Stratford zoning panel adopts comprehensive regulations update, removes mandatory EV-charging requirement

The Stratford Zoning Commission voted Dec. 4 to adopt a comprehensive update to the town's zoning regulations, completing roughly two years of work and agency referrals while removing a proposed mandatory electric-vehicle charging-station requirement from the text.

Chair Harold Watson opened the administrative session after a brief public hearing and said the rewrite "represents almost 2 years of earnest efforts to improve our zoning for all stakeholders in Stratford." Staff summarized referrals from regional and state agencies, including MetroCOG and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, which generally found the proposed changes consistent with regional plans and the Connecticut Coastal Management Act.

The commission took the unusual step of voting section-by-section after Commissioner Ewald Joseph (Zone 2) moved to consider the document piecemeal so members could register objections to specific provisions. "I'm not about to ram this through tonight," Joseph said during debate, pressing for the opportunity to record discrete votes on contested items.

The most contested items included a proposed requirement for EV charging stations (section 6.8.7) and a provision in Section 5 that would require multifamily developments of more than eight units to connect to sanitary sewers. After discussion of the fire marshal's safety recommendations, Commissioner Joseph said he favored including EV-language "not as a requirement," and staff told the commission they could either keep an explicit regulatory requirement or impose EV conditions when they approve specific developments.

Commissioners ultimately voted to remove the mandatory EV-charging-station requirement and any cross-references from the regulations; the commission's final action approved Section 6 "without section 6.8.7 regarding EV charging stations and anywhere else in the zoning regulations where they are mentioned," according to Planning & Zoning Administrator Jay Habanske.

On the sewer question, Commissioner Joseph argued that forcing sewer extensions for projects of nine or more units could make development in unsewered neighborhoods prohibitively expensive and deter builders. Habanske and the chair responded that state guidance and water-quality concerns support discouraging new septic systems and suggested the town consider cost-sharing sewer extensions with developers. A motion to exclude the sewer-connection language failed, and the commission approved Section 5, including the sewer-connection requirement, in a 4'to— vote.

Throughout the meeting staff emphasized that many of the proposed changes reflect state statutory and policy guidance and that several agencies had offered comments or recommended minor adjustments. Habanske noted the planning commission gave unfavorable recommendations on several addenda items but that no regional conflicts were identified by MetroCOG.

The commission read a consistency statement linking the adopted regulations to the Town Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD) before completing votes on all seven chapters of the update.

What happens next: staff will prepare the final adopted text for submission to the town clerk and any required municipal bodies for subsequent steps. Jay Habanske said the commission could revisit specific provisions in future meetings or include additional clarifying language based on referral comments.

"We applaud you all for your hard work," consultant Robert Collins said after the vote, thanking commissioners for their questions and diligence.

The commission adjourned after approving a separate, urgent accessory-apartment application on the same agenda.