#Middlebury #P&Z
Signs approved by Middlebury’s Planning and Zoning Commission are in place at the new Sunoco station (formerly Ford’s) in Middlebury. As of June 18, the station has not yet opened for business. (Marjorie Needham photo)
By TERRENCE S. MCAULIFFE
The Middlebury Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) at its May 4 meeting approved signs for the Sunoco station at 550 Middlebury Road (formerly Ford’s), a water line easement for Westover Water Company and road maintenance work on scenic roads around Lake Quassapaug. It also discussed recommendations for zoning regulation revisions and a formalized site plan resolution. At its June 1 meeting, it approved temporary use of a camp trailer at 80 Yale Ave. and temporary “grand opening” signs at the Shell Station on Middlebury Road.
The Sunoco signage was approved after Al Whiting of Ready Imaging Inc. told commissioners the Sunoco arrow sign and LED price sign to be installed on the same pole and at about the same height as the original would not include a flange that appeared in the plans. He agreed it was unsightly and not needed. At the request of Zoning Enforcement Officer Curt Bosco, the approval also included a Sunoco sign on each side of the new canopy. The original plan showed signage for CITGO, but Bosco said the brand subsequently changed.
The water line easement was approved after town attorney Dana D’Angelo told commissioners the Westover Water Company was selling its assets to the Connecticut Water Company and needed to obtain easements for its water lines, many of which were installed as far back as 1907. She said the Congregational Church and the town needed to sign the easement, and P&Z approval was required by Connecticut General Statutes Section 8-24.
Town engineer John Calabrese told commissioners Public Works Director Dan Norton was planning road maintenance work on Upper Whittemore, Tranquility, Spring and White Deer Rock Roads from the Tyler Cove area to the Woodbury line and pointed out they are designated as scenic roads and governed by Connecticut General Statutes. He said the work is being done to correct drainage problems and re-treat or repair existing roadway surfaces. He said Norton was not proposing to widen the roads or make major drainage changes, and the roads will look the same as they look today except they will have a smoother finish. Chairman Smith said maintenance of a scenic road does not require a public hearing; commissioners agreed it was maintenance and did not require a public hearing.
In a follow-up to his Feb. 2 discussion on zoning regulation revisions, at the May meeting Hiram Peck walked through 18 pages of his comments and suggestions for updating the inconsistent and difficult-to-understand regulations. Peck’s Woodbury-based company, Plan Three LLC, was awarded the contract to update the regulations.
“This is a lot more juggling around than I had originally anticipated,” Peck told Smith after half an hour of comments, “but I will follow it through and do a good job on it. Don’t worry about that. It’s frustrating for me because it’s taking longer than I had originally thought, but I want to get it right.”
In other matters, Smith told commissioners he had asked D’Angelo to draft a site plan resolution to use when approving future site plan applications. He asked the commissioners to review the draft prior to the June 1 meeting to assure nothing was missing, mentioning bonding and lighting requirements as conditions to be included.
At the June 1 meeting, Andrew Del Negro told commissioners he was making extreme improvements to a house he purchased at 80 Yale Ave which had termite damage. He said his family planned to live in a rented house for three months while the work was being done, but they found that house to be unlivable.
They subsequently stayed with friends but now want permission to live in a 32-foot camp trailer parked next to the house, saying the cost of staying in a hotel was too expensive. He said the trailer would be self-sufficient, using electricity and water from the house and a black water tank for sewage that would be pumped into the sewer system. Chairman Terry Smith told him the health department needed to provide written approval on those sanitary facilities.
After some discussion, Del Negro was given a temporary mobile home permit for six months to allow him enough time in the event of construction delays. He said he would park it on a side of the property in the least visible area.
Alltown Market, the convenience store at the newly rebuilt Shell Station at 504 Middlebury Road, was given approval to display grand opening event signs from June 19 to 26. The permitted signs include two double-sided banners and four signs to be attached to the gasoline pump islands.
During the event, vendors on the premises will offer samples of products sold in the store. Commissioner Paul Babarik said he was pleased with the appearance of the rebuilt station, but he agreed with Smith, who discouraged flying balloons during the opening.
In enforcement matters, Zoning Enforcement Officer Curt Bosco said Alltown Market was addressing punch list items and was planning to bring in topsoil for the promised landscaping.
The next regular P&Z meeting will be Thursday, July 6, 2017, at 7:30 p.m. at Shepardson Community Center.
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