Apartments
dismissed the argument that an apartment complex would ruin a neighborhood of single-family homes.
“This is not a pristine residential area, it is a mix of business, institutional and residential uses — both multifamily and single family,” Seeman said. “Corbins Corner ... is less than 2,000 feet away, and the Westfarms Mall is just down the street.”
Christopher Conway, executive director of the
Chamber of Commerce, noted developer Joseph Calafiore is seeking no tax breaks for the town, but is providing two units of workforce housing within the 26-apartment project.
Conway said Calafiore deserves credit for amending the original proposal that he put forward two years ago. The town rejected that plan after neighbors objected to it, and Calafiore has since rearranged the building plans, reduced the height of one building and added more tree buffers.
The plan is for 23 t wo- bedroom apart
ments renting for $2,000 to $2,200 monthly, and a one-bedroom unit at $1,800 to $1,900 a month. Two additional one-bedroom units will be reserved for people making no more than 80% of the local median income; the monthly rent currently is projected at $1,061.
“I truly believe this will be a wonderful asset to the community, to your neighborhood,” Mayor Shari Cantor said just before calling a vote as the meeting wound down around 1 a.m. Friday.
The vote split with
majority Democrats approving the zone change over the objections of Republicans, who all voted against it.
Voting for the zone change were Cantor, Deputy Mayor Leon Davidoff, Carol Blanks, Beth Kerrigan, Liam Sweeney and Ben Wenograd. Voting against it were Minority Leader Lee Gold, Mary Fay and Chris Williams.
Calafiore said in October that if the zone change passed, he could start construction in mid-2021 and be done around the summer of 2022.