Plans OK'd To Raze Vacant Bank Building In Darien And Build Apartments

DARIEN, CT — The Darien Planning & Zoning Commission last week approved plans to raze the vacant bank building at 7 Sedgwick Ave., and build a three-story multi-family apartment building.

Known as 7 Sedgwick Lofts, building will feature 18 one-bedroom apartments across the two floors above the parking level. There will also be 4,969 square feet of public plaza area and an off-street loading area. A total of 30 surface parking spaces will be located under the building.

Apartments range from 910 to 1,000 square feet of floor area, and each apartment will have its own outside balcony or porch, according to the plans, and there would be landscaping and lighting included at the site.

"I think they did come up with a good design," said Commission Chair Stephen Olvany. "I couldn't really find anything that was wrong with this thing." The applicant is 7 Sedgwick Avenue LLC.

The existing 2,452-square-foot building was constructed in 1973 and it was used as a retail bank branch until it closed several years ago.

A proposal to demolish the building to build apartments came before Planning & Zoning several years ago, and the plans have changed over the years.

In 2022, four affordable housing units were proposed for the building.

However, the plans approved on April 2 do not include affordable units. Developers will instead pay a fee of a little over $900,000 in lieu of the units, which would go toward the town's Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

Commissioner Adam Balgach said he'd rather include some affordable units in the building now so people could take advantage of them, but other members preferred to take the money.

"I think we could do potential greater good with taking the money and putting ourselves in a position to do something more transformative," said Commissioner Amy Barsanti.

Balgach, Barsanti, Olvany, and Vice Chair George Reilly voted for the proposal, while Commissioners Michael Nedder and Jamie Zionic voted against.

Nedder said that according to zoning regulations, the first floor of the building should feature retail/professional offices.

"If I had my druthers, I'd say something to the effect of, the regulations aren't clear on the issue. We'd be throwing away 25 years of zoning precedent by approving something like this," Nedder said. "The regulations say the use on the first floor should be retail or office. So if they're calling it a three-story building, their first floor, which is the parking area, should be retail or office. That's a pretty clear reading of the zoning regulations."

Reilly noted regulations in the Commercial Business District are designed for retail use on the first floor and professional offices above, but that's not required.

The site is located entirely in the flood zone.

"As I've said before, it makes no sense for anything other than cars to be parked in a flood zone," Reilly said.

Olvany said, "No enclosed principal use would be feasible at the ground level without raising the grade several feet, and possibly affecting the base flood elevation."

The April 2 Planning & Zoning Commission meeting was broadcast via Darien TV 79. Watch the full meeting on demand here.