The Planning and Zoning Commission met on Monday, Nov. 11 for one of its final meetings before the new class of commissioners is seated next month. They held public hearings on two special permit applications and one regulation change.
A New Indoor Turf Facility on Danbury Rd.
First up was the girls lacrosse club Gold Coast Sports Club with an application to convert the former Napa Auto Parts and Olympic Fencing Studio building at 388 Danbury Rd. into a 4,800-ft indoor turf field. The location would be focused on training and instruction, not competition. The facility would operate mainly during afterschool and weekend hours, with instruction ranging from one-on-one coaching to a maximum of three coaches and 12 athletes.
Developer Joe Polito explained that other sports clubs may also make use of the facility, noting that Wilton Soccer Association is already interested.
“I think it will be a great addition to that Route 7 corridor [rather than] empty storefronts,” he said.
When it came time to deliberate, the Commissioners agreed.
“I’m in favor,” Commissioner Jill Warren said. “I drive by it all the time, as I’m sure most of us do, and it’s disappointing to always see a vacant building. So, I’m happy that they have a tenant willing to work with it, and I think it’s a great use of the space.”
The commissioners voted to approve the special permit after adding clauses requiring concrete wheel stops in the parking lot to ensure the safety with youth athletes nearby, and future site lighting. Chair Rick Tomasetti abstained, stating that he didn’t understand the amendments the commissioners had made, but that he supported the project. Vice Chair Melissa-Jean Rotini also had to abstain after missing a portion of the presentation.
A New General Store and Coffee Shop on Old Ridgefield Rd.
Next up was an application by Wilton resident Jacob Fisher to open a general store on the ground floor of 126 Old Ridgefield Rd. The space is currently vacant. Fisher explained that the business would sell pantry staples, dry goods, glassware, candles and baked goods from nearby bakeries, and would also include a coffee shop and small sit-down area. The coffee offering means that the project requires a special permit as a “fast food” restaurant.
There were no public comments and the commissioners eagerly expressed support for the project in deliberation. The application was approved unanimously.
New Lighting Regulations for Town Fields and Courts
The final public hearing for the evening was the internal application to amend the town’s zoning regulations for municipal recreational lighting on sports fields and courts owned, leased or managed by the Town of Wilton or the Board of Education. The new regulation would allow the Town to apply for recreational lighting up to 80-feet high for athletic fields and 25-ft high for sports courts.
The regulation change is driven by the long, fraught effort to install lighting at Guy Whitten Field. The circuitous nature of the process came under scrutiny by the Board of Selectmen in a meeting last week in which Town Planner Michael Wrinn was included on an agenda item with Parks and Recreation Director Steve Pierce to explain why the Pierce had erroneously filed applications with the Zoning Board of Appeals for approval, delaying the project by several months. By the time the BOS called on him, Wrinn had already left the meeting, explaining via Town Administrator Matt Knickerbocker that he felt it would have been a “conflict of interest” to answer.
Presenting to P&Z on Monday, Wrinn noted, as he did in the special meeting on Oct. 22, that under the new regulation, the Town will need to apply for a special permit in order to avail of the new zoning rules for lighting. This means an application would be submitted with a photometric analysis, referrals would be sent to any relevant outside entities like the Western Connecticut Council of Governments (WestCOG) or nearby towns, and there would be a public hearing process. The regulation does not allow the Town to make these lighting changes at recreational properties as-of-right or automatically. The proposed regulation also does not allow private property owners (homeowners, businesses or private schools) to install lights of this size, because the regulation is limited to municipal facilities.
The commission seemed to expect robust public input during the meeting. Tomasetti opened the public hearing by noting that 22 people were in the audience and he asked everyone to keep their comments brief and not repeat points already made by other speakers. In actuality, only one individual spoke in person, although six letters of support were received by email earlier.
The single public comment made in person was delivered by Nick Gemelli on behalf of the Wilton Youth Sports Council (WYSC) and the Wilton Athletic Recreation Foundation (WARF). “We really see [the regulation] as a great opportunity to increase the vibrancy and connectivity of our community,” he said. He shared that nearly 700 Wilton residents had signed on with the group’s support for the new regulation.
“I am really surprised that basically no one spoke at the public hearing,” Warren said later during deliberation. “We were hoping for more public input about the specifics of the actual regulation, but I’m happy with what we have.”
The Commission directed Wrinn to bring a resolution approving the new regulation to the next meeting. This change allows the Town to now apply for a special permit to install four 70-ft tall lights at Guy Whitten Field. That special permit application has already been submitted and will be heard at the next meeting of P&Z.
Looking Ahead
The next meeting of the Planning & Zoning Commission is being held early on Monday, Nov. 17 due to the Thanksgiving holiday. As mentioned, the public hearing for the Town’s special permit application to install new field lighting at Guy Whitten Field is expected to take place then, along with the formal vote approving the new lighting regulation. The proposal to redevelop the former Baptist Church site at 254 Danbury Rd. and a special permit application for a new package store proposed for Wilton Center are also expected to be on the agenda.
The Nov. 17 meeting will also be the final one for Commissioner Eric Fanwick, who was elected to the Board of Finance; Commissioner Jill Warren, who lost her bid for reelection; and Commissioner Chris Wilson, who declined to run for reelection. Commissioner Ken Hoffman, who was reelected to a second term, and four newly elected Commissioners — Trevor Huffard, Jessica Rainey, Margit Ritz and Michelle Saglimbene — will begin their 2025–2029 terms next month.
Before concluding, Chair Rick Tomasetti encouraged people to read up on new state housing legislation. “There’s a lot in there,” he said, “a lot that potentially impacts communities like ours.” Hoffman agreed, expressing concern that the tight timeframe before the state legislature votes on the bill (which he said was expected to happen next week) might make it difficult for Wilton P&Z to register any objection. Vice Chair Melissa-Jean Rotini noted that in the past P&Z has called on residents to contact their state representatives about similar bills.