By Thane Grauel

WESTPORT — The town is not known for its stock of undeveloped residential parcels.

But a few do remain.

One is at 11A River Oaks Road, which is off Greens Farms Road, on high ground above the Sherwood Island Connector and Interstate 95.

The property is bounded at the low end by protected wetlands, Muddy Brook before it scoots under Interstate 95 and feeds into the Sherwood Mill Pond, and the state right-of-way for the Sherwood Island Connector.

The property is shaped something live a cleaver, with its handle at the northwest providing access to the bulk of the land behind No. 11.

An application has been filed with the Zoning Board of Appeals to build a five-bedroom house.

The applicant, Dean E. Martin, doesn’t need the ZBA’s permission to build the house. What’s needed are variances for fill and excavation.

“Construct a single-family dwelling, driveway, septic system and stormwater management system,” the variance application reads.

The property has steep terrain, and a fair amount of earth needs to be moved around the almost 1.3-acre site.

The hardships listed in the application included “Existing property has slopes greater than 25 percent, wetland soils in level areas.”

The idea to develop the land has been around for some time.

The Conservation Commission approved a plan for a single-family house on the land in June 2015, according to town records.

The latest owners, River One Building LLC, bought the parcel in March 2017 for $230,000.

The Conservation Commission approved the latest owner’s plan to build a house in August 2022. The certificate the owners obtained is good for five years.

The ZBA application was recently filed and does not yet appear on an agenda.

Thane Grauel grew up in Westport and has been a journalist in Fairfield County and beyond for 36 years. Reach him at editor@westportjournal.com. Learn more about us here.