Affordable Housing Committee

Affordable Housing: More Units Needed for ‘Moratorium’ in 2032

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Though New Canaan has qualified for a four-year exemption from a widely discussed affordable housing law—and is also expected to earn another “moratorium” from the state law known by its statute number, 8-30g, in 2028—more units likely must be built or acquired in order to get four more years of relief in 2032, according to a municipal committee that’s studying the issue. Under the state law, in towns where less than 10% of all housing stock qualifies as affordable, developers who propose projects where a certain number of units are set aside to rent at affordable rates may appeal to the state after a local Planning & Zoning Commission denies their applications. New Canaan since its last moratorium lapsed in July 2021 has received three such applications, at Weed and Elm Streets (120 units), Main Street (20 units) and Hill Street (93 units). P&Z denied all of them. Those applications are now under appeal in state Superior Court.

Homepage Featured

Did You Hear … ?

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New Canaan Police are investigating a report received at 4:43 p.m. on Feb. 8 of an iPhone stolen from the porch of an Adams Lane home shortly after it was delivered. 

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Sama Yoga Center and Grace Farms are teaming up to offer “Tea & Tranquility: a Restorative Yoga and Tea Bar Experience,” to be held 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 2. Led by Melissa Lemieux, director of wellness & hospitality at Grace Farms, and Rebekah Jacobs, founder of Sama Yoga, it will feature a curated Tea Bar, Reiki sessions and Restorative Yoga. More info and reservations ($55 to $65) here. ***

Registration is open for a free New Canaan Police Department program at New Canaan Library that’s coming next week.

News

New Construction Coming to White Fall Lane

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The New Canaan Building Department on Feb. 10 issued a permit for a 6,100-square-foot home on White Fall Lane. The five-bedroom house at 46 White Fall Lane will include four full bathrooms, two half-baths, one fireplace and a three-car garage, according to the building permit application. 

It will cost $1.8 million to build, the application said. The contractor on the job is New Canaan-based Sillo Construction LLC, the architect Michael LoBuglio Architect of Newtown. The 4.34-acre property, located in the four-acre zone, sold in April for $1,250,000, tax records show.

Homepage Featured

‘They Work Very Hard’: New Canaan Police on Stolen Vehicle Investigations

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Those responsible for the daytime theft this month of a Range Rover with a dog inside the running SUV had been in New Canaan in the past in another vehicle, police said Wednesday. And what those criminals do here, Lt. Marc DeFelice told members of the Police Commission at their regular meeting, is “look for a mistake.”

“They look for you to leave your car unattended for that split 10 seconds and the keys are in it,” DeFelice said at the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “So they’re not following people for a long while—it’s just driving around looking for a high-end car and when the victim makes a slight mistake, they capitalize on it. Done in a split second, probably 10 seconds.”

Though the 2-year-old French bulldog has been returned safely to her owner, the Range Rover itself is still missing, police have said. In New Canaan, the incident raised concerns due to the brazen and potentially confrontational nature of the theft as well as the suspects getting away.

Government

Town Mulls Demolition of ‘Irwin House’

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Municipal officials say the town must decide whether to invest in the upkeep of Irwin House—needed exterior work is estimated at more than $1.3 million—or knock it down. Located in the Weed Street park of the same name, the brick Irwin House was built between 1961 and 1963 after the original 1920’s shingle-style house—once owned by IBM founder Thomas Watson, Sr.—burned down in a fire. Town officials are looking at the cost of tearing it down, according to Public Works Director Tiger Mann. In addressing a joint subcommittee of the Town Council and Board of Finance on Feb. 13, Mann said associated costs include an environmental review, environmental costs and the cost of demolition itself.