OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Danbury Planning Commission Meeting - April 26, 2026

Meeting Portal — Sunday, April 26, 2026
BodyDanbury, Connecticut
SessionMeeting Portal
DateSunday, April 26, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 36:27

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Great Joanne.

0:00

And thank you, Joanne, and thank you, uh everyone.

0:03

Good evening and welcome to the April 15th, 2026 meeting of the Danbury Planning Commission.

0:09

We'll open with the roll call.

0:10

Mr.

0:10

Kyokio.

0:13

Here.

0:14

There he is.

0:15

Ms.

0:16

Hofstetter.

0:17

Here.

0:18

Mr.

0:18

Nazario.

0:20

Here.

0:21

We don't have any alternates to see.

0:23

And Chairman Finalti is here.

0:25

We do have a quorum.

0:26

Joe, anything on our newest member.

0:30

You're on mute.

0:31

You're muted.

0:34

You're muted, Joe.

0:35

Sorry.

0:36

I'll get I have to contact the mayor's office to get to contact her because apparently she didn't realize it meant you had to come to the meetings, you know.

0:44

Oh, okay.

0:44

I'll just leave it at that.

0:46

Okay, no problem.

0:48

Um, let me uh get the Zoom intro um out of the way.

0:51

This meeting of the Danbury Planning Commission is being held on Zoom as a virtual meeting.

0:55

Even though this meeting is a virtual meeting, members of the public and interested parties continue to have the opportunity to participate in the meeting in a couple of different ways.

1:05

You can participate via Zoom and see the audio and the video, or you can call in by phone and participate via audio only.

1:12

Please be aware that we may have to mute your microphone or telephone to avoid an echo or some other background noise.

1:18

Instructions on how to participate in the meeting appear on the City of Danbury website and all of the documents and materials that apply to the matters to be discussed during this meeting, including the agenda, are also available on the City of Danbury website.

1:31

As always, if you have any questions on how to participate in the meeting, please contact the City of Danbury Planning and Zoning Office.

1:40

As a reminder, the entire meeting will be posted on and can be seen on the City of Danbury website.

1:45

We will follow the posted agenda as per standard practice.

1:48

If prior to the meeting any questions or comments on agenda items were submitted via email to the planning and zoning department, those comments will be read during the appropriate portion of the meeting.

1:59

Finally, please remember that technology glitches sometimes do occur.

2:02

Please be patient if that happens.

2:07

Okay.

2:08

Um first item on our agenda is acceptance of the minutes.

2:12

Uh Commission members, the uh the minutes of the April 1st, 2026 meeting were previously distributed.

2:18

Unless there's any comments or discussion, I will entertain a motion to accept those minutes.

2:24

Mr.

2:25

Chairman, so moved.

2:26

Thank you, Helen.

2:27

Do I hear a second?

2:29

A second.

2:30

Thank you, Mr.

2:31

Nazario.

2:31

Is there any discussion?

2:33

All in favor, please say aye.

2:35

Aye.

2:36

Opposed.

2:37

The minutes are accepted.

2:38

Let the record show our next meeting is scheduled for May 6, 2026.

2:43

Please note your calendars accordingly.

2:46

Um we have no new public hearings this evening, so we're going to move right to our um continuation of public hearings agenda.

2:53

Item one, Danbury Mill Plain Realty LLC.

2:57

Application for special exception, site plan approval for automobile service stations, service garage, and convenience market, sections 3e2, 3e9, 5B2B1, and 9, with trip generation greater than 500 vehicle trips per day in the CA80 zone, 85 mil plane road D14013, special exception number 805.

3:22

Additional information on this application was previously distributed.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning Regulations█████████████████████████████████████████████45%
Engineering And Infrastructure████████████████████████24%
Water And Wastewater Management████████████████16%
Procedural███████████████15%
Summary of Proceedings

Danbury Planning Commission Meeting - April 26, 2026

The Danbury Planning Commission met on April 26, 2026, to consider several applications and referrals. The meeting included a continued public hearing and subsequent discussion on a gas station and convenience store redevelopment, approval of an EV charging station floodplain permit, and unanimous approval of four sewer/water main extension referrals.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public spoke in favor or opposition during the continued public hearing for the Danbury Mill Plain Realty LLC application. Only the applicant's team and commission members participated.

Discussion Items

  • Danbury Mill Plain Realty LLC – Special Exception & Site Plan (85 Mill Plain Road): Attorney Josh Pedrera and engineering team (Larry Webster, Connor McNamara, Muhammadul Hassan) presented. All outstanding staff comments from planning, construction, engineering, and sanitary sewer were addressed. Traffic queuing analysis showed minimal backup (8 ft AM, 23 ft PM). The applicant agreed to add a crosswalk and signage as conditions. A question about driveway width (25 ft vs. DOT request of 18 ft) remains under review with CT DOT. Commission members expressed support subject to conditions.
  • Danbury Mall LLC – Revised Floodplain Permit for Rivian EV Charging Station (7 Backis Avenue): Staff explained the 10 charging stations are in a floodplain area by designation but sit above the base flood elevation (454.5 ft). No loss of parking. The project complies with floodplain regulations. Approved unanimously with conditions.
  • 824 Referrals: Four sewer and water main extension referrals were presented and approved unanimously:
    1. Damia Drive – extension for 12 previously approved units.
    2. 48 East Gate Road – municipal sewer main for a single-family dwelling.
    3. 85 Worcester Heights Road – sewer extension for the Danbury Proton facility.
    4. Great Plain Road and Great Meadow Road – renewal of extensions with a density cap of 63 single-family units.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes of April 1, 2026: Accepted unanimously.
  • Danbury Mill Plain Realty LLC: Public hearing closed unanimously. Matter moved to old business for discussion; commission directed staff to prepare a resolution of approval with conditions (crosswalk, signage, ongoing DOT coordination).
  • Danbury Mall LLC Floodplain Permit: Approved unanimously (motion by Helen, second by Mr. Kyokio) with standard conditions.
  • 824 Referrals: All four approved unanimously:
    • Damia Drive: positive referral (motion by chairman, seconded).
    • 48 East Gate Road: positive referral subject to conditions (motion by Helen, second by Mr. Kyokio).
    • 85 Worcester Heights Road: positive referral (motion by Bob, second by Helen).
    • Great Plain Road/Great Meadow Road: positive referral subject to density restriction of 63 units (motion by Bob, second by Helen).
  • Next meeting scheduled for May 6, 2026.
  • Meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Great Joanne. And thank you, Joanne, and thank you, uh everyone. Good evening and welcome to the April 15th, 2026 meeting of the Danbury Planning Commission. We'll open with the roll call. Mr. Kyokio. Here. There he is. Ms. Hofstetter. Here. Mr. Nazario. Here. We don't have any alternates to see. And Chairman Finalti is here. We do have a quorum. Joe, anything on our newest member. You're on mute. You're muted. You're muted, Joe. Sorry. I'll get I have to contact the mayor's office to get to contact her because apparently she didn't realize it meant you had to come to the meetings, you know. Oh, okay. I'll just leave it at that. Okay, no problem. Um, let me uh get the Zoom intro um out of the way. This meeting of the Danbury Planning Commission is being held on Zoom as a virtual meeting. Even though this meeting is a virtual meeting, members of the public and interested parties continue to have the opportunity to participate in the meeting in a couple of different ways. You can participate via Zoom and see the audio and the video, or you can call in by phone and participate via audio only. Please be aware that we may have to mute your microphone or telephone to avoid an echo or some other background noise. Instructions on how to participate in the meeting appear on the City of Danbury website and all of the documents and materials that apply to the matters to be discussed during this meeting, including the agenda, are also available on the City of Danbury website. As always, if you have any questions on how to participate in the meeting, please contact the City of Danbury Planning and Zoning Office. As a reminder, the entire meeting will be posted on and can be seen on the City of Danbury website. We will follow the posted agenda as per standard practice. If prior to the meeting any questions or comments on agenda items were submitted via email to the planning and zoning department, those comments will be read during the appropriate portion of the meeting. Finally, please remember that technology glitches sometimes do occur. Please be patient if that happens. Okay. Um first item on our agenda is acceptance of the minutes. Uh Commission members, the uh the minutes of the April 1st, 2026 meeting were previously distributed. Unless there's any comments or discussion, I will entertain a motion to accept those minutes. Mr. Chairman, so moved. Thank you, Helen. Do I hear a second? A second. Thank you, Mr. Nazario. Is there any discussion?

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