MY TAKE – Meriden’s efforts regarding their transit-oriented district.

The Burdelski foresees “real milestones” in 5-10 years for downtown Meriden’s transit-oriented quest article was recently published in the Record Journal.  

The Wallingford link to this is the fact that Meriden is deeply into this and Wallingford is not.

It is more likely than not we will be looking back twenty years from now at this point in time and saying "this was the point in time when the pendulum fully began swinging" where Wallingford began to fully be left behind.

My opinion.

We'll know in the fullness of time.

And I hope I am wrong.

Wallingford Town Planner hopes for part-time help soon

As published in the Record Journal Friday May 17, 2013

By Andrew Ragali
Record-Journal staff
aragali@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2224
Twitter:@AndyRagz

WALLINGFORD — Town Planner Kacie Costello said Thursday that she hopes a part-time assistant town planner/ zoning enforcement officer can be hired as soon as possible, as she is looking for someone to help her with her responsibilities in the Planning and Zoning Department.

Costello, previously the assistant town planner, was promoted to acting town planner when Linda Bush retired in March 2012. Costello was hired as town planner in December 2012. Costello explained that the assistant town planner “has always done the majority of the town’s zoning enforcement,” while the town planner concentrates on larger projects, such as the proposal to create the Incentive Housing Zone downtown and the town’s Plan of Conservation and Development, due to the state in 2015.

In the department’s budget request this year, Costello asked that the position of assistant town planner be fully funded, at $63,309. Due to budget cuts and the lack of development, Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr. decided not to fund the position and instead created a part-time position for $25,000 a year. Dickinson said the primary task would be zoning enforcement.

“There’s just not the kind of action in town for development,” Dickinson said. Most town departments, including police, fire and public works, are understaffed, he said. “The list is considerable,” he said, so reducing staff in the Planning and Zoning Department isn’t unusual.

“It’s more and more difficult to get money to pay for full staffing,” he said.

Costello said she is “doing all the assistant and town planner responsibilities, including zoning enforcement.”

Costello said she is looking forward to preparing a job description with the Personnel Department and mayor’s office as soon as possible. While she said building applications are down, “the office is still pretty busy.”

Without an assistant town planner, Costello is serving as the zoning enforcement officer, pursuing signage, building and property violations. For Costello, this leaves “less time for larger planning activities.”

“Because of the decrease in the amount of staff, I do have to spend more time answering questions at the counter,” Costello said. “We’ve had to make some big decisions in what our priorities are and how time is spent.”

Town Councilor Craig Fishbein, a Republican, said the Planning and Zoning Department’s lack of staff has been an issue.

“It’s nothing against Kacie; I love Kacie,” Fishbein said. “There’s just only so much one-person can do.”

During budget deliberations Tuesday night, Fishbein proposed an amendment that would have eliminated the part-time position and restored the full-time assistant position, but it was voted down. Councilors opposed to the amendment reasoned that the position would add about $40,000 to an already tight budget.

Fishbein said he was concerned that “there’s not a lot of people who have a planning and zoning background able to be a zoning enforcement officer,” making it difficult to fill the part-time position.

Town Councilor Jason Zandri, a Democrat who has announced plans to run for mayor in November, said staffing in the department needs to be increased if downtown improvement plans are to be successful. Zandri said people expect downtown to explode with development and popularity, but “it will not explode if we don’t do all the right things,” he said.

Zandri said the town needs staff to put time into future projects, such as the high-speed commuter rail proposed to stop in Wallingford, or the Incentive Housing Zone.

But Dickinson said he doesn’t feel the department is overloaded with long-term projects.

Regarding the high-speed rail plan, Dickinson said “there’s not a lot for the town to do on that, frankly.”

Since the town has been working on the Incentive Housing Zone for more than five years, further work is “more of a fine-tuning,” Dickinson said. “The basics are already there.”

To the point that the Planning and Zoning Department is understaffed, “nothing is ideal,” Dickinson said. “But let’s face it, nothing is ideal.”

“It’s obviously a tough decision,” Town Councilor Tom Laffin, a Republican, said of Dickinson’s not funding a fulltime position this year. “I’ve been in a position where I’ve been overwhelmed and just wanted some more help.”

Laffin said the “prudent way to really get a handle” on how much staffing is needed is to try a part-time position. If the position can’t be filled or doesn’t work out, Laffin said, he would understand the need for a full-time position, but “until then, things need to be prioritized.”

Costello said in future budgets, “I would hope we’d budget for a full-time position instead,” but stressed that she understood the budgetary decisions Dickinson had to make this year due to the lack of state aid.

Dickinson said the position could possibly become fulltime again if there is an increase in workload. “Anything can be potentially adjusted,” he said.

Downtown rezoning recommended for Meriden

As published in the Record Journal Wednesday May 22, 2013

By Dan Brechlin
Record-Journal staff
dbrechlin@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2266
Twitter: @DanBrechlinRJ

MERIDEN — A plan that city leaders hope attracts residents, businesses and development downtown was recommended by the City Council’s Economic Development, Housing and Zoning Committee Tuesday night.

The committee voted 4-1 during a 3½-hour meeting in favor of changing zoning regulations in the city’s center. The modifications will create five zoning sub districts to streamline the approvals process for development and create a more pedestrian-friendly, transit-oriented area.

“What we’re trying to do is put this ordinance in place to encourage development going forward for just before or just after the rail service opens,” City Manager Lawrence J. Kendzior said, alluding to an improved rail line scheduled to open in 2016. “A lot of things are actually happening.”

City Councilor Dan Brunet was also the only dissenter to the overall plan.

The state Department of Transportation has made a significant investment in the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield rail line. With Meriden a stop along the way, officials have coordinated a downtown improvement plan that includes a new park at the Hub site, upgrades to traffic flow and improved housing.

In order for development to occur, city officials targeted zoning as an issue because it inhibits construction and delays the process of opening some businesses. It has also created a parking issue, with too many spaces required per unit being constructed.

In many cases, the new zoning regulations decrease parking requirements and hasten the approval process through the city planner. It also conforms the five districts to ensure that buildings appear to fit in the area, and that only certain types of businesses and operations are in the same areas.

A key discussion involved the razing of Mills Memorial Apartments, a 140-unit, five-building, low-income housing development. The Meriden Housing Authority has been looking at redeveloping the property for several years and is seeking the financing to do so. The MHA would be responsible for coming up with a plan that explains how it would relocate all 140 units within the city.

In order to ensure financing could be secured, MHA Executive Director Robert Cappelletti encouraged the committee to amend a specific requirement in the Historic- Commercial sub-district along West Main and Colony streets. As written, developments that include replacement units would require 80 percent of the units to be affordable housing and 20 percent to be rented at market rate. Cappelletti requested it be shifted to a 90-10 percent split.

“This is critical for the success of our ability to develop these construction projects and critical to the redevelopment of the Mills,” Cappelletti said.

Brunet was the lone dissenter in the committee’s 4-1 vote to recommend a change to 90-10 percent. Brunet said he doesn’t want any more affordable housing units downtown, because it could affect public perception of the area. Kendzior also disagreed with changing the percentages, stating he thought financing could be secured without it.

Councilor Brian Daniels noted that the MHA is proposing an 80unit development at the corner of Colony and Church streets as part of the redevelopment plan. Shifting the percentage by 10 points would mean only eight more affordable housing units. He added that the plan could also lead to the DOT funding a 200-plus-vehicle parking garage.

“If we miss this opportunity because we are worried about eight units ... when this opportunity is lost, the people of Meriden are going to look at downtown and see the same downtown people have been looking at since 1999,” Daniels said.

Some minor changes were made to the zoning regulations, which included an amendment that would allow mortuaries in any of the zoning sub-districts. Another amendment approved Tuesday exempts Rockfall Business Park, at 29 Cooper St. and 80 Cherry St., from the zoning regulations. The Rockfall owners said they did not believe their industrial business fit in the guidelines and the committee agreed.

FROM WALLINGFORD - Terminal timidity; “The incentive housing zone is near death”

As published in the Record Journal Sunday March 24, 2013

From the Editorial Pages of the Record Journal, as written by Mike Brodinsky host of public access show “Citizen Mike”.

The incentive housing zone is near death. When the end comes, the cause of death will be terminal timidity.

The IHZ was once the best plan to revitalize the area of downtown Wallingford near the railroad station. The plan had the potential to entice developers to invest substantial cash downtown, because the IHZ would have allowed more residential and commercial space than would have been otherwise permitted under existing zoning.

The town would have been able to dictate the appearance of any new development by imposing design standards, which are possible only in an incentive housing zone. New projects, therefore, would have looked spiffy and appropriate. We’d have gotten more taxes, too. This seemed like a win-win situation. But it’s not likely to happen.

The town planner introduced the concept of an IHZ to the town council on February 26, 2008. Five years later, the planning and zoning commission is still uncertain of what to do. It’s still groping for information. A glacier moves faster.

Many are happy with this result. Town Councilor Craig Fishbein, who never liked the IHZ, cheered the lack of progress. He said a quicker decision would be a haphazard rush to judgment. Council Chairman Bob Parisi, who was never sold on the plan either, also said the timeline was fine. He encouraged more discussion; he did not encourage a decision. The most recent hang up is a worry about the possibility of variances. A variance is government’s permission to build on or use property in a way that is not permitted by zoning. For example, if a developer buys properties intending to develop an IHZ project, but finds the IHZ regulations bothersome or expensive to satisfy, that developer has the right to ask the Zoning Board of Appeals to “vary” the regulations.

Would a request for a variance result in changes to the carefully crafted design standards? Would the ZBA allow a developer in the IHZ to provide less parking than is required? Would we see other surprises? The quick and clear answer is no.

Variances should be tough to get. They require proof of a hardship caused by the characteristics of the land. Following the law, the ZBA couldn’t properly grant a variance merely to reduce the cost of a project.

Nor could the ZBA properly grant a variance to fix a situation the applicant caused. For example, if a developer starts a project but isn’t prepared to spend what it takes to satisfy the IHZ regulations, it will not be able to benefit from some of the IHZ regulations, and get a variance to evade other regulations that are burdensome. That ploy wouldn’t work.

Progress in the downtown, therefore, shouldn’t be frustrated because of an irrational fear that the ZBA will issue variances when it shouldn’t. It’s too bad the P & Z and the ZBA can’t just sit and talk it through. Some officials also worry that if Wallingford adopted IHZ regulations, it couldn’t change them. Proposed amendments must be approved by the state. Experts have advised that routine amendments would be approved routinely as long as they did not weaken the core principles of the zone, such as requiring some affordable housing.

We should not expect the state to issue a written guarantee that it will approve amendments. Some may treat that uncertainty, however, as a reason to say no.

We need to act. The downtown will not get prettier or more vital by itself. There are no alternative plans. The town hasn’t moved to benefit from the coming commuter rail service, even though other towns have.

Those who would sink the IHZ, therefore, need to suggest Plan B. After all, they’ve had five years to think about it.

If they don’t have ideas on how to jump start re-development in the downtown; if they have nothing to offer except aimless drift and undue caution; maybe they should reconsider the IHZ.

OPM advice sought on questions about incentive zone

As published in the Record Journal on Wednesday March 13, 2013

By Eric Heredia

Record-Journal staff
eheredia@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2243
Twitter:@EHerediaRJ


WALLINGFORD - Corporation Counsel Janis Small will work with the state Office of Policy and Management’s legal department to address concerns raised by the Planning and Zoning Commission about the proposed Incentive Housing Zone regulations.

The zone would create special zoning regulations for developments on Hall Avenue and Quinnipiac, North Cherry, Meadow, Center and North Colony streets. The regulations allow the town to receive state funding while controlling the design of new developments. By adopting the zone, municipalities can receive up to $20,000 for pre-development studies and up to another $50,000 if at least 250 housing units are built in the zone.

The Incentive Housing Zone falls under an Office of Policy and Management program called Home Connecticut. The program, approved in 2007 bythe state legislature, would require 20 percent affordable housing. Its goal is to provide affordable housing for residents who otherwise wouldn’t be able to stay in Wallingford.

PZC Chairman Jim Seichter asked Small on Monday what would happen if Wallingford were to approve the zone, the state were to accept the application, but the town were to subsequently eliminate the zone. Small said the statute isn’t clear on the consequences, but they would most likely be financial.

“You would think in practical terms that other than ... looking for money back, they might not have an interest, but you can’t say that for sure,” she said, adding that a court order to keep the regulations in place is within the realm of possibility.

Small was asked about the potential of having the zone’s design and parking regulations approved by the PZC, and then having landowners apply for variances through the Zoning Board of Appeals.

“The concern is we’ve spent the time, we’ve crafted regulations, and then if it’s approved and someone comes in and looks for a variance,” Seichter said.

Small said that, in general, state law doesn’t prohibit people from getting variances from the regulations, but they cannot get a variance from a statutory requirement, such as minimum density.

“In talking to OPM about it, you know, raises an interesting point,” she said, recalling an idea raised by an OPM official. “If your regulations for the incentive zone is such that it’s not possible for somebody to actually use it, then why wouldn’t the variance be proper?”

She said the design standards in the drafts are traditionally open for variance applications. She said she assumed that the commission was making requirements that can be can be complied with.

“If you have that level ofcomfort, that’s a good starting point,” Small said.

PZC member James Fitzsimmons, who said he is concerned mostly with parking variances, asked about parcels that have already been granted a variance. Town Planner Kacie Costello asked if variances would carry over if parcels are combined into larger parcels, as happens when buildings are torn down.

Small said she would have to know what the variances are and decide on a case-by-case basis.

Costello asked Small if the commission could add language limiting the types of variances that could be approved. Small said the only thing zoning boards can prohibit are land uses not permitted in the zone.

Dimple Desai, community development director at OPM, said the legal department is looking into the interpretation of the state law and would work with Small to answer the PZC’s questions.

“She’s going to do her own research and come back with her own questions,” Desai said.

For the Incentive Housing Zone to move forward in Wallingford, the Planning and Zoning Commission must establish regulations. Then the Town Council must endorse them because the program involves accepting state funds. After that the amended regulations are sent to OPM, if OPM agrees with the regulations, the agency would give the town preliminary approval.

Then the regulations would be sent back to the PZC, which must hold a public hearing. Then the commission must approve the regulations one last time before sending a final draft back to OPM, at which point “they provide us with final approval,” Costello said.

Old Saybrook has already built 16 housing units through the program and Sharon is going through the permitting process for 12 units. Desai said that OPM has given final approval to five towns: Old Saybrook, East Lyme, Torrington, Sharon and New London. Westbrook and Watertown have gotten preliminary approval.

In other business Monday,the PZC:

-- approved a special permit for retail and restaurant at 1086 N. Colony Road.

-- approved a zoning text amendment allowing for 45foot-high signs on buildings in the IX and IV zones.

-- approved a special permit for M&W Repair to operate an auto repair shop at 71 S. Turnpike Road.

-- approved a special permit for Farms Country Club to build a deck to serve as an extension to its dining area at 180 Cheshire Road.

-- continued its public hearing on J&D Auto Body’s application for a special permit to extend its indoor storage and office space at 1224 Old Colony Road.

Some answers, but not enough - Incentive Housing Zone questions remain after visit of OPM official

As published in the Record Journal on Wednesday March 6, 2013

By Andrew Ragali
Record-Journal staff
aragali@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2224
Twitter:@AndyRagz

WALLINGFORD – The Planning and Zoning Commission, having received answers to some of its questions, will continue working toward the possible creation of an Incentive Housing Zone, Town Planner Kacie Costello said Tuesday.

An Incentive Housing Zone would create specialized zoning regulations for developments on Hall Avenue and Quinnipiac, North Cherry, Meadow, Center and North Colony streets. The town would keep control of the design of the developments, but at least 20 percent of the housing units built must be affordable housing and fall under regulations set by the legislature to qualify for state money.

The goal of the workshop, held Monday night, was to gather as much information as possible about the zone, which would fall under an Office of Policy and Management program called Home Connecticut. The program was approved by the state in 2007. Dimple Desai, community development director for OPM, attended the meeting and answered questions from the commission and members of the public.

“I think that it was very helpful having someone from OPM there,” Costello said.

Many of the questions asked during the meeting were procedural, Costello said, because “we as a community are looking for as many concrete answers as we can in terms of what the interactions with OPM will entail.”

One of the issues brought up during the meeting was how the Incentive Housing Zone designation could be repealed, if the town should choose to do so.

“You have to get OPM’s approval to get it off the books,” Desai said, adding that he would have to consult legal counsel for a more specific answer.

PZC Chairman James Seichter asked Desai to get back to the town because “it’s been brought up in our prior workshop and it is a potential issue.”

Seichter asked if there would be any repercussions to repealing the zone, such as returning money given to the town as part of the incentive portion of the program.

Under statute, Desai said OPM “may require” the town to repay the state. “Again, it doesn’t say ‘shall,’ ” he said, adding that “OPM and the state work with municipalities” if they revoke the zone.

If the zone is approved, an overlay zone would be imposed, forcing developers to abide by requirements laid out in town regulations.

Desai said the overlay zone is a benefit to developers because of the affordable housing capability, and a benefit to the town because it will have control over the look of the new developments. Costello said control over design standards was the biggest issue for Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr. at a January workshop. Dickinson did not attend Monday’s meeting.

Proposals for an Incentive Housing Zone have been around since early 2008, when then-Town Planner Linda Bush presented the idea of creating an overlay zone for a 23.3-acre swath of downtown Wallingford that would allow for mixed-use commercial and high-density residential properties.

During the workshop Monday night, Desai laid out the financial incentives of the program. He said that if at least 250 housing units are created, the town would receive $50,000 to use at its own discretion.

Commission member James Fitzsimmons asked Desai if the zoning district is “subject to variance,” a topic that Seichter called “an important issue and an important question.”

Costello said, typically, a variance can be obtained through the Zoning Board of Appeals when a commercial or residential developer requests a change in zoning regulations. She said a hardship must be proven to obtain a variance. An example would be if zoning regulations required windows on the first floor of a building to be larger than windows on the second floor. If a developer wants larger windows on the second floor, it must prove a hardship to the board. If a hardship is proven, zoning regulations can be changed.

“What the concern is, there could be the potential of a developer trying to bypass regulations via the variance process,” Costello said.

Town Councilor Craig Fishbein, who attended the workshop, said Tuesday that if the appeals board can consider variances, it “throws the Incentive Housing Zone out.”

“The issue of a variance is a major concern,” Fishbein said.

Costello said Tuesday that she will be consulting with the town’s Law Department to clarify if variances are allowed if developers opt into the overlay zone. Desai said OPM has not run into the issue yet because the program is so new. He said it’s really up to the municipality.

The impetus for the Incentive Housing Zone program, Desai said, is to provide more options for young college students or older couples who “cannot afford to live in a town they’ve lived in their whole life.”

Workshops will continue, Seichter said at the end of Monday’s meeting. The commission must look at other issues, such as parking, traffic, and design standards such as maximum building height, Costello said.

“From my perspective, I think it’s beneficial to continue to have discussions on this,” Seichter said.

Housing zone still moving — slowly

As published in the Record Journal on Wednesday March 6, 2013

By Andrew Ragali
Record-Journal staff
aragali@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2224
Twitter:@AndyRagz

WALLINGFORD – A decision will be made on the proposed downtown Incentive Housing Zone within the next two to three months, according to Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman James Seichter.

During a workshop held by the commission Monday night, Town Councilor John Le-Tourneau asked Seichter when a decision would be made, adding, “I’d love to see this in my lifetime.”

“I appreciate your frustration on this,” said Seichter, who made it clear to Le-Tourneau that he’d rather not set a timetable. “Clearly we need to reach a decision on this issue in a relatively short period of time.”

An Incentive Housing Zone in Wallingford would create specialized zoning regulations for developments on Hall Avenue and Quinnipiac, North Cherry, Meadow, Center and North Colony streets. The regulations allow the town to receive state funding while controlling the design of new developments. By adopting the zone, municipalities can receive up to $20,000 for pre-development studies and up to another $50,000 if at least 250 housing units are built in the zone.

The Incentive Housing Zone falls under an Office of Policy and Management program called Home Connecticut. The program was approved in 2007 by the state legislature and would require 20 percent affordable housing. The goal of the program is to provide affordable housing for residents who otherwise wouldn’t be able to remain in Wallingford.

Town Planner Kacie Costello said that for the Incentive Housing Zone to move forward in Wallingford, the Planning and Zoning Commission must establish regulations for the zone. The commission will hold workshops to “get proposed regulations to the point they want them to be.”

If regulations are approved by the commission, the Town Council must then endorse them, Costello said. Normally, the council would not be involved with zoning regulations, but since the program entails acceptance of money from the state, she said, the council must take action.

After receiving approval from the Town Council, the amended regulations are sent to OPM, Costello said. If OPM agrees with the regulations, the agency would give the town “preliminary approval.”

Regulations are then sent back to the Planning and Zoning Commission. Costello said a public hearing must be held by the commission. Then the commission must approve the regulations one last time before sending a final draft back to OPM, at which point “they provide us with final approval,” Costello said.

“The problem is, there seems to be no urgency on the part of the Planning and Zoning Commission,” said Le-Tourneau, who accused the commission of “dragging their feet” and slowing down the process.

“We’re trying to cure problems that don’t exist,” he said, adding that recent workshops about the Incentive Housing Zone have rehashed issues that had already been settled.

Costello said turnover on the Town Council and Planning and Zoning Commission since 2010 has resulted in some delay during meetings, as new people become acquainted with the situation. The Incentive Housing Zone was first proposed in 2008. On the state side, Costello said, a lack of funding caused delays.

“I don’t think they’re dragging their feet at all,” Town Councilor Craig Fishbein said of the Planning and Zoning Commission. “The towns that rush into things haphazardly get into trouble.”

Fishbein is comfortable with the progress so far because “we want to do it right the first time,” he said. Town Council Chairman Robert Parisi agreed.

“I don’t have a problem with his (Seichter’s) timeline,” Parisi said, “as long as there is free and open discussion.”

Parisi said that, with age, he has learned to become more patient. He believes the Incentive Housing Zone will eventually become a reality, it’s just that in Wallingford, things “are always a little on the slow side,” he said. “I’m not in a rush.”

Instead of two to three months, Town Councilor John Sullivan would like to see a decision made within 30 days.

“Let’s get moving here,” he said.

Sullivan complimented the Planning and Zoning Commission for their “tremendous” work so far, but he sided with LeTourneau in that “we are beating this thing to death.”

Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr. pointed out that two to three months isn’t really that long.

“You’re not going to see too many meetings in that amount of time,” he said. “I think everyone needs the time to deal with this in a responsible way.”

Dickinson is supportive of the Incentive Housing Zone, which he hopes will make downtown a “friendlier, more comfortable streetscape kind of scene.”

Advocates: Don’t ignore housing - Affordable homes called necessary in new-look downtowns

As published in the Record Journal, Saturday January 26, 2013

By Russell Blair
Record-Journal staff
rblair@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2225
Twitter:@RussellBlairRJ

WALLINGFORD - The New Haven-to-Springfield commuter rail line will present opportunities for new businesses in downtown Meriden and Wallingford, but housing advocates say developers must also look to include affordable housing.

“You can’t talk about transit without talking about housing,” Shelby Mertes, chief policy analyst for the Partnership for Strong Communities, said Friday during a meeting of the Meriden-Wallingford Coalition on Housing.

Meriden and Wallingford officials have already begun planning downtown zoning changes.

In Wallingford, the Planning and Zoning Commission is fine-tuning a proposal for an Incentive Housing Zone, which would allow high-density development but require some affordable housing.

Meriden officials have drawn up five districts in the area around the train station. Vacant properties on Hanover Street and Cook Avenue, including the site of the recently razed former Factory H and an old medical office building, would be redeveloped into mixed-use, residential properties.

Robyn-Jay Bage, chairwoman of the Meriden-Wallingford Coalition on Housing Steering Committee, said it’s important to clarify the difference between affordable housing and federally subsidized low income housing. Affordable housing refers to privately built units that are rented at a rate deemed reasonable for people making 80 percent or less of the area median income.

“These are our children, our employees, our customers and other similar groups,” Bage said. “They need places to live.”

Mertes said one way to make affordable housing more palatable to a community is to mix it with market rate housing. He compared it to including spinach in lasagna to get someone to eat spinach.

“We all know how difficult it is to get kids, and even some adults, to eat their vegetables,” Mertes said. “Mixed-income housing is embraced by communities.”

Developers can build more units on a smaller piece of land in a mixed-use development. The profits from the market-rate units help subsidize the lower rents or mortgages for the affordable units.

Mertes said mass transit gives people more money to spend in a community. If someone living near the train station doesn’t need to pay for a car, that extra money can be spent at local businesses.

“It puts more money in the economy,” he said.

In the current economy, there’s a lot of demand for smaller, more energy-efficient housing, Mertes said.

But mass transit isn’t for everyone. Mertes said it is important when developing a downtown around the commuter rail to take into consideration who uses mass transportation most: younger people, renters and those with a lower income.

Sean Moore, president of the Greater Meriden Chamber of Commerce, said it is important to start preparing for the rail line, which will begin service in 2016. The New Haven-to-Hartford portion is already fully funded.

“This opportunity obligates us to create amenities for these people,” he said. “The folks who live in these districts are the ones that give us life.”

“This is a once-in-a generation opportunity,” said Sue Murphy, executive director of the Liberty Bank Foundation and a member of the Meriden-Wallingford Coalition on Housing.

Affordable housing in Wallingford has support

As published in the Record Journal, Saturday January 12, 2013

By Russell Blair
Record-Journal staff
rblair@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2225
Twitter:@RussellBlairRJ

Zone near train depot seems to be the spot

WALLINGFORD -  A proposed Incentive Housing Zone could rejuvenate businesses in the lower downtown area, but proponents of the plan say a key element is also the construction of new affordable housing.

“There’s a lot of young people who grew up in Wallingford who can’t afford to move back,” said Democratic Town Councilor John Sullivan.

The Incentive Housing Zone would allow developers to build high-density three- and four-story mixed-use buildings. In exchange for the increased density, 20 percent of the housing units constructed must be designated as affordable for those making 80 percent or less of the median area income.

About six percent of the town’s housing stock is considered affordable. The state has set a goal of all towns having 10 percent affordable housing.

“I believe that affordable housing is something that is very much needed in Connecticut,” said Town Planner Kacie Costello. “It serves a wide population: young people, older people that are on a fixed income and a lot of professional people between those ages.”

Local developer Liz Verna also said the town needs more affordable housing. Her firm, Verna Properties, built one of the two affordable housing developments in town. Old Oak Village, a cluster of condominiums off North Turnpike Road built in 2002, has 24 units designated as affordable.

“Connecticut is very expensive to live in,” Verna said. “Businesses aren’t going to come to Connecticut if housing costs are so high.”
The town’s other affordable housing complex, Juniper Landing, has 11 affordable units and is next to Old Oak Village, according to Costello.

Verna said many people are misinformed about affordable housing. Such developments are not government subsidized and should not be confused with low-income housing, she said. They are privately built houses, condominiums or apartments that “shall be sold or rented at, or below, prices which will preserve the units as housing for which persons and families pay 30 percent or less of their annual income, where such income is less than or equal to 80 percent of the median income,” according to state statute.
Wallingford’s median household income in 2009 was $71,117.

Costello said the current affordable housing in town was built with 50-year deed restrictions, which means if the units are sold, they must be sold at below market rate to remain affordable to prospective buyers for a half century after they are built.

“We do have affordable housing and it works very well,” said Republican Town Councilor John LeTourneau.

Verna supports the Incentive Housing Zone and sees it as a way to breathe life into the downtown. Housing will bring young professionals to the area who will frequent local businesses, she said. With a new commuter rail service set to roll through town in 2016, people could live in downtown Wallingford and work in Stamford or New York, Verna said.

State Rep. Mary G. Fritz, D Wallingford, said the town has come a long way in building affordable housing in the last decade or so, pointing to Verna’s development and other clusters of condominiums that have popped up. But she believes that more affordable housing would help keep young people from leaving Wallingford.

“We need the young people in town,” she said. “We have to take care of them so they can take care of us.”

Sullivan said outside of the Incentive Housing Zone, he doesn’t see more affordable housing in town on the horizon, and believes the town should take advantage of the opportunity. Councilors gave the Planning and Zoning Commission the go-ahead this week to continue drafting plans to send to the state and apply for the designation.

“Our sons and daughters are now grown up and they’d like to live in Wallingford,” Sullivan said. “Having more affordable housing, especially down where the train is going to be, it all makes sense.”

Joint Workshop scheduled regarding the Incentive Housing Zone

WALLINGFORD - Officials plan to resume discussions about Incentive Housing Zone

As published in the Record Journal Sunday November 4, 2012

By Laurie Rich Salerno
Record-Journal staff
lsalerno@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2235
Twitter:@LaurieSalernoRJ

WALLINGFORD - Though a November meeting on the topic was canceled, the Town Council and the Planning and Zoning Commission still plan to revisit the creation of an Incentive Housing Zone that could spur redevelopment in downtown Wallingford.

The Council announced at its Oct. 23 meeting that it had set a workshop with the Commission for Nov. 20, but it was canceled due to conflicts. The two groups are still working on a date, anticipating a meeting either late this year or just after the holidays.

Some town councilors are interested in discussing a plan, with some saying they were frustrated that the meeting was taking so long to put together.

Councilor John Sullivan, a Democrat, said he would like to discuss the plan quickly.

“I want what’s best for the town — that area right now probably needs a facelift,” Sullivan said. “I think we have a great opportunity here with the transportation systems already in place and with high speed rail coming in as well.”

Proposals for the Incentive Housing Zone have been around since early 2008, when former Town Planner Linda Bush presented the idea of creating an overlay zone for a 23.3-acre swath of downtown Wallingford that would allow the development of mixed-use commercial and high-density residential properties. Plans called for the zone to include Quinnipiac Street, North Cherry Street, Hall Avenue, Meadow Street, North Colony and Center streets.

The zone would fall under an Office of Policy and Management program called Home Connecticut, which was approved in 2007 by the state legislature and would require the area to be 20 percent comprised of affordable housing. The state would pay $2,000 for each potential housing unit — 361 in Wallingford — and then another $2,000 for each unit that eventually is constructed.

Though the plans were initially approved by the Town Council in 2009 and submitted to OPM four times between April 2009 and July 2010, according to Acting Town Planner Kacie Costello, OPM did not have funding available for the program until the fall of 2010 — after a new council had been elected. That new council needed to reapprove the plan for it to be submitted, but instead deadlocked 4-4, and the Planning and Zoning Commission took the plan back for revision.

Though it has taken two years, Costello and commission members say the plan has never been off the table, and that they’ve been working on the project.

James Fitzsimmons, a Planning and Zoning commissioner, is a proponent of the plan — anything that brings affordable housing to downtown,he said. Fitzsimmons said he thought the zone could have the same effect as the Yalesville Limited Business District, which the town created through zoning about 20 years ago.

“I would compare it to what happened in Yalesville … it allowed more residential development, higher density. In the Yalesville area, you’ve seen an explosion over the years of condominiums and development,” Fitzsimmons said.

Some town councilors were more tentative in their interest in the plan.

“I like the concept,” said Councilor Vincent Cervoni, a Republican, but he added that he didn’t think the amount of money offered to the town would make a vast difference. He’d also like to see the town have more control over what is put there. Rather than a zone in which people can build by just complying with set-down regulations, he’d like builders to come to the town with projects and ask for permits.

“I’d like to see an overlay by special exception — because I think we should retain a little bit of control down there,” Cervoni said. “I’d hate to see it go the wrong way.”

Costello said the plans they’ll be presenting include changes from the original in an effort to address some of the concerns that have been voiced, such as Cervoni’s interest in having town approval over projects.

Though the requirements of the Home Program say there cannot be such a permitting process, Costello said the staff has spent time closely examining regulations so that they can put regulations in place “in a way that pre-addresses those issues.” Plans now also reflect a change in the accepted height of buildings — from four stories to three. Costello said the department was looking at the North Main Street and Center Street intersection, where “there are a number of three or even four-story buildings. That’s what we’re trying to accomplish.”

She said that although the town has approved a different site for its new train station to be built — on Parker Street, north of the current site between Quinnipiac and Hall Avenues — the planned zone at this juncture will not move.

File photos courtesy of the Record-Journal

The lot at 63 N. Cherry St., top, and the site of the old T-Bonz Bar & Grill at 28 Quinnipiac St., bottom, are properties being eyed in a proposed Incentive Housing Zone to aid the development of downtown Wallingford. Both photographs were taken on Jan. 29, 2008.

Wallingford PZC to revisit revitalization

As published in the Record Journal Wednesday February 22, 2012

By Russell Blair
Record-Journal staff
rblair@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2225

WALLINGFORD — The Planning and Zoning Commission plans to revive discussion on a downtown revitalization plan that was shelved after it met lukewarm response from the Town Council in December 2010.

The plan calls for a 23.3-acre Incentive Housing Zone that would encompass parts of Hall Avenue, Quinnipiac Street, North Cherry Street, Meadow Street and the intersection of North Colony and Center streets. Allowable densities would be increased to attract developers to build retail and housing similar to West Hartford’s popular Blue Back Square, which opened in 2007.

The zone would allow a maximum of 361 housing units. Drawings of the proposed units include retail and restaurants on the first floor with the upper two or three floors composed of apartments or offices. Twenty percent of the units in the zone must be affordable — classified as those targeted at people who make 80 percent of the area median income — and the housing must meet per-acre density requirements.

Wallingford received a $50,000 planning grant from the state in April 2008.

Towns can qualify for incentives of up to $2,000 for each unit allowed to be built in an Incentive Housing Zone, up to $2,000 for every multifamily unit building permit issued and up to $5,000 for every single-family permit.

A public hearing originally scheduled for Monday was canceled, but Town Planner Linda Bush said the planning commission would be bringing the issue back up in the coming months and seeking input from the mayor and the council. Bush said that the commission doesn’t need an affirmative vote from the council to amend the zoning regulations.

Jim Fitzsimmons, a Democratic PZC member, said that while not required, support from the council was important.

“We don’t make decisions in a vacuum,” he said. “We’re appointed by the council; we’re all on the same team.”

Bush, who is retiring on March 1 after 28 years as town planner, has long been a proponent of the plan.

“Nobody invests money in that neighborhood,” Bush said. “We want to change that. We want to expand the retail. We’d like to see it a Center Street-type district.”

The plan remains largely unchanged from the one that resulted in a 4-4 vote by the council in 2010, though some parking was added. Councilors Vincent Cervoni and John LeTourneau, both Republicans, and Democrats Vincent Testa and John Sullivan supported the plan at the 2010 meeting. Republican Chairman Robert Parisi joined fellow GOP Councilors Rosemary Rascati, Craig Fishbein and former Councilor Jerry Farrell Jr. in opposing the plan.

Newly elected Councilor Jason Zandri, a Democrat, said he is “cautiously optimistic” about the proposal.

“I need to get deeper into it,” he said. “I want to talk to some of the downtown people. It’s good to hear what the people have to say.” The proposed development would take place in the area around the new train station on the Springfield, Mass.-New Haven commuter line. The new regulations are purposed to “promote the development of a transit-oriented, pedestrian friendly downtown community within walking distance to the (train station),” according to the proposed regulations. The Department of Transportation has proposed building a new station near Judd Square or Parker Street. Other upgrades include streetscape improvements, including ornamental streetlights, brick pathways and trees.

But Fishbein said he still has problems with the idea behind the plan.

“It’s going to turn the town of Wallingford into the city of Wallingford,” Fishbein said.

He said that he had problems with the height of the buildings and the idea of putting parking garages downtown. Fishbein said he was also concerned that, if there were improvements planned that property owners wouldn’t buy into, the costs could fall to the town.

LeTourneau, who owns Wallingford Lamp and Shade on Center Street, said he supported the idea the first time around and still stands by it.

“I have no idea why it was pulled (from the PZC agenda),” he said. “I don’t know why it’s before the council; it’s a Planning and Zoning issue.”

Fitzsimmons noted that the new zoning regulations are an overlay, and don’t replace what’s currently there.

“Nobody is required to make any changes,” he said. “But if a developer wants to, the option is there. It’s another zoning opportunity.”

Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr. said he supports the idea of the zone, though he, too, had earlier concerns.

“It encourages investment in downtown,” Dickinson said. “We’re changing our regulations to encourage private investment. Everyone benefits from that.”

Fitzsimmons said he backs the plan and hopes it would help the local economy recover. The last two planning commission meetings saw no new development come to town.

“Times are tough, but this is a wonderful opportunity for the town,” he said. “Let’s put it on the books for when the economy does turn.”

LeTourneau said he’d like to see some action taken.

“We can do nothing, and we will have nothing,” he said.

Information from The Connecticut Mirror is included in this report.

FROM WALLINGFORD - Downtown deadlock

This week’s FROM WALLINGFORD is written by my counterpart on the column - Stephen Knight

As Published in the Record Journal Sunday December 26, 2010

Well, for now, the Incentive Housing Zone for downtown Wallingford is off the table. Monday night, the Town Council deadlocked on the issue and the Planning and Zoning Commission postponed a vote on the plan. While support for the plan seemed to be building a year ago, it was clear that that support dissipated in the intervening months. While most of the opposition seemed to center around the need for more information, I think that there are three other factors that also figured into the resultant, lukewarm support.

First of all, major changes to existing regulations have to be driven by either 1) an actual proposal put forth by an entity with means to make the project actually happen, or, 2) a consensus among those most affected that the changes are in their best interest. Neither of those conditions was in evidence. The idea appears to have come to life because some of the social engineers in Hartford passed legislation offering financial incentives to consider development of this sort. Then financial incentives that got the town to the table in the first place were drastically reduced. That left little or no impetus for changes to be made, and what little momentum that did exist died.

Secondly, there are many in Wallingford skeptical of accepting state funds for an entirely local project, and I certainly share such skepticism. When the State of Connecticut offers money to local communities, it does so in order to induce compliance with whatever grand scheme it is that they are promoting. The proverbial “strings attached” to that funding has two results: 1) the town loses control over whatever the project is and 2) the completion of the project slows to a crawl. In this case, the money that the state is offering no doubt came with an enormous set of conditions, restrictions and impediments.

As illustration, I offer you the Christian Street bridge debacle of recent years. Do you recall how long that bridge took to replace? The Town had originally sought to work through the state’s local bridge program, but the project got so bogged down in red tape that the town administration finally threw up its hands, completed its own design and installed the bridge without any state assistance for hundreds of thousands less. In the present Incentive Housing Zone case, the question had to be asked: if we take the money, how much control over the area are we ceding to the bureaucracy in Hartford? Is it really worth it?

Lastly, the linchpin of this whole redevelopment idea is the commuter rail service that is supposed to be built over the next few years. Maybe no one brought this up in Monday’s meeting, but I am beginning to doubt if this operation will ever be built. The state is facing years of multibillion dollar deficits. And, to make the problem far worse, the federal government recently turned down Connecticut’s request for additional hundreds of millions of dollars to finance the project, leaving it for the state to bear the lion’s share of funding. In other words, no one in Hartford will say it, but I think this project is stalled. If that is indeed the case, a huge incentive for creating this special zone is gone.

I take a backseat to nobody in my support for downtown Wallingford and the creation of ways to keep it healthy and attractive. Perhaps sometime in the future, this Incentive Housing Zone will be revisited and the good effort of Town Planner Linda Bush will bring a different result. At present, however, the irony seems to be that the town’s best action was to take no action.

Thoughts on “State funding for Wallingford zoning plan may be in jeopardy”

I have a cross post over on my other blog with respect to an article that ran in the Record Journal Wednesday December 9, 2009 regarding Wallingford Incentive Hous­ing Zone and how the state funding for it is now at risk.

The full story is cross posted at State funding for Wallingford zoning plan may be in jeopardy if you want to read all the details.

The summary of the information as reported is:

• The HOMEConnecticut Program is a state program run through the Office of Policy and Management
• It pays towns up to $4,000 for every housing unit in high-density housing zones
• Un­der the program, municipalities are eligible to receive $2,000 for every housing unit approved within the zones and another $2,000 for each unit that is actually built.
• Wallingford’s proposed Incentive Housing Zone is about 23.3 acres
• It includes some of the sections of Hall Avenue, Quinnipiac Street and the intersection of North Colony and Center streets
• It is an overlay of the town’s current zoning regulations for these areas
• The area as outlined would allow for a maxi­mum of 361 housing units.
• This high-density, mixed-use re­tail and housing is similar to West Hart­ford’s Blue Back Square
• If it is fully developed the town could be receiving $1.44 million in incen­tive payments
• Governor Rell wants to use the money from the program to cut the state’s budget deficit.

So with these highlights of information – should Wallingford move ahead with the plans despite, perhaps, not getting the money from the HOMEConnecticut Program if Governor Rell does in fact pull the funding to try to cut the state’s budget deficit?

My thoughts are we should still go forward with our plans. We should still try to pursue the funds if they are available but we should plan on moving ahead without them.

There is much to be gained in trying to bring forward some uniformity of the buildings downtown as part of encouraging some additional investment and development of our downtown.

The old Knights of Columbus land now has new housing on it and I think that is a nice little gem that could be added to if we continue to pursue the entire plan.

If I remember correctly, all of these townhouse units are sold and there is another small set being planned for a little further down the street.

Available housing to purchase downtown (not rent as we have with all the apartments there currently) may bring more demand to the existing businesses there and due to the increased demand of occupied homes it may allow for more businesses to establish themselves.

It will certainly bring more foot traffic from those residents that currently and will call those new places yet to be built, home.

Add all that with the potential of (someday) having a Metro North type commuter rail from New Haven to Springfield Mass and you just amplify the possibilities.

There are always other sides to the story – what are your thoughts?

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