Calming fears about an Incentive Housing Zone

CORNWALL — About 35 residents came to a Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) meeting April 13, many mistaking it for a public hearing on a proposed Incentive Housing Zone (IHZ).

The new housing zone option would allow for a cluster housing development, with a minimum requirement of affordable homes, on property that meets exacting standards.

The Northwestern Connecticut Regional Planning Collaborative has identified just such a piece of property, off Route 7 in Cornwall Bridge. But the process of amending zoning regulations to reflect the zone option is nowhere near the approval stage.

The purpose of last week’s meeting was for the board to confer with regional planner Jocelyn Ayer as to whether or not she should apply to the state for permission to consider adopting the zone. It is a long process, Ayer said.

A motion to consider endorsing an application to the state will be on the agenda of the May 11 Planning and Zoning meeting. There will also be an opportunity for the public to comment and ask questions, just as there was at last week’s meeting. But, stressed Chairman Pat Hare, it will not be a formal public hearing.

Despite explanations, residents attending the meeting were still incensed by what they described as a lack of notice about the chance to talk about the proposed zone. Planning and Zoning Commission members said they were distressed to hear residents were getting information on the zone proposal and the nature of meetings from sources such as neighbors they meet at the post office.

Land Use Administrator Karen Nelson said there was no need to post notice of the meeting beyond the required agenda, or for Planning and Zoning to allow public discussion.

Former Planning and Zoning Chariman Annie Kosciusko described the commission’s willingness to give time to public discussion “a gift.â€

But it should be noted that public meeting regular agendas always allow for public comment, as required by state statute. Also, Planning and Zoning agendas and meeting minutes are posted in a timely manner at Town Hall and on the town of Cornwall Web site.

That said, the Incentive Housing Zone is a new approach to planning, and a matter of concern for those envisioning other spot zones around town.

They were assured by the zoning commission members that would not be the case. In fact, the targeted site may be the only one that can qualify in Cornwall.

An IHZ is an “overlay zone.†It does not negate the existing zone there, and is can only be applied by a potential developer after it has been approved. In other words, being rezoned does not allow development to happen without town oversight.

It is handled essentially the same as a special permit. The goal is specifically to identify land that is suitable for cluster housing. An IHZ requires at least 20 percent of homes be built under Affordable Housing Act guidelines. The latter would help towns meet minimums that would open the door for state grants.

An approved IHZ does not automatically open the door for overlay zones in other parts of town. The state statute that allows towns the overlay zone option does not work that way, and in Cornwall, there may be no other properties where cluster housing could be built.

Soil conditions are what drive cluster development in Cornwall, which has no sewer system or municipal water supply. Developable sites need a large amount of land that is not only free of ledge and steep slopes, but also has soil suitable for septic systems and reserve septic sites.

There also needs to be sufficient space for wells and setbacks from wetlands, where applicable. Cornwall’s topography does not lend itself easily to those conditions.

At the proposed Cornwall Bridge site, the considerable amount of land that will be restricted from development because it is devoted to septics and setbacks will more than suffice for meeting open space requirements, Ayers said.

The 18-acre property, owned by John Bates, a contractor who has expressed an interest in building there, has four developable acres with good soils that would support dense development.  

A preliminary proposal is for 12 homes, three of them affordable.

There was discussion regarding how the town would screen potential affordable home buyers, as well as monitoring home sales. It remains unclear exactly how that will happen, and discussion is expected to be ongoing. Planning and Zoning members offered the suggestion that the Cornwall Housing Corporation could take on that administrative role.

The recently enacted state statute has yet to be put into practice anywhere in the state.

The complete IHZ study conducted by the collaborative is available at Town Hall and at cornwallct.org.

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