By Kerri Williams

WESTPORT — A proposal that would permit installation of lighting at more of the town’s athletic fields, which sparked opposition from some neighbors, was approved Monday by the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Members voted 5-1, with one abstention, to approve text amendment 850 that allows lighting site plans — customized for fields on an individual basis — to be filed for review by the P&Z.

For each lighting request, neighbors within 250 feet of the field would be notified.

Tweaks, tweaks and more tweaks

“We listened to everybody and did the best we could by listening and tweaking and tweaking and tweaking, even making some tweaks tonight,” said Michael Cammeyer, the commission secretary who led a subcommittee initiative on expanding field lighting. The effort began after the expiration of a 2011 court-stipulated judgment settling a lawsuit filed by neighbors over installation of permanent lighting at the Staples High School stadium. 

“This started over a year ago. I am proud of where we are today,” he said. 

Proponents argued that more lighting at town fields will expand practice and game times for local school teams and youth leagues, whose needs have outstripped Westport’s available facilities.

Zoner reluctantly changes mind

The lone P&Z member to vote against the amendment cited concerns expressed by neighbors, who said the lights and noise from nighttime games and practices would disrupt their quality of life.

John Bolton, who said he was originally in favor of lighting more town fields, said Monday that he changed his mind after reading testimony filed by neighboring property owners opposed to the proposal.

Bolton said he had made a presumption that most people in town had “embraced” the idea of installing field lights to enable more youth getting to play in the evenings, but was surprised to learn that many living near the fields were not in support. 

In recent meetings, several neighbors spoke out against the lighting proposal, particularly noise generated by events in the evening.

“I can’t ignore my constituents’ concerns,” Bolton said, casting what he called a “reluctant no” against the amendment.

Bolton also said he was concerned that instead of having a “uniform policy,” each field-lighting plan would be addressed separately by the commission. He said this policy might lead to concerns that neighborhoods were being treated differently. 

Not “one size fits all”

But the process of addressing each field separately was a key factor that several members said made the text amendment one they could support. 

“This is not one size fits all,” said Neil Cohn. “We will look at each situation for what it needs.”

Several changes had been made to the text amendment following the last meeting, including increasing the residential setback of lighting poles from 5 feet to 25 feet, and making the end time of most practices and games no later than 9 p.m. instead of 10. A one-hour extension would be allowed for some activities if approved by the commission. 

Another change is requiring a landscape plan for each field to provide some screening for neighboring properties.

Lebowitz: Neighbors’ concerns considered

P&Z Chair Paul Lebowitz said he was pleased with the changes that took into consideration some concerns expressed by neighbors.

“People were not happy with the 5-foot setback,” he said. “We heard that loud and clear.”

“People who know me know that I am a big believer in sports,” said commission member Amy Wistreich. She spoke of her own children, who played lacrosse in college and started playing when in the first grade. “I want to see kids on fields as much as possible,” she said.

Commission member Patrizia Zucaro, who abstained from voting, echoed some of Bolton’s concerns. “It’s a tough topic,” Zucaro said. “I find it hard to move past the opinions of neighbors.”

For Cammeyer, the revised text amendment was the best compromise. “Everything that we do in the P&Z, we have to think of the entirety of the town,” he said. “This is not an easy job.”

Kerri Williams is a freelance writer who has worked in journalism for years, including as a reporter for the Norwalk Hour and managing editor of the Norwalk Citizen-News.