Development Proposed At Former Rockefeller Property By Greenwich Private School

GREENWICH, CT — Over three years after Greenwich Academy purchased a 54-acre parcel of land from descendants of the Rockefeller family for $18.35 million, the school is looking to develop the property into a campus serving kindergarten through fourth grade, with classrooms, athletic facilities and faculty housing.

Originally listed for $21.5 million, the land had been in the Rockefeller family for over 100 years, and it was the family's last large landholding in Greenwich.

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The property is in central Greenwich and is bordered by Glenville, Riversville, and Pecksland Roads. It's just seven minutes from GA's main campus on North Maple Avenue.

Thomas Heagney, attorney for the applicant, said in a project narrative submitted to the Greenwich Planning & Zoning Department that since the purchase, "the school has been studying how best to use the property as part of carrying out its educational mission, while maintaining and protecting the site's natural beauty."

Submitted documents state the initial phase for the development would include the construction of an entrance drive off Riversville Road, a central loop driveway to provide circulation and parking, a classroom building for first and second grade, a squash center, eight faculty housing units, a play area and additional parking.

Students from GA's North Maple campus utilizing the squash center would be bused to the Riversville Road campus.

Heagney noted approximately 120 students would utilize the classrooms. Additionally, the driveway on Pecksland Road would allow for bus and emergency vehicle access for faculty housing residents only.

The main access point for the property would be from Riversville Road with a secondary driveway for buses and faculty housing off Pecksland Road, Heagney said, noting there would be no vehicular access proposed from Glenville Road.

Existing hiking trails would be maintained on the property with added boardwalks "through selected wetland areas to enhance student educational experiences," Heagney said.

Phase II of the development would include the construction of additional classroom space for kindergarten-fourth grade, with ancillary student facilities, allowing for approximately 300 students. Additional parking would also be included in this phase.

Future development would include athletic facilities, a nature center with an outdoor classroom and additional faculty housing.

"All proposed development will be designed to work with the topography of the site and will primarily be located on the western portion of the property," Heagney added.

The property features "several pockets" of wetlands, of which three contain vernal pools.

Proposed development would occur at least 100 feet outside of wetland boundaries, Heagney said.

There are three residential zones on the property — R-7, RA-1 and RA-2. Except for a portion of the R-7 Zone along Glenville Road, GA is proposing to rezone the 1-acre portion of the property to RA-2.

Heagney said a traffic study is being completed based on the total number of students on the property after Phase II is completed.

A pre-application review allows commissioners to provide initial feedback before a formal application is submitted. The pre-application is expected to go before the Greenwich Planning & Zoning Commission in the coming weeks.