Neighbors Rally Against Planned Enfield Distribution Center

ENFIELD, CT — A planned half-million square foot distribution center earmarked for former farmland at North Maple Street and Moody Road has drawn opposition from residents in adjacent residential neighborhoods, mainly over quality of life issues, proximity to an elementary school and perceived lack of communication from town officials.

Nearly 100 neighbors of the project, including residents of the Misty Meadow and Maple Heights developments, gathered Tuesday evening in a yard on nearby Deer Run to discuss plans to block the proposal. Winstanley Enterprises of Concord, Massachusetts plans to construct the 43-foot high single-story distribution center on a 71-acre parcel at 113 North Maple Street.

The project would involve razing the former Hawthorne's Agway building at 97 North Maple Street, which Winstanley purchased in Aug. 2017 for $950,000. The main portion of the acreage was acquired from Jarmoc Farms in April 2017 for $2.9 million, according to Enfield land records.

Just over half of the new facility would house Agri-Mark, which plans to consolidate its five Massachusetts-based warehouses into the single Enfield location. Agri-Mark is the premier dairy farmer cooperative in the Northeast, encompassing Cabot Creamery among others. Plans are for the remainder of the building to be leased to an as-yet unnamed tenant.

A site plan review was conducted by the Enfield Planning & Zoning Commission during a virtual meeting on June 25. The project had been slated for approval that night, but a considerable discussion about a need for community input led to the scheduling of a public hearing for July 9.

Left with a very short window of time to express opposition to the plan, neighbors got together en masse Tuesday to voice their displeasure, establish talking points and strategize participation in Thursday's hearing.

Among the major issues are truck noise, soil contamination, lighting, traffic flow and safety concerns for students at Hazardville Memorial School, situated less than a quarter-mile from the southern end of the industrial parcel.

"This is an Amazon-sized industrial facility and structures like this should not be built on a site that abuts a residential neighborhood and is in very close proximity to an elementary school," said Tom Grigely, who hosted the gathering with his wife Lori. "The town seems inordinately interested in approving this as soon as possible with virtually no transparency or affected residents' input. The more we dig, the harder it is to believe. This is one of the most fast-tracked project approvals anyone has ever seen, and also has the highest resistance to public input."

Conversation facilitator Dale Butrymowicz said, "As we learn more about the size and scope of this thing, it is massive, it has a huge impact on this area and it has frustrated a lot of us. No public discussion, no public awareness, nothing. There are still more questions than there are answers. We need to get our voices hear no matter what."

When Winter Way was constructed in the late 1980s, the farmland just to the north, directly across North Maple Street from the former Enrico Fermi High School, was zoned agricultural, but was changed to industrial about 30 years ago, according to resident Lee Garrity.

Another major bone of contention is the traffic study submitted with Winstanley's application. The study as done independently, not by the Enfield Police Department or the state Department of Transportation. Furthermore, the study was conducted in mid-March, at a time when schools had been shut down by executive order of Gov. Ned Lamont and many peole had begun working from their homes rather than traveling.

The agenda for Thursday's OfficeSuite meeting, which includes connection instructions for residents wishing to participate, may be found here. The minutes of the June 25 meeting may be viewed here.

(Photos: Tim Jensen/Patch)

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