ANSONIA – A team of developers is asking the planning & zoning commission for a rule change, in order to build 30 studio and one-bedroom apartments between Pershing Drive and Clifton Avenue.
Developers from Midland Development & Contracting, along with Cedar Village Development LLC, asked the commission for a zone-text amendment at a meeting June 30.
The land they want to build on is currently zoned for commercial use. The amendment, if approved, would allow them to submit an application for the apartments.
The roughly .6-acre complex would include the addresses 91 – 93 Division St., as well as 7 – 9 Cook St. Those addresses are zoned commercial, according to city land records, although three of the four addresses are currently occupied by houses (the last is vacant land).
City land use administrator Ronda Porrini told The Valley Indy that the houses on the property were built before the current zoning regulations existed.
A public hearing over the proposed amendment was held June 30, where two neighbors voiced their opposition to the development. Members of the commission voted to take no action and continue the hearing.
Another public hearing is scheduled for July 28.
The zone-text amendment, submitted by attorney John P. Sponheimer, would allow the commission to approve multi-family housing on parcels that are between .5 and 2 acres, and which are within half a mile of an employer with at least 500 employees.
Sponheimer said in the meeting that the developers want to market their apartments to employees at Griffin Hospital. He read from a letter written by Griffin Health COO Todd J. Liu, who supports the complex.
Gino LaVerghetta, one of the developers, said the complex would be walking distance from Griffin. The site is about a quarter-mile from the hospital.
City planning consultant David Elder said in the meeting that he was worried about how the project would fit in on Division Street. He pointed out that the apartments would be surrounded by a mixture of two-family homes and full-scale commercial spaces.
“I’m still not sure if the scale is right for this particular area,” Elder said.
He also said he would recommend making some of the apartments two-bedroom. The developers presented renderings which showed the complex as having 26 one-bedroom apartments and four studio apartments.
Jared Heon, the P&Z chairman, said the amendment seemed overly specific. He said the commission should consider broadening its scope – to include smaller employers, for example – and that he didn’t want to approve an amendment that might only apply to one property.
“If we’re going to amend our zoning regulations, I’m not going to amend them for one parcel,” Heon said. “Because then you can go to (the zoning board of appeals) for that if you want to do that.”
Two city residents spoke during the public hearing, both of whom said the apartments wouldn’t fit in on the site.
Former P&Z chairman Bartholomew Flaherty said in the hearing that it doesn’t make sense to cram apartments into one of the densest, most congested parts of the city.
“You’re increasing density in the very areas that have absolutely zero open space. You’re not on the hilltop. You’re down where there’s no open space,” Flaherty said.
Keith Maynard, who lives on the same block as the possible complex, said the traffic impact would be disastrous.
The renderings shown by the developers included possible entry and exit points on Division Street and Pershing Drive.
The developers haven’t submitted a site plan yet. If the zone-text amendment is adopted, then they could submit a plan to the commission.
The group of developers has teamed up in the Valley before.
Last year, Midland Development and Cedar Village LLC a 90-apartment complex on Minerva Street in Derby. That complex also included nine housing units deemed affordable under state law.
The Derby apartment complex is a mix of studio and one-bedroom apartments with rents ranging from $1,350 to $1,755.
Renderings for a possible Ansonia complex shared similarities with the complex in Derby, including the presence of under-deck parking spaces.
The commission scheduled the next public hearing to take place July 28 via Zoom. The link will be available on the city website.