm with offices in 13 states. Before that, he was an attorney for Tyler Cooper in New Haven for 21 years.

He replaces retiring chair Ellsworth “Mac” McGuigan, who served as chair for the past 30 years. McGuigan had suggested the commission appoint a vice-chair but that didn’t happen because no one seemed to want the job. Instead, Marci Palluzzi agreed to serve as commission secretary.

Andres told the Eagle he didn’t think the chair was “that much different than anyone else or any other member of the commission. My vote is as a good as anyone else’s.  It is one vote. On the other hand, there are certain procedural things such as running a meeting and forming an agenda,” he said.

With the departure of McGuigan, there is one vacancy. The commission has five members and three alternates. “We can appoint an alternate to take the place of a regular member. That is what usually happens,” Andres said, recalling how he started out on the commission.

He said the decision to appoint an alternate or a brand new member is not up to the chair but up to the Board of Selectmen.  Several weeks ago, when faced with a similar decision, First Selectman Jamie Cosgrove and Selectman Joe Higgins, Jr., voted 2-1 at a Board of Selectmen meeting to toss two regular members off the Inland Wetlands Commission and instead appoint new members, bypassing the alternates. Bruce Storm, the third selectman, voted against it. Click here to read about it. 

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