Wilton P&Z Advances Housing Growth, Parking Zoning Changes Ahead of State Deadline

Wilton’s Planning and Zoning Department unveiled drafts of two key sections of updated zoning regulations this week, tied to Connecticut’s new state-mandated housing growth law. It was the culmination of months of intensive work by department staff and the Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) as they race to meet a Jul. 1, 2026 deadline requiring towns to adopt new zoning rules.

Director of Planning and Land Use Management Michael Wrinn presented initial draft language for minimum parking requirements in residential zones and new so-called “middle housing” in transit zones for review and discussion during P&Z’s Tuesday, May 26 meeting. The proposed changes are required under Special Session Public Act 25-1, an Act Concerning Housing Growth.

“We would like to get this out to a public hearing at the end of June so we can meet that July deadline,” Wrinn said.

P&Z Considers Minimum Parking Zones Along Danbury Rd.

PA 25-1 requires towns to establish a minimum number of off-street parking spaces required in residential districts. The act also grants an exception allowing towns to create two “traffic mitigation districts” that set parking minimums for residential developments within those districts. These districts can encompass up to 8% of a town’s total land area — which, in Wilton’s case, is roughly 700 acres.

The intended purpose of traffic mitigation districts is to ensure that if commercial properties within them are rezoned to residential or mixed-use, they would be required to provide at least the minimum number of parking spaces as specified in the zoning regulations, rather than propose a number.

Using the Town of Wilton’s GIS parcel viewer, Wrinn illustrated the two proposed districts: one extending north from the Norwalk town line along Rte. 7/Danbury Rd. to Wilton Town Center, and another smaller district extending south from the Ridgefield town line along Rte. 7/Danbury Rd. to Mountain Rd.

Commissioner Margit Ritz asked whether land owned by the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) could be included in a district. Wrinn replied that, although the town’s Transit-Oriented District is already zoned residential — and therefore exempt from inclusion — the state could build anything it wanted to there regardless of the town’s regulations.

While discussing whether the town-owned Gilbert & Bennett School properties in Georgetown could be added in anticipation of their rezoning from residential to commercial use, Wrinn explained that the state has not clarified its definition of “mixed-use” — an oversight that could lead to future challenges.

“[That was] one of the big questions that was raised and never answered by the state. Is it … the zone itself or the use itself?” Wrinn said. “Our attorneys have said [to] stick with the zone that’s commercial because, under that matter, you could have a school go in a residential zone, so it’s sort of mixed use.”

Townhouses, Other Small Buildings Will Be Allowed in Commercial Zones

Further complicating the mixed-use question, as of July 1 PA 25-1 will require municipalities to allow developers to construct residential buildings with between two and nine units on lots zoned for commercial and mixed uses. These developments, called “transit community middle housing,” can include townhouses, duplexes and triplexes, cottage clusters, and “perfect sixes” — three-story residential buildings with a central entrance and two units per story — in certain commercially zoned areas near transit corridors.

Under the state law, if developments meet the required standards, local commissions would have limited ability to deny them.

“These can be reviewed by the zoning officer only or the commission, [and] it’s more tricky by the commission because you’re being asked to look at a project where you don’t have much in the way of sway,” Wrinn told the commissioners. “If they [the developer] meet these numbers, you really have to approve it, and puts you in a very difficult position.”

Reviewing the draft language presented by Wrinn, the commissioners discussed just how much detail the updated zoning regulations should include about limiting the materials and dimensions for the various types of buildings allowed — particularly because, under PA 25-1, P&Z will only be allowed to provide summary reviews of proposed transit community middle housing developments.

Commissioner Trevor Huffard recommended allowing perfect sixes to exceed the town’s standard 35-foot residential height limit, noting that it was intended for 2.5-story buildings, while perfect sixes have three full stories. Wrinn said the draft regulations would be revised to allow 40-foot heights and pitched roofs for perfect sixes.

To address the concern about specificity, the commissioners agreed to seek guidance from architects on the Architectural Review Board (ARB) on how detailed the design requirements should be in the updated middle housing regulations.

Next Steps for the Updated Regulations

Wrinn said he will incorporate the commissioners’ suggestions and recommendations into the draft regulations and submit them to town counsel, the ARB and the Western Connecticut Council of Governments (WestCOG) for feedback, with the goal of having drafts ready for public comment in late June ahead of the Jul. 1 deadline.

Although that deadline is approaching quickly, Wrinn reminded the commissioners that the updated zoning regulations could, like any other regulation, still be amended once adopted.

“I’ve spoken to a lot of other towns. Most of them are pretty much at the same position as we are … just trying to get this out and something to protect ourselves,” Wrinn said. “This is not the end-all, it’s like a typical zoning regulation that if you do see something that was missed [or] is not working, we can easily go back and redo your regulation.”