ARB Praises Kimco’s Design Changes, Urges More “Human Scale” and Less Industrial Feel for Wilton Center Apartments

Kimco Realty continues to revise its designs for the second phase of its Wilton Campus redevelopment at 15-21 River Rd. in response to feedback from Wilton’s land-use boards, gradually scaling back prominent architectural features of the initial proposal in favor of a less imposing appearance.

Wilton’s Architectural Review Board (ARB) had good things to say about revised architectural plans presented during its Oct. 1 meeting, but also encouraged the architects to push further to break up the repetitive features of the two large, rectangular four-story apartment buildings that constitute the project’s Phase II in favor of something more suited to the intentions of the Greater Wilton Center Master Plan zoning overlay.

Beinfield Architecture, which submitted the designs to ARB for pre-application review, has reworked the designs based on feedback received from Wilton’s Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) in July. The corners of Building C, the largest of the two buildings, have now been scaled back and Building D now incorporates a red-brick façade and sloped roof to evoke the design of a barn or old warehouse.

“It’s rigorous and restrained in its own way as an overall composition, but then I like how you’ve thought to the level of detail at the human scale when you get down to it,” said ARB Chair Kevin Quinlan.

“You Could Make it Even Better”

As part of Phase II, Kimco is proposing to replace the now-empty 118,000-square-foot office building on the site with two four-story apartment buildings bisected by a new street, to be named Village Ct. The street would provide on-street parking for shoppers, wide sidewalks and a connection to Village Dr. and the Stop & Shop across the street.

The larger structure, Building C, would have 174 apartments, including studios and one-, two- and three-bedroom units, surrounding a 10,000-square-foot internal courtyard with a private pool. It would also include an enclosed multistory parking garage. The smaller Building D would have 51 apartments of various sizes.

Other proposed amenities include a clubhouse, lawn areas with outdoor seating, a walking path and a dog run. Kimco has pledged that both buildings will be built to LEED Gold standards and that 10% of the apartments will be designated affordable.

In the meantime, Kimco attorney Lisa Feinberg told ARB, the developer is “actively pursuing” zoning and building permits to proceed with Phase I of the project, which P&Z approved in November 2024. Phase I also consists of two apartment buildings, one of which, along River Rd. will be mixed-use. When complete, all four buildings will house nearly 400 apartments.

The façade of Building C came under particular scrutiny by the three board members in attendance at the Oct. 1 meeting. Architect Seelan Pather noted that the alternating pattern of protruding light-colored brick walls and recessed dark fiber cement walls were intended to invoke a townhouse aesthetic. Also, on the advice of P&Z, the corners of the building have been scaled back to emphasize public space over architectural expression.

“It is a very rigorous and very repetitive and very modulated facade,” Quinlan said. “I think it’s a lot of façade, but the way that you’ve broken it up, I think is logical.”

ARB member Kathy Poirier expressed concern that the rigid modularity and squared-off setbacks of Building C looked out of place in downtown Wilton and that the warehouse-like design of Building D is one that is not historically associated with Wilton.

“It still looks like we’ve got the factory building plopped down in the middle of Wilton Center,” Poirier said. “I just feel like there could be a little bit more human scale and a little bit more coming back to more of the New England traditions versus the industrial idea of these.”

“I know you’re good architects and that you could make it even better,” Poirier added. “[The design] doesn’t feel like it has a lot of as much life as it could in it.”

Pather said that the “departure point” for the Building C and D designs was the architecture of the two buildings planned for Phase I, but that he would take the suggestions to heart and add some variations to the Building C façade to break up the repetition.

Walkability, Amenities Receive Compliments

ARB member Lynley Middleberg praised the proposed addition of Village Ct. to divide the space into two smaller-scaled segments and open up the site to pedestrian access.

“I think adding that street, especially reorienting the structure that’s there now and breaking that up so it’s not such a mass, I think is a lot more palatable,” Middleberg said. “I think when people psychologically start to see larger buildings, they … seize up and start to panic.”

Poirier suggested adding a pocket park or other small amenity to the far end of Village Ct. where it ends at Building B, to make it more inviting to pedestrians.

Landscaper Matt Renauld explained that one corner of Building C would be a “corner plaza” that would be inviting to pedestrians walking over from the Stop & Shop. Board members were favorable toward the proposed lawn space, public dog park, and other amenities that are planned for the site.

To improve the project’s environmental sustainability, Poirier suggested that the flat roofs could be fitted with solar panels, and Assistant Town Planner Daphne White suggested that rooftop plantings might also be considered.

Following the presentation and discussion, which ran over an hour, Kimco Vice President for Development Nick Brown said the board raised “a lot of good points” and acknowledged there were opportunities for improvement in the architectural design.

“I think that there’s probably a balance that we could strike a little bit better with creating a nice rhythm, but also not having too much repetition as you noted,” Brown said. “We’re going to try to thread that needle as best we can.”

Phase II Raises Sewer Capacity Concerns

Kimco’s Phase II proposal also faces an unresolved sewer capacity question. As GMW reported last week, Wilton’s projected sewer demand — including approved projects and pending applications such as Kimco’s — totals 650,810 gallons per day, slightly above the Town’s 650,000-gallon-per-day contractual limit with Norwalk. Actual flow remains below that limit, averaging about 484,000 gallons per day.

At the WPCA’s Sept. 23 meeting, Kimco’s engineering consultant Craig Flaherty of Redniss & Mead argued that the requested 17,532-gallon-per-day increase could be accommodated by removing an allocation reserved for 24 Cannon Rd. since 2009 and revising the Town’s flow calculation method, which he said overstates actual use. Town officials defended their conservative approach, and the WPCA took no action on Kimco’s application.

Last week, engineering consultant Craig Flaherty of Redniss & Mead gave a presentation on the Phase II project to Wilton’s Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA), where he suggested that the requested increase of 17,532 gallons per day over the site’s current sewer allocation could be accommodated by removing an allocation for 24 Cannon Rd. that has been reserved since 2009, and by revising the town’s sewer flow calculation method which he said overstates the amount of water actually used. The WPCA did not vote on Kimco’s request.

At the end of Monday’s ARB meeting, Director of Planning and Land Use Management Michael Wrinn noted that WPCA would have to approve the allocation before the Phase II proposal could proceed. He said that the town is working to reduce the infiltration of rainwater and groundwater into the sewer system, which would reduce the volume requiring treatment, and he believes the town is talking with Norwalk to discuss obtaining additional capacity.

“We’ll let that play out, but we’re in a difficult spot,” Wrinn said.

Commenting that the sewer capacity issue “seems wacky” and appears to involve a lot of “finger-to-the-wind guessing,” Quinlan noted that the issue has a significant impact on plans for development in the town.

“That one entity of the sewer capacity is kind of driving the whole future of development,” Quinlan said. “It seems however that turns out, it would have a major impact.”