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Suffield P&Z considers replacing 45-unit cap with 15 units per acre in Town Center
Summary
A proposed zoning text amendment would replace the current 45-dwelling-unit-per-parcel limit in the Town Center Village District with a 15-dwelling-unit-per-acre standard, require at least 12% of new units to target households at or below 80% AMI for 10 years, and reserve site-specific review for traffic and infrastructure impacts; the hearing was continued to Aug. 17, 2026.
Terri Hahn of LADA, P.C., speaking for applicant Selective Development, LLC, presented a text amendment to Section IV.F.3.q of the zoning regulations that would replace a maximum of 45 dwelling units per parcel with a standard of 15 dwelling units per acre within the Town Center Village District (TCVD).
Hahn told the Commission the per-acre approach is a more conventional density metric and would apply only to parcels of at least three acres that cannot be created through subdivision or consolidation and are outside the Historic District. The proposal, as revised in response to earlier feedback, would require at least 12% of units to be affordable to households at or below 80% of the Area Median Income for 10 years and would include optional amenities such as a clubhouse and internal loop drives where appropriate. Hahn emphasized that adoption of the zoning text amendment would not approve any specific development; future site plans and special-permit applications would be required to address traffic, infrastructure, environmental impacts and site design.
Planning Director Bill Hawkins, reading his July 17 staff report, said the amendment would likely produce modest density increases on smaller eligible parcels and potentially larger yields on larger parcels (he specifically cited the Ffyler Place property as one that could see greater unit yield). Hawkins stated the proposal is consistent with the Town Plan of Conservation and Development and the 2022–2027 Housing Plan, while noting that site-specific issues would be reviewed through the special permit and site-plan process.
Commissioners questioned whether density should be based on gross acreage or developable acreage and raised concerns about traffic and infrastructure capacity. Public commenters sought more information on infrastructure impacts, possible environmental remediation, tax implications and preserving the Town Center character. Commissioners suggested possible revisions — raising the affordable-housing share to 15%, extending the deed-restriction term to 20 years, or basing density on developable acreage — and ultimately voted to continue the hearing to August 17, 2026 to allow more study and possible revisions.
What happens next: The public hearing on File 2026-5 was continued to August 17, 2026. Any future special-permit application for specific development in the TCVD would trigger site-specific review of traffic, drainage, environmental remediation, utilities and other engineering issues.
