The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Neighbors mixed on housing proposal
MIDDLETOWN » Neighbors of a proposed development near South Main Street have mixed feelings on the project.
S&G Holdings, a limited liability corporation that owns 38 Ward St., successfully petitioned the Planning and Zoning Commission to allow housing development in some parts of certain city business zones.
Architect Craig Laliberte filed proposed floor plans with the city’s Department of Planning, Conservation and Development for a threestory building of residential units.
Bruce Johnson, who has lived across Lakeside Ave- nue from S&G’s plot since 1978, said he would rather the property go back to being a small retail operation, as it has been in the past.
Part of Johnson’s objection is grounded in what some see as ambiguous language in S&G’s zoning proposal, which calls for “transitional development housing.”
Molly Salafia, vice-chair of the Planning and Zoning Commission, has raised objections to the proposal on the grounds that the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development describes “transitional housing” as halfway-type temporary or sober housing.
Michael Dowley, a lawyer representing the developer, disagreed, arguing that the language only refers to a “transition” from one zone to another.
If the developer is only considering conventional housing, said Johnson, “I might not have any objection.”
Verna Ellam, who has lived down Lakeside from Johnson for almost half a century, took a harder line against the development.
“I would like to see threefamily homes on those three residential properties,” said Ellam of the plots across the street from her home. She said she had reservations about subsidized rental units.
Ellam was also concerned about new renters parking on Lakeside Avenue, where many current residents already park, though Laliberte’s proposed plan, which includes 24 parking spaces, put her somewhat more at ease on that front.
Ellam’s father, Larry Lausier, built many of the homes in the neighborhood, including Ellam’s own house, in the middle part of the last century.
Tiana Stuckey, who lives at 148 Lakeside Ave. with her mother and 2-year-old daughter, echoed Johnson’s reservations. “We’re just confused about what is going on,” said Stuckey. While she was not keen on halfway housing, she was more amenable to conventional residential units. “If that’s what it’s going to be, then alright.”
City Planner Michiel Wackers said the architectural proposal will go before the Design Review and Pres- ervation Board on Nov. 12, and that the developer will need a special exception, so the plan will have to go before the Planning and Zoning Commission as well, possibly as early as Dec. 10.
“My goal would be that we have a development there on that property that would be a benefit to the B-2 Zone and would be a benefit to the surrounding neighborhood,” said Wackers. “The applicant will have to state on the record his intentions.”
Those meetings will also include public sessions during which city residents and others may weigh in.