Greenwich Seeks To Protect 'Hidden Jewel' Properties From Development

GREENWICH, CT — The Board of Selectmen on Wednesday night took a step forward to protect some of its "hidden jewel" properties.

The selectmen unanimously voted to approve a resolution that would designate the town's Pomerance and Tuchman properties as official park land under the inventory of the Parks and Recreation Department, and preserved open space under state statutes.

The Representative Town Meeting will ultimately have the final say in the process. Assistant Director of Greenwich Parks & Recreation Daniel Carlsen said the plan is to present the designation request at the Sept. 15 RTM meeting.

Located in the heart of Cos Cob, the Pomerance Tuchman parcels combine for 107 acres of open space, which includes the 4.6-acre Cos Cob Pond.

The Pomerance property is 76 acres and was purchased by the town in 2000. The Tuchman property is 31 acres, and it was acquired in 2007.

"The site contains physical remnants of its rich history as the former estate of Ernest Thompson Seton and subsequent inhabitants including Maurice Wertheim, Josephine Pomerane, and Barbara Tuchman," according to documents associated with the request.

The properties also include about two miles of walking trails.

Over the past few years, the town's Conservation Commission has been working in partnership with Parks and Recreation, GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc., and volunteers to develop a master plan for the properties that would preserve and protect the parcels of land and serve as a guiding document for long-term management.

Nancy Chapin of the Greenwich Parks and Recreation Commission went before the selectmen on June 12 to make the designation request. She noted that designating the properties is the No. 1 priority of the master plan.

The master plan recommends pursuing grants and private/public partnerships, and state
funding can only be achieved once the parcels have the open space designation, Chapin explained.

"We had a grant and we lost it because they were like, 'Wait, there's no protection, what is this land, how is it going to be used?' So we can't do any fundraising until we get [protection], so I think this is very important," Chapin said.

During the June 12 meeting and on Wednesday, the selectmen expressed support for designating the properties as open space and park land.

"I think it's a hidden jewel. Most people in town don't know about it. Having grown up right across the street from it, I grew up on the property and worked there," Camillo said earlier this month.

"We need this protection," Selectperson Janet Stone McGuigan said Wednesday. "We can't accept grants without this protection, so absolutely it's timely. I'm enthusiastically endorsing it."