Train station project starts approval process
GREENWICH — The first step in what could be a lengthy approval process begins Thursday morning for the proposed $45 million new train station and Railroad Avenue improvement project in central Greenwich.
The Board of Selectmen will hear a presentation about the massive project at its 10 a.m. meeting in Town Hall. The train station and the Greenwich Plaza building, which houses the Greenwich Transportation Center, would be transformed under the plan.
The project was unveiled at a news conference on Tuesday morning with First Selectman Peter Tesei and Darrell Harvey, coCEO of the Ashforth Co., which owns the property.
It calls for new train stations on both the north and south sides of the MetroNorth railroad tracks in downtown Greenwich along with a new transportation center and improved retail area. A new privately owned public park is proposed for the current location of the Bow Tie Cinemas on Railroad Avenue. A new luxury
movie theater would be added above the parking lot on Railroad Avenue.
New commuter pathways are also part of the plan, along with new dropoff and pickup areas.
The project will be a public/ private partnership with the town involved, although the Ashforth Co. will cover the vast majority of the costs.
The current station, which was also built by Ashforth, is more than 50 years old.
“This project is really central to the future,” Tesei said Tuesday. A new train station and downtown development would draw visitors and economic development to Greenwich, he said. It would also get drivers off the roads and onto rail as the town retains and enhances its business presence, Tesei said.
Harvey is expected to be on hand for Thursday’s meeting as the selectmen consider whether to allow the developers to pursue municipal improvement status from the town.
Approval from the selectmen is expected. Tesei offered his endorsement for the project at the press conference.
But that is only the first of many needed approvals.
Once the selectmen grant their approval, the project can go before the Planning and Zoning Commission. It is tentatively scheduled for the commission’s July 30 meeting, which shows the strong confidence that the project will receive the selectmen’s approval.
According to town Director of Planning and Zoning Katie DeLuca, the commission must grant municipal improvement status and approve a preliminary site plan, as well as other approvals, for the project to proceed.
The commission meetings, as well as Thursday’s Board of Selectmen, are open to the public. “We very much welcome” comments from the public, DeLuca said. The filings on the project can be viewed from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays in Town Hall. Residents can also email comments to be entered into the public record to kdeluca@greenwichct.org.
Selectmen meetings are open to the public, but they are not public hearings. Speakers are recognized at the discretion of the first selectman. In the past, Tesei has typically recognized speakers from the crowd on major issues such as this one.
Ashforth is hoping to start construction in about a year, if all goes according to plan, Harvey said. The construction, which will include demolishing the Greenwich Transportation Center, is expected to take about 18 months. There will be temporary access for commuters to get to their trains during construction.
Renderings of the project, which were unveiled at Tuesday’s press conference, can be viewed at www.greenwichct.org. Final design plans will be drawn up as the project goes through the town’s land use approval process.