Wesleyan project would fill 1.13-acre pond at 170 Long Lane and create new stream; public hearing set for March 5

The Middletown Inland Wetlands and Watercourse Agency on Tuesday accepted an application and scheduled a public hearing for March 5 on a proposal by Wesleyan University to fill a 1.13-acre pond at 170 Long Lane and reconstruct the area as a stream channel.

Andrew Berman, representing HRP Associates and Wesleyan University, told the agency the project responds to a state cleanup grant and would consolidate pesticide-impacted soil into the pond footprint, cap that material with 4 feet of clean fill and restore the area to its pre-pond condition as a south-to-north flowing stream. "The proposed remedy is to move the soil to the pond area and then cap that soil with 4 feet of clean fill, restore the pond to pre-pond conditions, which was a stream," Berman said.

Berman also said the project includes removal of an existing registered dam. He said HRP coordinated with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CT DEEP), which indicated removal of that low-risk (Class AA) dam did not require a state permit.

Agency members raised several technical and environmental questions. Committee member Kent said the wetland report did not address the pond's ecological functionality or utility and asked the applicant to provide a functions-and-values assessment showing existing conditions and projected impacts. Staff asked that the assessment be provided to James McManus for review; Berman said the team was already working on that assessment.

Members also pressed the applicant on contaminant controls. Berman described grading and downstream control features, including step pools, and said the capped soil would sit below the reconstructed stream channel so surface flows would be above impacted material. When staff asked about potential groundwater impacts and local wells, Berman said environmental specialists on the project would address those issues and stated HRP believes the project meets the state's groundwater exemption for pesticides.

A participant asked whether the site would include public amenities after the pond was removed; Berman said Wesleyan envisions an "education trail" and a small viewing area near the former embankment to observe the stream and wetland.

After questions, a committee member moved to accept the application and set a public hearing for March 5; the motion carried on a voice vote with members saying "aye" and no opposition recorded. The agency will take public comment at the March 5 hearing and the applicant will present detailed plans and supporting assessments at that time.