Parking Lot Expansion Planned For Sullivan Independence Hall

FAIRFIELD, CT — Fairfield officials have plans to address parking lot congestion at one of the main town government buildings by adding 30 new spaces.

"One of the ongoing strategic issues is lack of parking at Sullivan Independence Hall," First Selectman Mike Tetreau said at a recent Board of Selectmen meeting, according to a video of the meeting posted on YouTube.

The lot behind the building at 725 Old Post Road is often crowded, especially when there are meetings at the location, Public Works Director Joe Michelangelo told selectmen during a report on the project.

The spots will be available for people visiting Sullivan Independence Hall for business or attending events at the nearby Fairfield Museum and History Center, Tetreau said at the July 10 meeting.

The addition is expected to cost about $25,000, Michelangelo stated in an email. The project is tentatively scheduled to be completed over the course of five days in mid-September, he stated.

The parking expansion will replace a grass strip on the back half of the property, according to Michelangelo, who told selectmen the new spaces will be made of porous asphalt paving. The same type of pavement was used for the town's recent Fairfield Center Station repaving project, Michelangelo said.

"Water goes right through it," he said in the video, describing the design of the paving as green and innovative.

Cars parked in the lot expansion will face a nearby marsh, Michelangelo said in response to questions from Selectman Edward Bateson. Michelangelo added that Conservation Department staff signed off on the project. No trees will be removed for the addition, he said, and the spaces won't cut into a soccer field in the area.

The project received the necessary approvals from the Historic District Commission on July 11.

To view a map of the parking lot addition site, visit https://bit.ly/2JQZkLu.