Developer targets New Haven's Wooster Square for 186 new apartments, 'expensive design' greenway

Mary E. O’Leary

NEW HAVEN — The apartments just keep coming.

Popular Wooster Square is attracting more growth, which in turn is causing tensions with some alders and residents as the latest plan starts to unfold.

This time, Epimoni wants to build an additional 186 units that would be located on Olive Street and feature a public plaza greenway along a reclaimed Fair Street that the developer would give to the city through a long-term easement.

The mini-city of sorts on Olive Street between Epimoni and a separate real estate developer, Hines — then would grow to 617 apartments stretching from Chapel to Fair streets.

Epimoni, principal of which is Darren Seid, currently is building Olive and Wooster — 299 luxury apartments bound by 44 Olive St. and 87 Union St. and intersected by Wooster Street. They are scheduled for a soft opening in November.

Also in the mix is The Whit — two complexes, one for 166 apartments and one for 66 apartments units, next to Olive and Wooster and across Chapel under construction by Hines, a Houston-based real estate firm.

A recent meeting on the Fair Street project Seid shared the preliminary plans, much of which have placeholder elements, while he concentrated on the plaza and greenway.

“We think what we are going to do here will be such a beautiful value added to the community, to the area, to Connecticut,” Seid said.

“It is a very expensive design. It is something we are going to be giving to the community, but we believe that it is really worth it,” Seid said. “We are very excited to be delivering the greenway.”

He said Epimoni is under contract to “imminently” purchase 20 Fair Street and 34 Fair Street, which now are owned by Fair Properties LLC.

“There are elements tied to the planning and zoning process and then we will close on the land,” Seid said.

He said the design for the greenway and plaza opens it to cyclists, pedestrians and slow-moving cars that could come through in a one-way entrance from Olive Street.

Seid said this shared space concept is popular in Europe and is growing in acceptance in the U.S., which allows for a more dense urban environment.

He said at first he was hesitant with the idea, but now is convinced it will work.

“It is very restrictive as to how a car can move through,” Seid said. There will be trees, bollards and maybe planters in the greenway to slow vehicular movement. He said it won’t be obvious that it is open to cars.

A similar proposal is part of the housing development by Spinnaker Real Estate Partners that will begin to fill the space where the Veterans Memorial Coliseum was located off Orange and State streets downtown.

Phase 1, which has 200 apartments, has a public plaza that mixes pedestrians, cyclists and cars, a proposal that brought some pushback to Spinnaker.

Seid compared his latest plans to Court Street where there is greenery in the middle of the block with townhouses on either side.

He is applying for approval of a Planned Development Unit for the Fair Street property, which demands more open space per apartment in exchange for modifications of other zoning requirements.

The apartment proposal, which would be bound by Olive, Fair and Union streets, is seven stories and covers 52,639 square feet.

The plaza blends into the retail and amenity space on the first level with the potential to “semi-open” the amenities to the public.

“We are really trying to bring a community feel to it,” Seid said.

The apartments would be on the second through sixth floors and feature terraces with more open space on the mezzanine. There will be trees in the stamped concrete plaza and greenery could be draped from the terraces, as shown in some of the conceptual photos.

The developer also will seek a variance to include 850-square-foot apartments, reduced from the 1,000-square-foot requirement. He said they have found there is a market for these.

The rest would be studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units and potentially four-bedroom units.

Seid said they are open to feedback from the community and he mentioned such things as recommendations for the facade material.

He said they are looking for something “that plays a little bit differently” from Olive and Wooster, which is next door, and The Whit.

At a recent hearing arranged for Alder Carmen Rodriguez, D-6, Alder Ellen Cupo, D-8, the Downtown Wooster Square Community Management Team and the Hill South Community Management Team, about seven people spoke.

Cupo, Rodriguez and other residents questioned the rents for the new apartments, which Seid confirmed would be based on the current high prices downtown.

Both alders said they couldn’t afford to live in them.

“I moved here from D.C., but I didn’t expect to pay D.C. prices,” another resident told Seid.

Cupo said adding affordable units was a major goal of the alders and it didn’t appear that there would be any in the Fair Street development.

Seid said it was “very preliminary,” but they are looking at “executing a lease by bed strategy,” as a way to “cast a wider net on the tenant base and allow some entry-level pricing” for some of the units.

Ian Dunn, the new chairman of the Downtown Wooster Community Management Team, said he was disappointed that they had less than a week’s notice on the meeting and said the community should have been brought in sooner for feedback.

“This is actually not a good faith effort to engage the community,” Dunn said.

He also asked about Epimoni’s long-term commitment to its development projects.

Olive and Wooster, according to the land records, is owned by 44 Olive Street Ground Owner LLC, principal of which is Caret Ventures LLC, a subsidiary of Safehold — a real estate investment trust.

Seid said Epimoni “is a small piece of the puzzle.” He said he and his investors “want to stay long-term, especially in New Haven. It’s an exciting place to be, but I can’t promise that.”

Seid said they will have a 98.5-year lease on the land.

Olive and Wooster will have just under 8,000 square feet of retail and a public plaza of its own with outdoor seating.

For the Fair Street property, Seid imagined consumers picking up pizzas from Wooster Street and then walking to the greenway.

A resident of the Columbus Mall Co-op on Wooster Street said the Fair Street development is not like Court Street, which is closer to half the height and has only a few townhouses, not almost 200 apartments.

He also worried that there will be a tunnel effect between Olive and Wooster and the new proposal given the height of the buildings and questioned the amount of community space and greenery and said there was a need for a shade study.

Seid said he would get the dimensions but it won’t be a tunnel.

Anstress Farwell, who heads the New Haven Urban Design League, said a traffic study early in the process was a necessity.

Farwell said there was a study in 2007 which generated much community involvement. She said it did not anticipate the traffic demands from more than 600 tenants and the eventual development of the Coliseum site and State Street lots.

Farwell said a new traffic study should be part of the PDU submission, rather than later in the process when the site plan is reviewed.

There was agreement that more hearings were needed and would be a part of the planning approval process. One resident suggested Seid contact more local voices and fewer marketing groups for feedback.

Several residents worried about changes to what is now a quiet neighborhood.

Seid said there is an “age-old push and pull” to development, where attractive areas draw more inhabitants and generate the fear that things will change for the worse.

“I don’t have an answer that is going to be the perfect solution to this. I will ask for feedback from the community and, where we can, we will deliver that into the project,” Seid said.

Given the increase in tenants, he projected there will be more retail, which should be a plus.

Steve Fontana, deputy economic development director, said it was important to remember that before Epimoni came to the city, the area featured “dilapidated commercial buildings and parking lots.”

“I think through this process we are going to improve the community and I think that is what we are all striving to achieve,” Fontana said.

Though larger mileage tax is coming, truckers get a small break on diesel fuel levy

Keith Phaneuf

Though Connecticut’s trucking industry faces a hefty new mileage tax starting in 2023, it will get some modest relief in the short term on fuel costs.

The state’s diesel fuel tax — which is adjusted annually on July 1 — fell Thursday to 40.1 cents per gallon, a drop of 4.5 cents and its lowest level in 11 years, according to data from the Department of Revenue Services.

The diesel tax had been as high as 54.9 cents per gallon in 2013 and has averaged 47.6 cents over the past decade. The new rate is the lowest since 2010, when the levy was 39.6 cents.

“We’ll take it,” said Joe Sculley, president of the Motor Transport Association of Connecticut, which represents more than 800 trucking and trucking-related businesses. “But we’ve still got this weight distance tax coming up.”

Sculley was referring to a proposal from Gov. Ned Lamont that the legislature enacted last month, establishing a series of fees starting in January 2023 on large, commercial trucks.

Lamont, who was unable to convince lawmakers to support tolls in both 2019 and 2020, has — like his predecessor, Dannel P. Malloy — warned repeatedly that the state’s transportation program is at risk of fiscal insolvency by the mid-2020s absent additional resources.

The fees that begin 18 months from now range from 2.5 cents per mile for vehicles weighing 26,000 to 28,000 pounds to 17.5 cents per mile for trucks weighing more than 80,000 pounds. They apply to travel on all roads, not just on limited-access highways, in the state. Collectively they’re expected to raise $90 million annually, largely from the trucking industry.

By comparison, the diesel fuel relief is relatively small.

The diesel fuel tax generated about $122 million in the 2019-20 fiscal year when the rate was 46.5 cents per gallon, according to the revenue services department. Final data isn’t available yet for the 2020-21 budget year, which ended Wednesday.

But the new charge of 40.1 cents per gallon is down almost 14% from the rate two fiscal years ago. If fuel sales in the coming year are relatively similar to those of 2019-20, that would translate into about $17 million in savings for diesel fuel consumers.

But Sculley noted the diesel fuel rate is far from stable.

In 2008, the General Assembly fixed a complicated formula in the law that sets the diesel rate each July based on an analysis of wholesale prices in both diesel fuel and gasoline during the prior 12 months. As those prices rise and fall, so does the diesel tax.

Sculley also said the trucking industry still is dealing with the challenges posed over the last 15 months of the coronavirus pandemic.

Already facing a shortage of drivers, many companies found themselves paying big overtime costs as they struggled to keep grocery and department stores supplied in 2020 and the first half of this calendar year.

Trucking companies not only faced added costs for personal protective equipment, but also increased pressure to bolster wages as drivers risked infection making their deliveries.

“Our members go to work every day no matter what is thrown at them,” Sculley said.

Route 4 in Farmington will be shut down for over a month, requiring detours. Here’s what you need to know

Don Stacom

Farmington motorists can brace for summertime delays: Starting July 12, the quickest daytime route between Farmington center and Unionville will be via Avon.

A water line reconstruction project will close Route 4, the town’s busiest thoroughfare and the main connector for towns to the west heading to the highway. Regular traffic patterns should return in September.

Access to town hall, the library, homes, the Wood-n-Tap and other small businesses will be maintained, but it won’t be possible for through traffic to get from Brickyard Road to Route 167 on Route 4.

Instead, eastbound drivers will be detoured up Route 167 — West Avon Road — at the Pine Grove Schoolhouse in southern Avon, and then down Brickyard to reconnect with Route 4. Westbound drivers will follow the same detour but in the opposite order.

“Connecticut Water Co. estimates that the detour should be complete by the end of August and the project should be complete by end of September,” the town said in an announcement.

Farmington police will station patrol officers and community service officers at both detour points on Route 4. The detour will be in effect Mondays through Fridays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Online maps show the distance from Toro Loco on Brickyard Road to the Sanford & Hawley store at Route 167 is 2 miles on Route 4, with an average trip taking about five minutes.

Taking the detour into southern Avon would mean 3.6 miles, taking about eight minutes without significant traffic.

Some drivers in southern Farmington might save time by using New Britain Avenue instead, but officials expect most of the commuter traffic from Canton, Burlington, Torrington and other towns to the west will keep using Route 4 even with the detour.

Trying to maintain alternating one-way traffic on Route 4 would only have led to long backups and rush-hour gridlock, said Police Chief Paul Melanson. In addition, construction crews would require additional weeks — or more — to do the job if they had to accommodate alternating one-way traffic.

“We want to get them in and out as fast as possible,” Melanson said.

That’s also one reason why the work will be done in daylight rather than at night, the town said.

“Unfortunately, the type of work being done is loud and will be disruptive to the homeowners in a residential area. Second, historically overnight work takes longer to complete than daytime work,” the town said. “The goal is to complete the work as quickly and safely as possible.”

The Connecticut Water Co. will be doing major work on an aging water line; maps show the project area as Route 4 from just east of Highwood Road to just west of Walnut Street.

Drivers will be able to reach the library, town hall and the Wood-n-Tap from one side of the detour only; police will wave them through.

Phil Barnett, a co-owner of the Wood-n-Tap chain, said he’s hoping the town will put up signage to advise motorists that his restaurant remains open.

The Hartford Restaurant Group spent north of $3.5 million to renovate and expand the former Apricot’s restaurant along the Farmington River two years ago; it has been enormously popular, but has faced a series of challenges.

“We opened in October of 2019 and went into a pandemic in March, we were closed until May of 2020, we reopened with all the restrictions,” Barnett said. “This May we said ‘Thank God, all the restrictions will be dropped’ — and now there’s this.”

Barnett praised Farmington officials for keeping local business owners apprised of the construction and detour plans, and is hoping they’ll help throughout the project.

“The spring, summer and fall are our busiest seasons,” Barnett said.

Cheshire subdivision plan calls for 140 units near I-691 interchange

By Mariah Melendez, Cheshire Herald staff

CHESHIRE — The Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing Monday night to discuss a proposed 140 unit subdivision in the north end of town, near Dickerman Road and the I-691 interchange.

This subdivision is proposed for Stone Bridge Crossing, a 107-acre tract of land that has been the focal point of several ill-fated major development proposals over the years. In 2019, the PZC approved a plan to allow developers, Charter Realty and Development, to market the area for multi-use, including retail and residential.  

This proposal from EG Homes represents the first major residential subdivision for the property and is expected to cater to a wide variety of residents.

“We’re extremely excited to be a part of this development,” said Matt Gilchrist, the president of EG Homes. “… The product that we have is going to target two distinct market segments — the first-time homebuyer and … the adult downsizer …”

To support these two demographics, Gilchrist explained that the plan calls for a variety of townhouses and carriage homes. 

“It is a 26.8-acre parcel of land... there has been some prior earth removal (completed),” said Darren Overton, the project’s engineer. “… What is proposed is multi-family dwelling units of duplex and fourplex units. The density that is allowed per the zoning is 10 units per acre. There were 180 units proposed as part of the master plan, but what is proposed here is 140 units.”

Overton went on to describe the proposed layout of the subdivision. 

“The fourplex homes will be townhouses and they will all have two-car garages,” he said. “There will be 14 fourplex townhomes which make up 56 units, and there are 42 duplex units which make up 84 units.”

All the units will have three bedrooms, which would require 280 parking spaces and 42 visitor spaces, according to Overton. 

“We will also have a two-acre open space area that will act as a passive or active recreation area for the residents of the development,” Overton added. “We will loop it with a quarter-mile walking or running track that residents can use. There will also be a covered pavilion and nooks for people to have picnics outside as well.”

During the hearing, a few residents voiced concerns about the new subdivision, specifically the traffic on Dickerman Road. 

“The curve on Dickerman Road is almost a blind curve,” said Joann Hale. “If you are going to start putting younger people who drive faster, and school buses coming around that curve, I think it’s going to be horribly dangerous.”

Hale also suggested the subdivision appears to cut off residential yards.

“This doesn’t affect me personally, but people used to think they had big backyards and now they don’t,” she added. “I’m wondering what kind of a rear setback there might be or how that will be addressed.”

PZC Chairman Earl Kurtz assured Hale that the subdivision does not cut through anyone’s property line, but left it to the developers of the subdivision to address any other concerns.

The PZC held the public hearing open until its next meeting on July 12.

Kent replacing many downtown sidewalks in $3M streetscape project

Sandra Diamond Fox

KENT — The town has started the bidding process for a multi-million dollar streetscape project that has been a very long time coming, according to First Selectman Jean Speck.

The roughly $3 million project, which has been 12 years in the making, involves replacing all the asphalt sidewalks on both sides of the streets from Kent Greenhouse & Gardens at 30 South Main Street to south of Kent Congregational Church at 97 North Main Street.

The project also includes part of Route 341, which goes from the east side of the Housatonic River on Bridge Street and comes back into town, crossing over Route 7, and ending at Maple Street Extension.

“We’re really hoping to get a shovel in the ground this fall,” Speck said.

In total, approximately 11,000 linear feet of sidewalks will be replaced. The age of the sidewalks vary. Many have been replaced or overlaid over the years while some segments are original to the 1930s when Route 7 was improved, according to Speck.

The idea for the project came out of a safety issue, which led to a safety audit, according to Speck.

“The sidewalks are old but we’ve been repairing them as we’re going along,” Speck said.

While there haven’t been reports of any accidents on the sidewalks due to their current condition, “they are well overdo and, from a general safety standpoint when sidewalks are old, we want to improve the pedestrian traffic,” Speck said.

The first phase of the project is now underway, which is the bidding process.

“The bid package that is ready to go out is to get bids back for both concrete and asphalt because there has been a lot of spirited discussion among the community as to which would be a better material,” Speck said.

“Bids would have to come back with both materials,” Speck added.

Three separate grants are helping fund the project. “Each grant has very specific guidelines and specific deliverables,” Speck said, adding they involve a combination of federal and state funding.

There is a CT Community Connectivity Grant for $400,000 from state Department of Transporation; a Main Street Investment Fund grant for $500,000 from the state Department of Housing; and a Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant for $2.35 million, also from DOT.

Former Kent First Selectman Bruce Adams had applied for the Connecticut Community Connectivity and Main Street Investment Fund grants, according to Speck. “Through our Northwest Hills COG (Council of Governments), we’d applied for the TAP grant,” she added

The TAP grant was awarded in 2020 and the other two grants were awarded over the last few years, according to Speck.

Long-term project

It was Adams’ vision to improve the sidewalks in town, according to Speck.

Aside from being postponed due to COVID-19, Speck said it took time to conduct specific evaluations that were needed, such as safety and state assessments.

Multiple community forums were held in regard to the project. Since it began, there were three committee formed to work on it. The current committee, called the Kent Village Center Streetscape Committee, was formed by the town’s Board of Selectmen at its March 2020 meeting. Streetscape committee members are interfacing with a design engineer and will make recommendations back to the Board of Selectmen on how to implement the plan within the budget.

While there is no set completion date for the project, the town is going to work with the contractor to ensure all residential and business access is maintained while construction is taking place, according to Speck.

“The community is very much behind this,” Speck said. “Not only is it visitors who use the sidewalks but we have many people who live in Kent Village, and living in the Kent Village is a very desirable location because of the convenience of the local supermarket and our school.”

She spoke of trick-or-treating as “a northwest corner famous tradition.”

“We live on Route 7 and over the years, it developed into this destination for Halloween trick-or-treating,” she said, adding having “safe, wonderful sidewalks to use for all the transportation is definitely a very high priority