One of New Canaan’s top elected officials said Tuesday that the town should prioritize the planting of trees at Weed and Elm Streets to screen the building project that emerges there.
Last week, the Planning & Zoning Commission, following a state Superior Court judge’s order, approved a four-story, 102-unit affordable housing complex at 751 Weed St. The property’s owner, New Canaan developer Arnold Karp, has said he plans to begin construction in the fourth quarter.
“One way, shape, or form there’s going to be something built at that place,” Selectman Amy Murphy Carroll said during the Board of Selectmen’s regular meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference.
She continued: “It could take a couple of years. So I know we have in our tree budget, tree installation. And I just want to throw it out there, this might be an excellent opportunity—probably not in the summer, but in the fall—to, along Weed and Elm, outside of the stone wall, as a town, if we could start maybe putting some trees in there. Whatever construction happens can take a couple years. So we can get a jumpstart on maybe screening or something, and there will be a benefit to the town on many levels.”
During last week’s P&Z meeting, Commission Chair Dan Radman said it was too bad that the town, legally intervening neighbors and property owner could not negotiate an alternative project to the 102-unit building. P&Z had originally denied that application, but Karp won approval through an appeal under the 8-30g statute.
Murphy Carroll’s comments came during a general update from Public Works Director Tiger Mann on projects in town.
“It seems like we could get a jumpstart in trying to screen, beautify that,” she said. “Obviously, not in a way that you would ruin any sight lines for the turns. But I just want to throw that out there. If we have in our tree budget for this year, do we have X amount of money to put in trees? This might be a good location to add some in.”
First Selectman Dionna Carlson said she agreed, though the town should wait for a final site plan at 751 Weed St. before making such an investment.
“I don’t want to throw good money after bad and put something in that has to get ripped out because of the site plan,” Carlson said.
Mann agreed, saying the town should wait to see where the project’s driveways will be located “because we don’t want to be in that spot.”
Selectman Steve Karl noted that the town has rights-of-way at Weed and Elm Streets, adding that the town can bring in larger, more mature trees for screening as needed.
Asked after the meeting about the town’s rights-of-way, Mann said they are 50 feet wide extending from one side of the street to the other. The town would have an approximately 11- to 12-foot grass area along weed street, and an approximately 7- to 8-foot verge on Elm Street for plantings, he said.
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