Action Postponed On Controversial Southington Housing Subdivision

SOUTHINGTON, CT — A controversial housing subdivision plan that has neighbors up in arms has been delayed with the local zoning board tabling any action on it last week.

The Southington Planning and Zoning Commission voted 6-0 last week to table two items of action relative to plans by Evergreen of Southington LLC, to build an 18-lot residential subdivision that would go on 567 Woodruff St., Southington.

That action took place during the PZC's lightning-fast, 19-minute meeting on Jan. 2, the commission's first of the new year.

Robert Hammersley, the PZC chairman, said the applicant has asked to town to table the items until a later meeting date.

The subdivision plan has riled up neighbors in that area, with many expressing concerns more homes in the area and more people living there would negatively impact everything from traffic safety to the property values of others.

Opponents also have said the parcel of land, which formerly was the Evergreen Nursery retail garden center, should remain as an open space.

For now, the PZC has two different applications from Evergreen for the project: one being a special permit for the site, which is zoned residential, and the other being a subdivision application.

Both applications have been regular agenda items for the PZC for months.

At the Nov. 21 PZC meeting, the commission continued a public hearing that started in October to a special meeting originally slated for Tuesday, Dec. 5.

That meeting, however, was canceled and rescheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 19, at 7 p.m. at the John Weichsel Municipal Center.

Last month, at the PZC's first meeting with the newest members and latest officers, no one spoke in favor of the subdivision, but several spoke against it.

PZC action, however, was pushed back until after the holidays, with the applicant opting to request the item be tabled before the Jan. 2 meeting, the first of the new year.

The applicants have requested a 65-day extension to keep the hearing open as it fine-tunes its application and plans following public and zoning board testimony.

That, according to documents submitted to the town, would take the hearing out until the PZC's Feb. 20 regularly scheduled meeting. The PZC meets twice a month.

For the minutes of the Jan. 2 Southington Plan and Zoning Commission meeting, click on his link.

For all documents related to the 567 Woodruff St. proposal, click on this link.

From Dec. 5, 2023: 'New Officers, A Warehouse And Housing Plans Keep Southington PZC Busy'

From Oct. 30, 2023: 'Controversial Housing Project Angers Southington Neighbors'