Zoning board approves house in Watershed Protection District after stormwater and conservation conditions

The Town of Middletown Zoning Board on Jan. 28 approved a special-use permit to allow construction of a single-family home at 148 Trout Drive, a lot located entirely within Zone 1 of the town’s Watershed Protection District.

The board voted 5-0 to approve the petition after hearing technical testimony from engineer Michael Russell and legal presentation by David Martland, who said the lot is roughly an acre with about 11,000 square feet designated as the developable envelope under a Department of Environmental Management (DEM) permit. Russell told the board the house design and stormwater plan elevate the building area above the high water table with a retaining-wall terrace, underground stormwater chambers, permeable paver driveway surfaces, and a vegetated swale to manage runoff and preserve water quality.

Martland and Russell said the property is served by public water and sewer, so no septic system will be installed. The applicants reported they obtained an “insignificant alteration” permit from DEM dated June 25, 2004, allowing development in the approved envelope; the record also references prior permit terms carried forward that include permanent markers at the limit of disturbance and an allowance to mow the meadow portion of the lot twice a year.

Neighbors raised concerns about proximity to the property line, the long-standing wet conditions on lower yards nearby, and the potential for increased runoff. James LeDuc, who lives next door, said the rear yards are “very, very wet” and that the lot has remained vacant for years because it is swampy. Other neighbors, including Susan Steckle and Mark Steckel, described a vernal pond and local drainage patterns and sought assurance that post-construction runoff would not worsen conditions downstream.

Russell said the stormwater practices are designed to meet DEM and town standards and to provide water-quality treatment before discharge; he described the vegetated swale as a grass-lined conveyance that retains and infiltrates runoff and said the underground chambers and swale were sized to capture the design storm runoff. Town staff and the town engineer reviewed the plans and reported satisfaction with the design, according to the record.

A motion to approve included conditions that the owner maintain the stormwater-retention system via a maintenance agreement with the town, comply with DEM permit terms (both current and prior), and satisfy recommendations from the planning and conservation commissions. The board discussed adding permanent markers at the limits of disturbance so future owners do not expand the development area.

During deliberations a board member noted the design had been refined to address the town engineer’s comments about conveying off-site runoff around the development so the wetland is not starved of flow. The board recorded no opposition and approved the motion, 5-0.

Post-approval tasks identified at the hearing include securing a maintenance agreement for the stormwater system and ensuring the DEM and town ordinance conditions (stormwater management chapter 153; construction site runoff and erosion control chapter 151; and the town fertilizer policy) are incorporated into approvals and recorded documents.