The Planning and Zoning Commission opened the public comment period for the 64 Danbury Rd. application — the latest in a wave of multi-family residential developments proposed in Wilton — at its meeting on Tuesday night, May 29. But with very little input received from actual members of the public, the public comment period was closed during the same meeting.
Only one member of the public appeared via zoom to testify, with four more sending in comments via email. The turnout was indicative of other recent applications in which lively discussion on GOOD Morning Wilton, Facebook and other online platforms has not translated over to the town’s official, on-the-record, public engagement process.
“I can’t bring in the social media stuff, I can only bring in what I hear when people write in to us,” P&Z Chair Rick Tomasetti said. “There have been some people who have written in to us, but it hasn’t been this overwhelming [message of] ‘We don’t want this.’ And we had one person show up to this meeting for public input.”
The one member of the public who did volunteer to comment saw several Commissioners take up her case. Barbara Geddis, an architect who also served on the P&Z Master Plan Subcommittee, urged 64 Danbury Rd. developer Samuel Fuller to incorporate more architectural interest to the largest structure in the complex, Building 7. Others, including Tomasetti, agreed and pushed the applicant’s team to heed Geddis’ advice.
What’s a Public Hearing Without Public Comment?
Earlier this year, as debates over the town’s dwindling sewer capacity grew, First Selectman Toni Boucher mentioned that she had heard “an earful” from residents opposed to new housing developments. A few weeks later, a post on the Facebook group Wilton 411 critiquing the design and scale of multifamily residential development underway in town garnered 101 comments. But so far, few have shown up to comment on the record to P&Z and other town Commissions.
This lack of engagement is part of a broader trend of apathy when it comes to the public’s active participation in municipal governance. The recent Annual Town Meeting and vote garnered only an 8.9% voter turnout earlier this month — even with a liquor-related referendum question on the ballot.
Some portion of the meager engagement in Wilton’s land use approval process can likely be chalked up to the rigidity of the Commission’s public review procedures. In the days following the discussion on Facebook, the Planning and Zoning Department added a project folder under the Communications section of the website titled “General Correspondence – Development” where broader comments from the public are now posted. Previously, correspondence sent to the Commission appeared to only be posted on the website if it referred to a specific, active application; there was no central, public repository until recently.
And unlike the Boards of Selectmen, Finance and Education, P&Z does not have a standing public comment section of its meetings for general comments. This fact appeared to be a surprise even to Selectwoman Kim Healy, who said during P&Z’s master plan hearing last year that she didn’t understand why people feel they did not have the opportunity to participate since “you have public comment at all of your meetings.” That evening, Oct. 19, 2023, was the second and final opportunity for public comment in a master plan process that stretched across two years and more than 20 meetings.
She later clarified in a comment on GOOD Morning Wilton that she meant P&Z has public comments at all “public hearings” but in fact, the Commission only allows public comment at the very final moments of a project’s public hearing process, which itself frequently stretches across weeks or even months of meetings.
As an example, 64 Danbury Rd.’s public hearing opened on Mar. 25, 2024 and it has been open and on the agenda in all but one meeting held since. However, Tuesday evening, May 28, between 7:21 p.m. and 7:26 p.m. was the first and only opportunity for public comment during a meeting of P&Z. Any members of the public who attended the P&Z public hearings on 64 Danbury Rd. held on Mar. 25, Apr. 30, or May 13 would have found that no public comment was allowed.
There is a reason given for the strict window for public comment. During the Apr. 30 public hearing, Tomasetti explained that the Commission requires applicants to conclude their presentation before hearing public comment, otherwise the Commission could be presented with information that the public never has a chance to weigh in on.
However, this concern does not seem to carry over to written comments, which the Commission does accept at any point in the review process. And other town entities, including P&Z’s advisory group the Architectural Review Board, allow members of the public to comment even when presentations may continue on to the next meeting. This discrepancy may be attributed to the fact that ARB simply makes recommendations and does not formally vote on projects the way P&Z does.
And What About Discussions that Aren’t Public Hearings at All?
Although public comment at public hearings is more restricted than many may assume, in other cases public comment is not allowed at all. Even after the creation of the “General Correspondence” file on the P&Z website, mentioned above, there is still no time set aside in regular P&Z meetings when public comment on broader planning and zoning matters is permitted. Comments can only be made about specific projects currently under review.
Furthermore, in recent months, the role of the pre-application hearing process has increased dramatically. P&Z now encourages developers to work with the Commission to finetune applications before they are formally submitted, through non-binding, voluntary dialogues — a stage during which public input is not allowed at all.
For instance, Kimco is expected to begin the public hearing process for its redevelopment of 15-21 River Rd. on Monday, June 10, but this proposal has already been through five rounds of pre-application dialogue with P&Z that began in December 2021. Last week, attorney Casey Healy representing Kimco told the Inland Wetlands Commission that after the last pre-app discussion with P&Z in March, “We were approved to move forward with our applications.”
This is a technically inaccurate characterization of what occurs at the conclusion of a P&Z pre-app — there is no formal approval mechanism — but it nevertheless reflects that applicants believe once they have completed the pre-application process that they have already to some extent secured the support of the Commission. Yet the actual public hearing process, and the brief window when the public is permitted to provide feedback and input, has not even begun.
So What’s Next for 64 Danbury?
As far as 64 Danbury Rd. is concerned, the project seems headed for an easy approval at P&Z’s next meeting, which is scheduled for Monday, June 10. In a round robin deliberation process Tuesday evening, every member of the Commission (other than commissioners Chris Pagliaro and Jill Warren, who previously recused themselves) expressed support for the project. An overview of the latest details on the project and the series of changes that the Inland Wetlands Commission was able to secure during its own review process was published yesterday.
Before directing Town Planner Michael Wrinn to draft resolutions approving the project, Tomasetti wrapped up his earlier comment about public engagement, saying “I try to do what my constituency wants because we’re all elected. I think if they didn’t like what we were doing, there would be a different outcome in the elections.”
“Maybe there will be next time…” he added. “But I’ll be termed out.”
Tonight, First Selectman Toni Boucher, and Schools Superintendent Kevin Smith are holding a “State of the Town” event, a town hall-style forum with Wilton residents who, according to the town’s press release, “…are invited to share their views, concerns and creative solutions to our local economy, building expansion, school curriculum, or any other Wilton related topic.” It begins at 5:30pm, in the Wilton Library’s Brubeck Room, and is hosted by the Wilton Chamber of Commerce, the Town of Wilton and the Wilton Library Association. Space is limited and registration is required. To RSVP, contacting the Wilton Chamber of Commerce, via email or by calling 203.762.0567.