More Quick Hits

by: commonweal

Mon May 05, 2008 at 11:09:32 AM EDT

It's official!  Konover Development no longer has the option to build River Oaks on the 60 acre CL&P property!  This week the owner of the property told the SHARE Steering Committee that as of this past week he no longer has a contract with Konover Development and that he will now be taking direct responsibility for whatever gets built on his property and that he will only build something that both he and the town "can be proud of" (his words).  He will not build a Big Box store on his property!  Furthermore, he wants to work collaboratively with the town and the residents and he said that he supports the charrette initiative for his property stating that he will be an active participant in the planning process.

2. NEW DOT LEADER --

Connecticut is the third densest state in the country and 80 percent of its travel is by automobile, said Joseph Marie, the newly appointed Department of Transportation Commissioner. He said as commissioner, he will work to provide more attractive alternatives to the automobile. He will help commuters better predict transit travel times and provide more parking near transit.  Marie will be the first transit expert to head the beleaguered agency. Marie was appointed by the Governor in April. His confirmation by the General Assembly is pending.
Marie has extensive public and private sector experience. He worked on the Central Phoenix/ East Valley Rail System, METRO TRANSIT in Minneapolis and for Bombardier and Siemens.

3.  SMART GROWTH AND GLOBAL WARMING --

A new report by Environment Connecticut Clean Water Action of global warming trends in Connecticut and New England from 1990 to 2005 found that global warming emissions throughout New England increased by 10.9 percent. The study is the first of its kind to produce a thorough estimate of green house gas emissions.

In Connecticut, emissions from industrial and commercial sources declined 8.5 percent, but transportation emissions increased 20 percent between 1990 and 2005. Roads, parking lots and other impervious surfaces increased 22 percent in Connecticut between 1985 and 2002. On other words, there is a direct correlation between how and where we're developing and the amount of global warming gases we produce.  

Overflow Crowd Postpones Zoning Commission Meeting

by: commonweal

Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 09:32:09 AM EDT

The meeting has been rescheduled for Thursday, April 10, and will be held at the Simsbury High School auditorium which can hold 900 people.  Stay tuned!

Konover PDD Application Rejected

by: commonweal

Thu Apr 03, 2008 at 09:46:55 AM EDT

For the record, I believe in mixed-use development.  However, a key component of mixed use development is human scale architecture.  Call me crazy, but big box stores are not what I think of when I hear the words human scale architecture.  Konover claims in their PR campaign for the PDD that the April 7 public hearing is not about whether one supports or opposes River Oaks, it's about whether one supports or opposes a PDD that is needed in order to bring mix-use economic development to Simsbury.  

The April 7th public hearing absolutely IS about River Oaks!  If the Konover PDD is approved it will provide the legislative framework in the form of a mixed-use zoning regulation under which Konover will submit their application to build River Oaks. I can't imagine that Konover paid substantial amounts of money in attorney and consultant fees to submit a PDD application just because they felt some form of civic duty to help Simsbury write PDD zoning regulations.  It is all about Konover's bottom line.  Building River Oaks will make them a profit, so they will do anything to make sure it gets built -- it is a simple as that.  

Konover is Back

by: commonweal

Sun Mar 23, 2008 at 15:53:01 PM EDT

I find it the height of arrogance and autocratic behavior that some elected officials in Simsbury are totally opposed to a collaborative, democratic process that provides a framework for creating a shared vision, otherwise known as a charrette, but are in favor of a corporation coming into town and proposing a zoning regulation that will benefit the bottom line of the same corporation.  How much thought do you think Konover gave to the impact this PDD will have on the town as a whole?  The answer is exactly none.  The only thought was about the almighty dollar.  Democracy has indeed been made a mockery by this entire River Oaks process!!  

If this PDD passes, the people of Simsbury will have, for all intents and purposes, lost any remaining shred of control they had over land use decisions in their town. Corporations, with their legal teams and money, will now rule the town.  Have a project that our zoning regulations -- regulations supposedly written by the people through their representatives -- don't allow? Just submit some alternative language that will make it acceptable and you will be bulldozing the land in no time.

Passage of this PDD will ensure that citizens will continue to lose faith in the process and in government in general at a time when we need more public participation and citizen involvement.  Rather than stand up for the democratic process and the decisions of the people, far too many Simsbury officials have simply abdicated their responsibility. Is it any wonder people have no faith in government anymore?  
 

Republicans Block Simsbury Charrette

by: commonweal

Sat Mar 01, 2008 at 23:03:35 PM EST

A charrette is a collaborative, democratic process that provides a framework for creating a shared vision with community involvement, directed by consultants representing such key disciplines as zoning, traffic, etc.  In other words, the community gets together and decides what they want their town to look like, thereby ensuring that the people will dictate the type of development occurs instead of developers and the market.

Sure sounds like a horrible idea to me.  How can we trust the democratic process with such an important issue as community development?  

One of the reasons given for rejecting the charrette was because Simsbury is already perceived by developers as being difficult to work with because the town can't make a decision.  The developer who planted this idea in the heads of the GOP was was William Ethier, Executive Vice President & Chief Executive Officer,
Home Builders Association of Connecticut, Inc.-- a man who does nothing but support the status quo when it comes to development.  By the way, Ethier is also a board member of Connecticut Partnership for Balanced Growth, a lobbying group headed by Michael Goman of Konover.  Konover, of course, is still trying to get their controversial River Oaks project off the ground in Simsbury -- no conflict of interest there.  Anyways, this comment is so non-sensical it makes my head hurt.  The fact that Simsbury is having such difficulty with development is precisely why Simsbury should have a charrette.  It would ensure the development of a fair, predictable and cost effective approval process.  The longer it takes to get approval for a building or large development, the longer the developer's capital remains tied up in the land and not earning income. However,knowing exactly want the town wants expedites the approval process, thereby, saving the developer time and money.  

Quick Hits

by: commonweal

Sun Feb 24, 2008 at 11:57:28 AM EST

2.  The battle over the U.S. Army's plans to build a training center in the rural Maromas section of Middletown is heating up as the Wesleyan community gets involved.

3.  In the town of Simsbury, members of the town's five land-use boards met to discuss the possibility of having a charrette to plan responsible development along Route 10.  The meeting came a day after Konover, the developer of Simsbury River Oaks, submitted a second draft of an amendment to zoning regulations needed to move ahead with its 60-acre mixed-use project, featuring a big box Target store.  To learn more about charrettes and how they can benefit your town, check out the National Charrette Institute web site.

Smart Growth Election News

by: commonweal

Thu Nov 08, 2007 at 19:58:21 PM EST

I know popular wisdom has it that retirment communities are a tax boon for communities, but based on my experience in the emergency services field, they can be a drain on Emergency Medical Services.  Good deal for Farmington in the long run.

2.  The Chatham Party of East Hampton, which surged to power two years ago amid development pressures in town, lost three of their five seats on the town council in Tuesday's elections. 

3.  The Simsbury Citizens First Party won four seats. Winning seats on the zoning commission were SCF candidates John Vaughn and Bruce Elliott, a former steering committee member of the homeowner group leading the opposition to Simsbury River Oaks.  SCF candidate Julie Meyer, a banking software developer, was elected to the planning commission, and John McCann won a seat on the zoning board of appeals.
 

More Smart Growth election news below:

River Oaks Update

by: commonweal

Wed Sep 19, 2007 at 09:49:05 AM EDT

However, there is more to the story.

Bait and Switch

by: commonweal

Mon Aug 27, 2007 at 12:50:22 PM EDT

I must say that I was extremely naive as I sat through all the presentations and zoning meetings.  I thought our Zoning Commission would protect the town and say no to such drastic changes and obvious misprepresentation, but they quickly rolled over when push came to shove.  I thought developers had some modicum of decency and act in good faith, but I soon learned scruples quickly go out the window when it comes to a company's bottom line.

Simsbury - Update on River Oaks

by: commonweal

Thu Aug 16, 2007 at 09:13:48 AM EDT

While catching up on my e-mails, I was greeted with an update on the River Oaks project in Simsbury.  On June 5th, Konover submitted an application for River Oaks to the Town of Simsbury. The application consisted of three parts:
** zoning text amendment to establish a new zoning regulation in Simsbury for mixed-use development called a Planned Development District or PDD
** a request for a zone change for the CL&P property from its current zone of Light Industrial to a PDD zone and
** a site plan for River Oaks

I Give River Oaks an F

by: commonweal

Mon Jul 09, 2007 at 13:52:01 PM EDT

Let's look at his reasoning and see if we come up with the same grade.

Simsbury Moratorium on Development

by: commonweal

Tue Jun 12, 2007 at 09:43:43 AM EDT

Kudos to Mr. Romano.  With so much pressure from developers to build on Route 10, especially in the northern and southern gateway areas, the town needs to take a step back and decided what type of development will benenfit the town as a whole.  Interesting, though, that Mr. Romano's proposal "drew no response from fellow selectmen."  What gives?

Konover Officially Files River Oaks Application

by: commonweal

Wed Jun 06, 2007 at 11:26:47 AM EDT

1.  Over a 1 millions square feet of buildings.  About 75% of the West Farms Mall

2.  The development still calls for a big box  Target store.

3.  Lot coverage is just shy of 70%.  That means that about 70% of every square inch of the site is covered with impervious objects  buildings, pavement, sidewalks, etc.

4.  There will be 2,583 parking spaces or about 20% of the parking available at Gillette Stadium!

5.  There will be 210 residences in the development which is a large new neighborhood all by itself.

A Few Things

by: commonweal

Thu May 31, 2007 at 09:19:49 AM EDT

1.  Please take the time to sign the petition at Stop Griswold Overdevelopment.  This virtual petition is to stop the development of land adjacent to Hammonassett State Park and protect the salt marshes, tidal rivers and Long Island Sound. The biological health and diversity of the state's coastal region affects us all.  This public land is threatened with irreparable harm by real estate developers from New York.  They propose to build a densely packed development of 127 residential units, mostly row houses and apartment buildings, directly adjacent to these sensitive tidal wetlands.

2.  As reported a few days ago, a consultant from Dover-Kohl was hired to tour the site of the planned River Oaks project in Simsbury.  As report in this morning's Courant,Victor Dover presented his report after his tour.  His recommendations should be heeded by all towns:

The current draft of the town's 2007 plan of conservation and development fails to provide the framework that would help a developer devise a proposal consistent with what town leaders want for the town.

He likened regulations to DNA.

"If you have good DNA, you get good growth," Dover told commission members and the crowd of about 100 residents. "With bad DNA, you get cancer."

None of the projects cited by Dover as examples of good mixed-use development at the more than two-hour meeting Wednesday included big-box stores, which Dover said don't promote the sense of community and walkability that new urbanist design strives to promote.

Dover said, residents and land-use boards should address how the project would fit into their larger vision for the town. "River Oaks has everybody exercised right now, but one way or another River Oaks will get resolved and another [project proposal] will come along," Dover said.

"Waiting until after the applicant shows up is a really bad way to do this," he said. "What you really need to ask yourself is what will you be when you grow up."

What's happening in your town?

We Are Mad As Hell and We Are Not Going To Take It Anymore

by: commonweal

Wed May 30, 2007 at 09:47:07 AM EDT

Don Henley wrote these words at the end of the Reagan administration, but they seem more apropos in today's political climate.  The undefined yearning remains unfulfilled and the rage is reaching the boiling point.  I think what we are searching for is control over our lives.  Daily control of our work, our pay, our housing, our health, our pension funds, our public lands, our airwaves, our elections and our very government has been taken from us. 

People react differently to this loss of control.  Some turn to religion, some look for salvation in drugs and alcohol, some wallow in apathy, and others blithely continue their breakfast, traffic jam, office, lunch, office, traffic jam, television routine with a smug indifference -- after all, this is just the way things are. 

Outside Consultant to Tour Planned River Oaks Site

by: commonweal

Thu May 24, 2007 at 08:41:53 AM EDT

At the end of this past Mondays (May 21st) Zoning Commission meeting Hiram Peck, the Simsbury Director of Community Development, mentioned to the ZC that Dover-Kohl Partners (an Urban Design and Town Planning firm based in Florida) were all set to tour the River Oaks site followed by a public meeting next Weds, May 30th. Your SHARE steering committee has looked at the Dover-Kohl web site and while they have one design project which has a few favorable attributes, we are concerned that their focus appears to be on urban projects and incompatible with Simsbury's character. We are also suspect to the entire process, how the firm was chosen and retained, who decided this design consultation needed to be done, and the possible relationship of the design firm with Konover. The ZC appeared to have already known about this as they did not respond with any specific questions about what would be covered and how this had been set up (all they asked about were time & place to meet), however your SHARE steering committee members in attendance at the meeting were hearing about it for the first time.
 

Simsbury -- River Oaks Update

by: commonweal

Sat Apr 28, 2007 at 09:56:31 AM EDT

I have commented before on Konover's co-optation of new urbanism in an effort to get this project approved, but their presentation on Wednesday night forces me to make some further comments.

River Oaks Update -- Simsbury

by: commonweal

Fri Mar 02, 2007 at 13:51:35 PM EST

Seems Simsbury Community Television has agreed to air a slick 30-minute presentation on River Oaks.  Some people in town are complaining it is nothing but a Konover commercial, which would be in violation of SCTV's prohibition on programs containing commercial content.

Konover strikes again -- Simsbury

by: commonweal

Mon Feb 12, 2007 at 10:57:48 AM EST

Konover is attempting to build a mall, otherwise known as a "lifestyle center," in Simsbury.  Residents have formed an organization called SHARE to fight the proposal.  Read below for the latest update.