Windsor Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting: October 8, 2024

The Windsor Town Planning and Zoning Commission held its regular hybrid meeting on October 8, 2024, at 7:00 p.m. in Council Chambers, Windsor Town Hall, and via Zoom. The commission approved minutes, a one-year special use reapproval, three special use applications, and a design development concept plan. All decisions carried, including one abstention on the 176 Addison Road special use.

Discussion Items

• The commission approved the September 10, 2024 meeting minutes as amended by a 5-0 vote. Corrections included wording at Founders Square, inserting "the" before "town council," changing "measured" to "measures" for building height, making "retention ponds" plural, clarifying the motion language as "recess this application, not this meeting," and adding the apostrophe in "commissioners' packet."
• Town Planner Todd Seely reported that October is Community Planning Month and that the Town Council recognized the commission. Funding was authorized to hire consultants for the Day Hill Road Corridor Study and the Plan of Conservation and Development. Camoine was selected for the Day Hill Road Corridor Study and FHI for the POCD; seven firms submitted proposals and four were interviewed.
• Mr. Seely reported a 3.9 site plan revision for 2200 Day Hill Road (8.53 acres, TNDDD Zone, Noble Energy Real Estate Holdings, LLC) involving minor site modifications to the Noble gas station under construction; no separate commission vote was recorded.
• A prior discussion on federal firearms licenses was deferred to the November meeting, with a request to invite the police chief.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No one spoke during opening public communications.
• 20 Day Hill Road: Tom Delpha, from the adjacent over-55 development, said he was not against pickleball but expressed concerns about the outdoor patio location, alcohol service outside, and noise traveling to nearby homes; he asked that the patio be moved or alcohol hours reduced. Peter Lang of 63 Hudson Lane asked about the location of garage doors and possible wireless speaker noise. Acoustical consultant Braxton Boren, who prepared the applicant's sound study, testified that the facility would be compliant with doors closed and could be close to the nighttime standard with doors open, with closing doors as the main mitigation.
• 144 Broad Street: Dave Morad of 45 Prospect Street, a Windsor Center resident for over 15 years, spoke in favor of the revised concept plan, citing improved landscaping, parking, two-bedroom units, and elevator access.
• No public comments were offered on the 176 Addison Road or 55 Palisado Avenue applications.

Special Use Re-approval: 60 Ezra Silva Lane

• Applicant Joe Novak sought a one-year reapproval of a special use for outdoor storage of shipping containers at 60 Ezra Silva Lane (14.47 acres, I Zone). The containers hold customer products, including temporary power units for Mitsubishi Power, and are stored on a stone pad until shipment. The applicant reported progress since the prior approval.
• The commission approved the one-year special use reapproval by a 5-0 vote.

Special Use: 20 Day Hill Road Indoor Pickleball Facility

• Applicant representatives Luke Showalter and Brian Bulkey of Furrow Engineering presented a 16,000-square-foot, two-story indoor pickleball facility on 5 acres in the RC Zone, accessed through the adjacent Marriott property. The revised plan included 69 parking spaces, eight EV spaces, and a sidewalk connection along the shared driveway to the Marriott; the applicant requested a waiver of the sidewalk requirement along Day Hill Road frontage. The Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission approved the project on October 1, 2024.
• The commission approved the special use by a 5-0 vote with conditions: garage doors closed from dark, outdoor patio closed by 9 p.m., sidewalk along Day Hill Road waived, bar service confined inside with beer and wine only, staff review and approval of the architectural facade and outstanding staff issues, and final health department sign-off.

Special Use: 176 Addison Road Master Plan

• Applicant representatives Dave Zayaks, Scott Hesketh, Brad Wayman, and Stephen Glace presented a master plan for two 150,000-square-foot flex warehouse buildings totaling 300,000 square feet at 176 Addison Road (agenda: 37.41 acres, I Zone; the applicant's presentation referred to 276 Addison Road and a 35.74-acre site), plus reuse of the existing 506,000-square-foot building at 175 Addison Road as a campus. The plan proposed 314 parking spaces for the new buildings and reserved 150 existing spaces across Addison Road for existing-building tenants. The applicant requested 15 loading docks per building, above the 10 allowed by the regulation, to accommodate flexible multi-tenant use.
• Traffic engineer Scott Hesketh stated that, compared with the current approvals, the project would generate 101 fewer trips in the morning peak hour and 55 fewer trips in the afternoon peak hour, though traffic could increase compared with the current underutilized condition. The applicant planned to seek an OSTA administrative decision and noted that the Route 305/Addison Road improvements required by the original certificate were already built.
• The commission approved the special use for the master plan by a 4-0-1 vote, with one abstention, conditioned on the applicant and staff reaching agreement on sound mitigation measures. The application will return for site plan approval, possible wetlands review, and an 8-24 referral regarding acceptance of Addison Road.

Special Use: 55 Palisado Avenue Beer and Wine Service

• Applicant Paul Balt, owner of Beer Garden at Barts, requested a one-year special use to serve beer and wine at 55 Palisado Avenue (1.19 acres, B2 Zone). Alcohol service was proposed from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., with the business closing at 9 p.m.; current business hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. There were no staff comments.
• The commission approved the special use by a 5-0 vote.

Design Development Concept Plan: 144 Broad Street, 114 Upper Broad Street, and 26 Prospect Street

• Applicant Greg Faca of Grava Properties and Chris Alfred of Alfred Associates presented a revised mixed-use concept plan for Founder Square, increasing the project from 106 to 120 units and from 147 to 176 parking spaces on 3.492 acres. The revision included acquisition of 114 Upper Broad Street, shared parking/easement discussions with 26 and 30 Prospect Street, a four-story west building with elevator, nine two-bedroom units, four studio/efficiency units, and 20% workforce housing units restricted to households earning up to 80% of area median income.
• The commission approved the same four waivers previously granted on April 11, 2023, by a 5-0 vote, and then approved the design development concept plan by a 5-0 vote. A future detailed plan, a town land transfer requiring an 8-24 referral, and possible staff-level review of the shared parking layout were identified as next steps.

Key Outcomes

• Minutes approved as amended (5-0).
• 60 Ezra Silva Lane special use reapproval approved for one year (5-0).
• 20 Day Hill Road pickleball special use approved with conditions, including the sidewalk waiver (5-0).
• 176 Addison Road special use for the master plan approved with sound mitigation condition (4-0-1).
• 55 Palisado Avenue beer and wine special use approved for one year (5-0).
• 144 Broad Street waivers and design development concept plan approved (5-0 each).