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Avon task force reviews zoning map, eyes sites for housing as Post Road Residential readies 220-unit proposal
Summary
At a July 9 meeting, Avon’s Affordable Housing Task Force identified multiple parcels along Route 44 and West Main for potential residential development, discussed a 220-unit Avon Village Center proposal with 10% affordable units, and flagged infrastructure and POCD updates as next steps.
The Affordable Housing Task Force of the Town of Avon met at Avon Town Hall on July 9 to review the town’s zoning map for parcels and corridors that could be prepared for residential development. Co-Chair Christine Graesser said the group’s goal for the workshop was to identify sites—especially along the Route 44 commercial-retail corridor—that could be made more developer-friendly to take advantage of funding opportunities from CMDA (CT Municipal Development Authority).
Hiram Peck, director of planning and community development, told the task force that Post Road Residential of Fairfield will make a presentation to the Planning & Zoning Commission next week proposing about 220 units in Avon Village Center, with 10% of those units designated as affordable. Peck said that if the proposal is well received the developer could be ready to submit a formal application within a few months.
Committee member Kiley Gosselin pointed to a cluster of small parcels across from the Post Office on Route 10 and to vacant office buildings as short-term candidates for conversion to housing, including small townhouses close to the town center. Peck added that the building at 166 West Main Street could be adapted for residential use. Graesser also suggested the former Towpath School property, land on Ensign Drive and the parcel behind 5 West Main Street (O’Neills Chevrolet) as sites to consider.
Peck said he has spoken with the owner of 25 West Main, who indicated the owner of 5 West Main might develop the rear portion of 25 West Main in a few years. Gosselin warned that traffic and access—she cited the need for access from both Old Farms and West Main—could complicate housing there. Participants discussed the idea of rezoning certain West Main parcels to allow higher-density residential development, and noted that CMDA infrastructure funds could help cover related costs.
The task force agreed that candidates for rezoning and redevelopment should be captured in the upcoming update to the town’s Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD). Peck said the POCD update should include a traffic analysis and observed that the Town Master Sewer Plan is about 20 years old and likely needs revision. He asked members to send a list of any and all properties they think should be considered so staff can begin preparing a plan.
The meeting was called to order at 6 p.m. and adjourned at 7:15 p.m.
