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Commission approves special permit for late orchard at 8 Timothy Road, imposes erosion, screening and neighbor‑replacement conditions
Summary
After heated public comment about large‑scale tree clearing, the Planning & Zoning Commission granted a special permit to property owner Bob Vance to convert cleared land at 8 Timothy Road into an orchard, attaching conditions including an erosion‑control/landscaping bond, a planting/ground‑cover schedule, a screening/berm requirement to protect adjoining yards, and a prohibition on commercial use. The vote was unanimous.
The Norwalk Planning & Zoning Commission approved an after‑the‑fact special permit on April 8 for a property at 8 Timothy Road where the owner, Bob Vance, previously cleared roughly two‑thirds of an acre and proposes to create an orchard of about 100 fruit trees and associated berries.
Vance told the commission he purchased the house late last year and began planting an orchard; he said he does not plan large‑scale mechanized irrigation or crop dusting and that most spraying will be limited, handheld applications. "I don't do any large‑scale spraying," Vance said, adding he waters seedlings by hand and sometimes with a garden hose. He also said he had a drainage report prepared by engineer John Mallozzi.
Numerous neighbors — including Kurt Schlegel, Kayla Hanukkah and others — argued the cutting removed mature privacy trees, increased runoff risk and introduced…
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