Correction: in the original version of this story, the party affiliation of Paul Lebowitz was misstated.

By Kerri Williams

WESTPORT – With another jam-packed meeting agenda, the Planning and Zoning Commission on Monday approved an office building application on Post Road East where a logging operation is currently storing materials. 

In the same meeting that went until midnight, the commission also heard and closed a contentious application for a special permit by Aquarion Water Company involving modifications made during the construction of water tanks at 63-67 North Avenue.

“This is a big meeting for a variety of reasons,” Chairman Paul Lebowitz said as the meeting got underway at 6 p.m.

715 Post Road East

The Commission voted 6-1 to approve the office building and associated parking at 715 Post Road East. Lebowitz recused himself from hearing this app, with alternate Nicole Laskin sitting in. Michael Calise was the sole member to vote against the project. Town Assistant Attorney Peter Gelderman was available for questions during the hearing because the project has been the subject of litigation. 

Commissioners in general praised the project, with the exceptions of some members citing safety concerns about traffic leaving the site as well as construction vehicles when the building is being built. “I am not comfortable with the entrance and exit and the traffic,” Calise said.

Commissioner Michael Cammeyer said the building size is “modest” and “makes sense.” “I would love to expedite this and get the logs off the property,” he said. 

The two-story office building proposed for the corner of Post Road East and Roseville Road is 4,220 square feet with 20 parking spaces.

The lone public comment on the project was from Candace Banks, RTM Dist. 6, who said the current use of the site as a storage location for logging is one of the “top three complaints” she gets from residents. “I couldn’t be more excited,” Banks said of getting the project underway, adding that the current use of the property “baffles most of the public.”

“This is an infinitely better use,” Banks said.

When asked by commissioners how long it would take for the project to be completed, Laurel Fedor, who submitted the application for William Taylor, said that it would be “as soon as possible.” She reiterated some of the history of the site, with the property being bought in 2010. “I would have thought that by 2012, we would have a building up,” she said.

The application was approved Monday with some conditions, including having a snow removal and construction management plan and having construction vehicles as much as possible remain on the site during the building process.

Aquarion

In other business, the commission heard and closed an application for a special permit concerning modifications made during construction of water tanks on North Avenue. The commission will decide whether to grant the permit at a later meeting.

The Aquarion Water Company project has been the subject of litigation and a settlement with neighbors. In making their decision, commissioners were mainly asked to consider the height of the tanks and the landscaping on the property.

Mark Lemcke, a Westport resident who has written numerous letters to the commission on the topic, said in his opinion that the size of the tanks is larger than authorized and that they are not screened properly. Lemcke went back and forth with Lebowitz, who said that the town tree warden has stated in his report that the screening provided is adequate.

Also at question is whether the tanks, which were meant to increase water pressure for fire hydrants, are working in that regard.

Representatives for Aquarion said that fire flow tests have been done and that the water pressure is now adequate.

Also at the meeting, P&Z commissioners chose new officers for the coming year. Lebowitz, an Independent, was re-elected chairman in a 4-3 vote that fell on party lines. Also nominated as chairman was Republican Patrizia Zucaro. Democrats Michael Cammeyer and Breanne Injeski were voted in as vice-chair and secretary respectively in similar 4-3 votes.

Commissioner John Bolton pointed out that on other town boards, the vice chairman is often a member of the minority party. Zucaro, who was nominated for both chairman and vice chairman, was praised by Calise, who said she “elicits discussion and makes strong and compelling points.”

“I’d like to see this edition of the commission a little more diverse at the executive level,” Bolton said before the votes.

The commission also voted to continue subcommittees on Affordable Housing, the Plan of Conservation and Development, Recreation, and Zoning Regulation Revisions. Bolton also said he would like to see a subcommittee on Traffic and Parking, calling the issue “everything about this town.” He said he will bring a proposal for the subcommittee to the January meeting.

Kerri Williams

^{_{Kerri Williams is an award-winning writer and journalist. She has worked as a reporter at the Norwalk Hour, as Living editor at the Darien News-Review, and managing editor for the Norwalk Citizen-News. For Westport Journal, she is a reporter as well as a gardening columnist, writing “Cultivating with Kerri.” She recently published her first children’s book – “Mabel’s Big Move,” based on her daughter with special needs.}}