Major Cheshire Development Wins P&Z Approval

A 635,000 square foot development that includes retail and residential components won initial Planning and Zoning Commission's approval Monday night.

WS Development, operating under the name Cheshire Route 10 LLC, had three applications before the commission: one for a zone map change from Interchange Zone to Interchange Special Development District; one combined application for a zone change and to approval as a special development district, and one for a permit to remove materials from and regrade the site.

It's only the beginning of the project, which now must come back before the Planning and Zoning Commission to gain approvals for specific site plans. Representatives of the developers told the commission that they were hoping for a vote on the applications Monday because the commission does not meet again until September and they wanted to get the detailed site plans in process before that.

The commission obliged, voting on all of its applications.

The application included few modifications from that which was approved in 2008. That project never got off the ground after the recession hit, and the developer came back this year with new plans for the site on Highland Avenue near the entrance ramp to I-691.

The development calls for 635,000 square feet of space, including 480,000 square feet of retail use. Also included is residential use, but estimates put the number of school children generated by the units at only about 21, which Supt. of Schools Greg Florio said shouldn't impact the school budget unless the students are concentrated on one grade level.

"The changes are all positive, the traffic impact is lower than before and includes the same improvements to the traffic patterns previously proposed, and the interior traffic pattern is better," said Commissioner Martin Cobern. "The town's fiscal impact study found greater than estimated revenues to the town.

"Though the changes in terms of shops are significant, this is an improvement over the previous plan and I think it's a positive development for town revenue and the nature of the community."