P&Z continues to look at Trumbull Center corridor
TRUMBULL - Traffic improvements, pedestrian safety and mixed density development are all on the table as the town seeks to revitalize a downtown area described at a Thursday meeting as “90 percent boarded up.”
At the meeting, the Planning & Zoning Commission presented its ongoing plans to make the corridor near Trumbull Center more pedestrian friendly, and with mixed density usage in mind for a proposed overlay zone in the future.
The proposal itself mainly focused on traffic and safety improvements on the north and south ends of the corridor, but also touched on the overlay zone. Essentially, it would be a specially zoned area of the center, allowing for mixed used buildings, shared parking, locations to park bicycles, and other enhancements to give the area more of a downtown feel.
David Verespy, an architect who was at the meeting said he was looking forward to seeing the finished project.
“I’m really curious as to how we can increase the density and the development downtown, and mixed use developments to try and draw more people down there. Because right now it’s sort of 90 percent boarded up,” Verespy said.
He reacted positively to the proposal, which includes road diets that would reduce the number of lanes while providing a space for pedestrians to stand safely before crossing White Plains Road. But he stated the number of shuttered businesses and the lack of zoning allowing for higher density buildings as obstacles. He mentioned New Canaan’s downtown and said a similar development would be good for the town.
The plans have been in the works for a while. But the overlay zone, if it comes to fruition, would work hand-in-hand with traffic improvements to make the area more of a destination in its own right. Currently, the area is filled with retail stores with big parking lots, and is much more geared toward cars than cyclists and pedestrians.
But the proposal would need buy-in from private property and business owners in the area. Rina Bakalar, the economic and community development director for the town, said that so far she’s been hearing requests to make the rear of the shopping areas more accessible and visible.
“They’re not proposing to build, as you’re saying there, because what they want to do is open it up,” Bakalar said. “They want to expose (the back of the complex) because they feel it’s a barrier.”
Kate Montgomery, a landscape architect, also pointed out that rezoning would be a more long-term goal. But if it’s done, the changes to the area would it less car-centric.
“Once you change the kind of atmosphere of the street environments, then you can bring people in and have them interact closer to the street,” Montgomery said.
But while making more pedestrian crossings and sidewalks were on the agenda, cars weren’t totally left out either.
Tony D’Aquila, a commission member, said that he liked the proposal to connect the CVS at the center to an adjacent parking lot. The plan is to connect the two lots so cars don’t have to get on White Plains Road to enter the other side.
He said the entrance to the Starbucks next to CVS was dangerous, but he also wanted the area to be less focused on cars. He wants to see development similar to downtown Branford, where the storefronts face the street and sidewalks.
“They have storefronts. People walk along the storefronts and they look, I think that is critical,” D’Aquila said.