Great Island Access Planning Continues To Progress, Selectmen Hear Update On Latest Design

DARIEN, CT — Planning for access at Great Island continues to progress, and on Monday, the Darien Board of Selectmen received an update on the 60-plus-acre property centered around circulation, stormwater management, utilities and lighting.

Selectman Monica McNally, who also leads the Great Island Parking Advisory Committee, gave a brief presentation, noting the committee is working toward completing 60 percent of the design documents.

The meeting was held virtually and is available to watch on demand on Darien TV.

Officials are reaching out and having conversations with the bodies that will be involved in the early access work, with a formal presentation of plans going before the Darien Environmental Protection Commission on Aug. 5, according to McNally. A follow-up meeting with the town's Architectural Review Board and Planning & Zoning Commission will also follow.

Notably, on circulation, current plans call for 66 visitor gravel parking spaces, 15 lawn parking spaces, and six ADA spots for a total of 87 parking spaces. McNally noted the Great Island Master Plan showed between 50 to 60 visitor gravel spaces, and 30 to 40 overflow lawn spaces, plus ADA parking, for a total of 84 to 104 spots.

"You'll see the overall parking plan remains consistent with the master plan. We've just continued to refine the layout as the design has been developed," McNally said.

In the gravel parking area, McNally said curbing taken from the 23A access road widening project will be repurposed for wheel stops, as well as for crosswalks and parking transition areas. McNally also said there will be 46 bicycle slots.

A boardwalk is proposed near the traffic circle and into Great Island.

"Today, people naturally walk on the road when they enter the property, and that's really because that's the only option. Once public parking is available, there will be more vehicles on the road, so it's really important to give pedestrians their own route, to keep cars and pedestrians separated, so that's the point of the boardwalk," McNally said. "It also minimizes grading work that we need to do on that road, and it also protects the mature tree roots and it also maintains natural drainage."

Pedestrians can use a crosswalk and sidewalk near the traffic circle to enter the boardwalk.

On stormwater management for Great Island, McNally said,

"The goal here is to allow water to infiltrate naturally while reducing the amount of drainage infrastructure that we need to do."

"It's a pretty straightforward approach that I think will benefit the site tremendously," she added. "That is basically using pervious surface, such as the stabilized lawn, or the gravel parking, or along the northern causeway - a stabilized lawn on either side of the roadway."

Utilities would run from the traffic circle onto the island.
"We're installing conduits now for possible work that we might need to do later on," McNally said, noting a fire hydrant was moved due to input from the Darien fire chief.

"All of this utility work will be done underground, and most likely on the side of the road so we don't have to rip up the pavement if we need to do any work on that," McNally said.

For lighting, McNally said the committee is looking for a lighting plan that "provides safe pedestrian crossings at intersections while still keeping lighting to a minimum and following the dark sky principles," meaning lighting would be focused downward and not up toward the sky.

During the Great Island Parking Advisory Committee's next meeting on July 16, McNally said the members will be reviewing a lighting plan. Another meeting is scheduled for July 23.

The selectmen praised the latest plans.

"It appears it's a pretty thoughtful plan and I like the disbursement of the parking spaces," Selectman Michael Burke said.

"I think it's very important to get spaces up there sufficient for residents to be able to enjoy this island. I also believe the spaces will help reduce pedestrian and vehicle traffic on the roads going out to Pear Tree and coming over the bridge. I like this idea."

Selectman Marcy Minnick said the plans were "very surprising," and not what she had imagined access to the island would look like.

"It's much nicer, it seems much more thoughtful, it seems much more environmentally inclusive," she said, specifically pointing to the boardwalk.

Selectman Sarah Neumann said she thought the plans look "great," and she liked where the parking has been designed.

"We have people who want to be there all the time. When we purchased this property, in our minds, we were comparing it to Waveny or Tod's Point, so I think it makes sense for us to have a plan for parking for people who are going to be coming to this," she said. "The number of spots here, I think, makes sense for the number of folks that we think might be coming. I think this-sized parking makes sense for this space."

23A Access Road Update

During the Board of Selectmen meeting, McNally also provided an update on 23A, saying paving was expected to be completed this week.

The roadway is slated to reopen to two-way vehicular traffic at 4 p.m. on Friday. There will be one bike rack installed at the traffic circle, and a second rack should be installed next week.

The Board of Selectmen is scheduled to hold a special meeting at 2 p.m. on Thursday to go consider new rules and access requirements for the island.

New language for the rules and access requirements states:

"The roadway leading up from Rings End Bridge to the traffic circle, known as 23A, is open to two-way vehicular traffic as of 4:00 p.m. Friday, July 3, 2026. Police will continue to monitor the property, and all visitors are asked to follow posted signs, barricades, and traffic controls. Unauthorized vehicles are not permitted onto the Property beyond the traffic circle, and barricades or gates located at the edge of the traffic circle to clearly mark the end of vehicle access. There is no public parking on the property.

To keep traffic moving safely, drop-off and pick-up should occur only at the traffic circle. There is no standing or waiting in front of the barricades or the neighboring property’s gate."

The agenda for Thursday's special meeting can be found here.

Watch the full Great Island update from McNally on Darien TV.