Harbor commission recommends 108 Water Street project to planning and zoning, flags dry-egress concern

The Norwalk Harbor Management Commission voted to send a favorable recommendation on the 108 Water Street redevelopment to the Planning and Zoning Commission but added an explicit concern about dry egress for residential units.

The project team — representing Spinnaker Acquisitions — told the commission the redevelopment will add public waterfront access, boat slips and water-dependent uses, fund a backflow preventer for the Water Street storm outfall, and place habitable spaces well above base flood elevation. Attorney Adam Blank said the developer’s position is that locating apartments on the site “will not actually pose a hazard to life,” and described multiple design measures intended to reduce flood risk.

Commissioners and staff said they welcomed the water-dependent elements and improved stormwater design but said the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) had recommended against residential uses because the housing would be located in the AE flood zone and Water Street has a history of flooding. The commission’s motion recommended the project as…