Diana Stricker Photo
The engineering team for a stalled project at 250 N. Main St. said they listened to the Inland Wetland (I‑W) Commission’s concerns last summer and significantly scaled down the proposal.
“We’re saving all the wetlands. The only wetland we’re impacting is at the crossing,” said John Mancini (top photo), an engineer with B L Companies in Meriden. He unveiled the latest plans at a public hearing before the I‑W Commission last Thursday.
The 13-acre property is located between Route 1 and I‑95. It is adjacent to the W. S. Clancy Memorial Funeral Home on one side, and United Tire Inc. and Greystone Manor condominiums on the other side. The Shapiro family, who operate the Cedar Island Marina in Clinton, have owned the property since 1997.
They are seeking permission to prepare the site in hopes of attracting a developer. To do that they must first win approval from the commission. Without it they cannot go forward. The plans call for creating an entry road into the property, and no construction plans are included in the proposal.
The site was previously mentioned as a possible location for the town’s new public works building. Costco, which is now hoping to build at Exit 56, had looked at the N. Main Street site more than 10 years ago.
Jeff Shapiro, whose family owns the N. Main Street property, told the commission at a previous session that Costco was interested in building at his site in 2003, but “walked away” because it would have required several zoning variances, and that site improvements were too expensive.
The developers for the Exit 56 Costco project will be represented by the engineering team from B L Companies in Meriden, the same company that is involved in the N. Main Street proposal, and several other projects throughout the years in Branford.
Diana Stricker Photo
Commission chair Dan Shapiro said the public hearing would remain open until the Jan 8 meeting to give the commissioners time to study the plans. He said he would “take time to contemplate” the possible implications of the new proposal.
No one from the public spoke at the hearing, but there will be another opportunity when the hearing reconvenes in January.
Wetland Reduction This Time Around
“The only wetland impact we’re proposing in Phase 1 is 1,442 square feet for the access road to cross the stream and wetlands,” Mancini told the commission Thursday.
Property owner Jeff Shapiro said he knew the commission was not pleased with the first plan that called for filling in about 13,000 square feet of wetlands. “Here we have started over,” he said of the revised proposal. “We have really tried to respond to your concerns.”
The first public hearing began in May, and reconvened in August. However, there was insufficient time at the August hearing to discuss revisions to the initial plans, so the owners had to begin the lengthy application process all over again. Click here to read about that. Link to aug. 25
The owner said the family has been trying to sell the property for more than 20 years. However, he said prospective developers can’t see the possibilities because of the difficult access, rugged topography and wetlands. Shapiro, who is not related to I-W commission chair Dan Shapiro, said his proposal would make the property more attractive to developers.
Mancini said the proposed Phase 1 improvements would include the access road and stormwater drainage basins. He is also asking for approval of a basic plan for Phase 2 to show developers the limitation of what could be built there.
Mancini said any wetlands that are disturbed will be replaced at more than the 2 to 1 ratio required by I-W. In addition, the plans for Phase 2 call for less excavation in order to maintain drainage to the central wetlands.
He said prospective developers can’t go to Phase 2 unless they submit a site plan to the Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission, which would trigger their coming back to the I-W Commission. He said the owners hope to sell the property and will not be doing the Phase 2 site plans.
The commissions asked several questions about the need to include any type of Phase 2 approval in this application. James Killea asked if Phase 2 developers would have to abide by these plans.
“Amen. 100 percent,” responded Mancini. “This first step is huge for us. It starts to set up why it’s possible for development.”
Mancini said this proposal would give prospective buyers an idea of what their “development envelope” would be.
Christopher Gagnon, an engineer with B L Companies in Meriden, said they responded to the commissioners’ previous concerns about the created wetlands not being wet enough. He said the revised plans will keep the wetlands wet.
Kim Lesay, a wetland biologist with BL Companies, said the commission “pointed us in the right direction” for making revisions. She said the phasing will address the commission’s concerns that the land would be excavated and no development would ever occur. “We heard that loud and clear,” she said.
“The beauty of this plan is we are being open and transparent,” Lesay said. “It gives the developer a guideline of what is possible and palatable to the commission.”
###
