By John Schwing

WESTPORT — The saga of plans to split a former Sylvan Avenue North estate into two residential lots — filed with zoning officials more than a year ago — ended in mere minutes Monday as the Planning and Zoning Commission signed off on a court-stipulated agreement allowing a modified version of the project to move forward.

The P&Z unanimously approved the settlement after a brief executive session for members’ questions about the deal negotiated to resolve a lawsuit filed by neighbors challenging the commission’s approval for the application last September.

Terms of the lawsuit settlement, outlined only briefly in public session by lawyer Peter Gelderman, representing the Town Attorney’s Office, include relocating the shared driveway into the subdivision and resolving “issues” over a stone wall separating the property and Sylvan Farms Lane.

The only brief public comments made about the settlement — all in agreement — were by developer Rick Benson, his lawyer Jackie Kaufman and Jeffrey Ment, the property’s new owner. The P&Z then quickly approved the settlement and moved on to other business.

A long, acrimonious review

The harmonious, perfunctory proceedings were in sharp contrast to the months-long, often-contentious debate that unfolded over the course of four P&Z meetings after the initial application was filed in January 2024.

Benson’s initial plans for the project called for the 3-acre property, site of an 11,000-square-foot 1920s Tudor Revival mansion, to be divided in two — 1.83 acres would remain home to the mansion and the remaining 1.07 acres would be the site of a new house.

The application was technically a “re-subdivision,” since the property at 50 Sylvan Road previously was part of a larger, six-decade-old subdivision.

Driveways and traffic safety debated

But questions — and criticism — arose over the location of two driveways proposed for the project, and their impact on traffic safety and sight lines when the plan was aired publicly at a P&Z hearing in May. When several commission members also had questions, the application was withdrawn.

A revised application, proposing consolidation of the two driveways, came before the P&Z in July, but still encountered neighbors’ opposition — even though they were told that since the lots in the re-subdivision conformed with the area’s AA zoning classification, the commission’s role was limited.

Opponents: Was Tooker involved?

Neighbors, nonetheless, doubled down on their concerns about threats to traffic safety they felt the combined driveway posed. One neighbor also filed Freedom of Information requests for police data related to traffic safety in the area and for correspondence that may have transpired between Benson, the Planning and Zoning Department staff and First Selectwoman Jennifer Tooker, a nearby resident. 

In fact, a July 29 letter by the neighbors’ lawyer, Timothy Herbst, raised “concerning” questions about emails between Benson and town staff about the project, as well as another he allegedly sent to Tooker’s personal email.

And at another hearing in July, more discord ensued as lawyers for both the applicant and neighbors filed a flurry of last-minute documents that clearly perturbed P&Z members, who put off their decision until September.

Approval triggered lawsuit

When a vote on the application was called at the September meeting, however, it was backed unanimously by the five commissioners present. Given the conforming size of the lots and the developer’s agreement to make a payment in lieu of the requirement that 10 percent of the overall property be set aside as open space, P&Z members said there were no grounds to deny the request.

Acknowledging neighbors’ concerns about speeding and traffic safety in the area, the commissioners noted those issues are not within their panel’s purview and should be referred to police.

But the saga did not end there.

Two weeks later, neighbors Michael Ripps and Elizabeth Bishop filed a lawsuit in Superior Court challenging the decision, naming the P&Z, Benson and Sazes Partners, the property owner at the time, as defendants.

Over the course of the next several months, amid court filings by both the plaintiffs and defendants, the  property was purchased in late November from Sazes Partners by Jeffrey Ment and Mary Murray for $3,750,000, according to town property records.

A conclusion “far too long” in the making

It all came to end Monday after the commissioners met to review the proposed lawsuit settlement in executive session, which P&Z Chair Paul Lebowitz declared was “relatively painless.” Six commission members voted to approve the deal, with Michael Calise recusing himself.

The lawsuit settlement, with all parties now in agreement, will be referred to a Superior Court judge for a formal seal of approval.

Ment, the property’s owner, expressed a sentiment no doubt shared by others, saying, “You’ve listened to this issue far too long, for far too many months and, hopefully, this will bring it to a close this evening.”

John Schwing, interim editor of the Westport Journal, has held senior editorial and writing posts at southwestern Connecticut media outlets for four decades. Learn more about us here.