By TERRENCE S. MCAULIFFE
The Middlebury Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) at its Feb. 5 meeting unanimously approved a sign on Straits Turnpike and accepted an application to build a new gas station to replace the Shell station on Middlebury Road. It also discussed cleanup of the excavation at the corner of Clearview Knoll and scheduled a March public hearing for the long-awaited Plan of Conservation and Development.
A special exception for a 5-by-8-foot directory sign at 687 Straits Turnpike for Dr. Giuseppe Tripodi d/b/a Tripod Realty was unanimously approved. The sign lists businesses at that address and is similar to one for a dental office at 415 Middlebury Road.
An application for demolition of the Shell station at 520 Middlebury Road and construction of a larger station and convenience store on that site and the adjacent lots formerly occupied by Vinnie’s Pizza and Johnny’s Dairy Bar was accepted for public hearing March 5. Attorney Michael McVerry, representing Wesson Energy, owner of all the properties, said an August 2012 land swap with property owned by St. John of the Cross Church gave more room in the back to square off the building site.
The plans show a 3,275-square-foot gas station and convenience store with an expanded canopy and five double-sided gasoline pumps. A set-back variance for the canopy was approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals in October, and McVerry said approvals by the Conservation Commission, Economic Development Commission, Police Department and fire marshal are being sought. Chairman Terry Smith instructed McVerry to supply a lighting plan and architectural renderings of stonework behind the building.
In enforcement matters, Robert LaFlamme d/b/a Pomeroy Enterprises LLC, told commissioners he would clean up unfinished excavation work on the lot at the corner of Middlebury Road and Clearview Knoll. At the January meeting, Smith called the lot a “gravel pit” in the center of town, saying brush was stacked up on the sides of the excavation with boulders everywhere and sewer pipes sticking out of the ground. Zoning Enforcement Officer Curtis Bosco was instructed by Smith to have LaFlamme come explain how the excavation conformed to stipulations in a permit issued in January 2012.
LaFlamme told commissioners he needed to get the excavation finished by February before his $6,000 excavation permit expired. He said he offered the fill to the Town of Middlebury as required by the permit, but it wasn’t wanted, so he found other firms who needed it. The only remaining excavation, according to LaFlamme, was ledge slowly being removed using hoe-ram impact equipment. He said blasting would have been faster and cheaper, but would have disrupted the neighbors. LaFlamme said what appeared to be a sewer pipe sticking out of the ground was a GPS locator for the State of Connecticut. He agreed to remove boulders and stumps, grade the property and plant grass as soon as the snow melts. Smith agreed to allow him six additional months to complete the excavation.
In other business, Chairman Smith said town planner Brian Miller had incorporated updated maps from the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments into the long-awaited Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD). He said the POCD would be distributed to commissioners and also posted on the town web site for review by the public. He asked the Bee-Intelligencer and other newspapers to make this known to residents so they would be able to comment March 5 when the commission will take public input. Please note the POCD can be found at middlebury-ct.org.
The next regular P&Z meeting and the public hearings for the Shell station replacement and POCD will be Thursday, March 5, at 7:30 p.m. at Shepardson Community Center.
