L-R:Linda Reed, SCA board member, First Selectman Jamie Cosgrove, Betsy Wieland, Dan Bullard, SCA President, Jose Giner, former Branford Town Planner Ted Ells, former SCA board member and Robert Orr, Planning Consultant.
The Stony Creek Village District, and the people who helped create it, have been honored with a Connecticut Preservation Award.
Stony Creek was one of 10 entities recognized for “outstanding preservation” efforts of the state’s historic buildings and places. The Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation presented the award to Stony Creek and Branford on April 8 at the Polish National Home in Hartford.
Betsy Wieland, who chaired the Village District Exploratory Committee, said the award was a great honor for everyone involved. The committee, which included Ted Ells, Greg Ames, Linda Reed and Josh Brooks, worked for five years on the project.
Ells told the Eagle he was very thankful for the Connecticut Trust’s support and for the award. “In this case, they wanted to encourage other towns to consider village districts because they are very good preservation tools,” he said.
What Makes A Village Unique
“It is a credit to the Stony Creek Association and the Town of Branford for having the foresight to protect this unique community,” said Wieland, who is also a member of the Stony Creek Association (SCA) executive board. “It was a long process and would not have been accomplished without the support and assistance of many people, especially the residents of Stony Creek.”
The SCA executive board asked for the designation to help protect the unique character of the eclectic seaside community. Branford’s Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) voted in November to grant the Village District designation, and it went into effect Feb. 1. An architectural review board, which is being created, will make recommendations to P&Z regarding major renovations or sizable new construction of both residential and commercial buildings. Click here to read about the new village.
The SCA received a $7,500 grant from the Connecticut Trust in 2012, and used matching funds to hire a consultant, Robert Orr & Associates, to begin the process. The consulting firm made a series of presentations in May 2012 to discuss the concept with residents.
Plan of Conversation And Development
Ells also said he was impressed with the amount of time that the P&Z commission and staff spent on the proposal. Former Town Planner Jose Giner was among those attending the award ceremony. “He was very helpful to us during the process,” Ells said of Giner.
Stony Creek and the Town Center are Branford’s only village districts. The village district designation was enacted by state statute in 1998, and the concept was adopted by Branford as part of the Plan of Conservation and Development that was approved in 2008. Click here to read about the Town Center’s designation in 2011.
The proposal will not affect most of the homes in Stony Creek. It will only affect new construction or major renovation of homes that are at least 3,500 gross square-footage.
Stony Creek Village District’s architectural review board will act as an advisory board, similar to the way the Town Center Revitalization and Review Board does for the Town Center Village District.
One major difference is that the Stony Creek Village District advisory board will also deal with residential buildings, not just commercial ones.
At public hearings before the P&Z in September and October, residents were split on their reaction to the proposal. At the initial session in September, Wieland listed several reasons for enacting the new zoning designation—protecting the character of the community; reducing neighborhood conflict by creating a review board to assist in making design choices; and protecting property values. Click here to read about the first public hearing.
The Connecticut Trust described Stony Creek’s history in a press release about the awards.
“Thanks to its eclectic history of fishing, quarrying, and summer vacationing, Stony Creek is a desirable place to live. So, when several houses in the National Register-district village were razed for bigger replacements, the Stony Creek Association recommended creating a village district, a zoning tool with historic preservation provisions.”
It further stated “The successful establishment of the Stony Creek village district shows how a community organization and a town government can work together to plan for future development that enhances historic character.”
The Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation is a nonprofit organization that was established by the state’s General Assembly to advocate and facilitate historic preservation.
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