Business

‘Orchards End’ Owner To Seek Commercial Space for Expanded Wellness Program Launched at Oenoke Ridge Home

By |

Saying the immediate popularity of a holistic wellness program she had intended to offer only friends on her own property has prompted her to develop the idea further, the founder of ‘Orchard’s End Health’ told officials she will not pursue a special permit to operate at her Oenoke Ridge Road residence. Instead, Elsa Sykes told town officials in a formal letter sent Friday that she is “actively seeking a location that will allow clients to experience a comprehensive program.”

“I am pleased with the private sanctuary I created with my personal wellness center and it will be an amazing journey creating an environment that provides these essentials for a health to a larger audience,” she said in a Feb. 10 letter sent to the town planner, Planning & Zoning enforcement officer and Health Department sanitarian following a site visit last week. “The fact that the chain of events has forced me to pivot and rethink where to focus the growth of my program is potentially a good thing. By not seeking a home-based business special use permit, and instead looking to obtain commercially zoned space, I will be able to help more people in our community and draw people looking for such an experience from anywhere.

Business

‘Orchards End’ Health and Wellness Organization To Seek Special Permit To Operate at Oenoke Ridge Residence

By |

A special permit application will be filed on behalf of a new health-and-wellness enterprise on Oenoke Ridge Road, according to an attorney representing the organization. Discussed at a Planning & Zoning Commission meeting Tuesday, Orchards End seeks to “to bring preventative and restorative lifelong health solutions to souls looking to enrich their lives through mind, body and spiritual enlightenment,” according to its mission statement. Services include personal and group training classes, yoga, acupuncture, meditation, nutrition counseling, massage and holistic health seminars. Attorney David Rucci of New Canaan-based Lampert Toohey & Rucci, LLC said Orchards End of 544 Oenoke Ridge road “is not an ongoing commercial enterprise.”

“Our special permit application will specifically describe the activities at the property as far as any nonresidential use,” he told NewCanaanite.com. The applicant will file for a special permit as a “Major Home Occupation,” described in the New Canaan Zoning Regulations as follows (see page 24): “The use of a dwelling for a home-based business involve two or more non-resident employees or six or more patron, client or associate visits per week.”

A major home occupation is a permitted accessory use and requires a special permit, under Section 3.3.C.3 of the zoning regulations (see page 49).