Brookfield apartment complex undergoes design changes

BROOKFIELD — A longdiscussed luxury apartment complex in Brookfield will look quite different from its original plan once construction is completed.

The updated design for Green Acres Luxury Apartments, which was originally approved by the Zoning Commission in 2013 but is under new ownership, will downsize from four buildings to two. Designs for the Federal Road complex still call for 100 units as originally planned, with 19 studio apartments, 33 one-bedrooms, and 48 two-bedrooms.

The units will be split between a three-story building and four-story building. Each will have a full in-unit laundry, kitchen, and bathrooms, floor-to-ceiling windows, granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances.

In the updated plan, the first floor of Building A (the three-story building) will not house commercial space, as was originally discussed. Instead, there will be common space, fitness, yoga, and meeting rooms, and front office space. A handful of housing units will also take up some of the first floor.

Jason Kambitsis, director of land development for A.R. Building Company, the complex’s new owner, said the amenities would give the complex a more “boutique hotel feel.”

New architectural and aesthetic components — red brick exteriors with white siding and trim— are also more in line with Brookfield’s “character.”

The brick will last longer, look better, and fit more easily in with the surrounding community, Kambitsis said.

“It’s very important to us that any building, any development, fits into Brookfield,” said First Selectman Steve Dunn.

A.R. Building Company, the Pennsylvania-based

luxury multi-family housing developer, has been working closely with the town on these adjustments. And last week, the Zoning Commission approved the changes.

“They seem really great,” Zoning Enforcement Officer Francis Lollie said of the new owners. “We’ve met with them on numerous occasions through Zoom meetings and also one-on-ones in the office.”

Lollie and Dunn were in agreement that the updated plan was a better one for Brookfield.

“Overall, I think it’s a better project. It’s more architecturally, aesthetically better than what was originally approved,” said Lollie.

Affordable options

Back in 2013, the complex plan included an incentive zoning plan with 19 of the 100 proposed units priced for moderate-income renters, leaving the remaining units priced as luxury units.

The incentive zoning rules— which requires that 20 percent of units be available for residents earning 80 percent of the town's median income— will remain unchanged in the updated plans.

“They’re all the same units, they’re not treated any differently,” said Kambitsis during the Zoning Commission meeting on Nov. 18.

After reviewing Brookfield’s updated list of all taxable property, Dunn noted that the price of starter homes, like most real estate, had gone “way up” during the pandemic. The Green Acres apartments could offer a stepping stone for young people and families who can’t afford a house yet.

“There is significant demand for people who want to downsize, for younger people who want to move out of mom and dad’s house,” Dunn added.

This year, the Danbury area rental market saw extremely low inventory paired with sky-high prices, driven up by homeowners selling their houses to take advantage of the market, and outof-towners moving in and bidding up prices. The problem compounded, often making it a difficult task for young people and those wishing to downsize to find housing that fit in their budgets.

Units would eventually be priced around market value, according to Kambitsis.

Construction on the complex could start as early as spring of 2022, but there is no set completion date yet.

“I think what we're presenting here not only is a better plan, it's a realistic plan,” said Kambitsis. “We do this every day throughout the country, and we're just excited to be here with you.”

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