City will expand recreation area with land donation

TORRINGTON — A recent donation of open space property will create a 15-acre outdoor recreation area near the Litchfield town line.

The donated 2-acre parcel connects with an established 13-acre site, located between state Route 202 and Highland Avenue. The additional acres will make the property more accessible to residents, said Rista Malanca, Torrington zoning and wetlands enforcement officer.

“When the area was developed (in 2014) the two acres were also promised,” Malanca said. The property donation was made by a new developer, TDF Enterprise LLC of Windsor. The Planning and Zoning Commission recently approved the acceptance of the acreage.

“We’re looking to protect environmentally sensitive contiguous open space,” Malanca said Monday. The smaller parcel will create a land bridge to the established open space area, she said.

Development of the property had long been in the making.

In 1987, the planning commission responded to a proposed subdivision development of more than 230 lots by requesting a review of the plan from the King’s Mark Environmental Review Team (now the Resource Conservation and Development program).

The developer in 1987 was Barry Shapiro. His contact information could not be located.

The review team’s report of the 155-acre property showed that given “the high density of homes proposed, development of the site would be expected to significantly increase the amount of runoff.”

Greenbrier Estates “will have a substantial impact on the inland wetlands and watercourses on the site,” the report stated.

“They didn’t get an Army Corps of Engineers permit,” to build in the waterways, said Kenneth Hrica, a professional engineer who presented the recent property donation agreement to the planning commission.

“They had to make restitution, and one option is create open space,” he said. “The previous owner chose uplands and wetlands,” on which to build, Hrica said.

The principal partner of the new owners is Daniel Ferraina of Windsor, state records show. He couldn’t be reached for comment

Hrica said the donation will “give the city an opportunity to create a walking trail that could link Litchfield and Torrington.”

“It’s highly likely a larger area (in Greenbrier) could become open space, Hrica added.

Leslie Hutchison / Hearst Connecticut Media A future trail on the 13-acre open space property in the Greenbrier subdivision could connect with a proposed route for the extension of the Sue Grossman Trail into downtown Torrington.

Leslie Hutchison / Hearst Connecticut Media Residents look at maps of the proposed routes for the extension of the Sue Grossman Trail into downtown Torrington.