Norwich commission approves two‑lot subdivision at 40 Connecticut Ave., waives sidewalk requirement

The Commission on the City Plan voted unanimously Tuesday to approve Subdivision No. 43940, a two‑lot resubdivision of 40 Connecticut Avenue that separates an existing private educational building from the remainder of the parcel.

The action matters because the split is intended to create a conforming lot for the school and allow the larger remaining parcel to be developed separately — the applicant said the balance is likely to be used for a solar field — and because the commission waived the required sidewalk installation along Connecticut Avenue and attached conditions before recording the subdivision.

Dean Manfredi, chair of the Commission on the City Plan, opened and closed the public hearing on the application and led the votes. Engineer Greg Bettis, P.E., of Bettis Engineering LLC, represented the applicant and described the plan as the second submission addressing staff comments. "Proposed Lot A, which is the school, is 122,712 and the balance is 315,924," Bettis said, providing the square‑foot figures the commission used in its deliberations. He also said the existing parcel totals about 10.07 acres and that the resulting lots are 2.82 acres (Lot A) and 7.25 acres (Lot B).

Planning staff member Deanna Rose reviewed her written memo and supporting materials on the record and told the commission that an outside consultant, Grama Ecological, field‑verified "there is no wetlands or water courses on the property." Rose also described plan corrections the commission required before final recording, including updated soil…