A developer is looking to build 40 apartments in the heart of East Granby, a rural community that’s moving to bring more residential development to its town center.
Hartford-based L. Jackson Construction & Development is asking the town for permission to put up a three-story building along School Street with a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartments.
The property is only a couple of blocks from the intersection of Route 187 and Route 20, a small commercial district where town government recently decided to seek denser housing.
Jackson is seeking site plan approval from the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission, which is expected to review the proposal and issue a decision this winter.
One of the commission’s considerations must be how well the proposal meets the town’s plan of development. Earlier this year, consultant Goman & York produced a lengthy report for East Granby recommending strategies for building up its village center — and concentrated heavily on the need for more apartments.
“With only 469 persons and 188 households living within 1 mile of the intersection of Routes 20 and 187, creating a critical mass of population to support the village center is the only option to create improvement and attract investment,” the report said. “Therefore, East Granby must encourage and allow new housing development — higher density multifamily housing — in and near the village center.”
Unlike most of its larger neighbors including Granby, Bloomfield and Simsbury, East Granby so far has attracted relatively little apartment construction during the past two years when Connecticut has undergone a powerful residential development wave.
“Today, there are approximately 426 housing units approved or proposed in the village center area. While this is a good start to creating the critical mass, more housing will be needed,” Goman & York’s report said.
“Multi-family residential apartments are the strongest real estate asset class in the Hartford region. East Granby, based on its location and rural-agrarian aesthetic, is well-positioned to capture market share of such housing,” it said.
This summer, the commission approved a list of amendments that liberalize East Granby’s zoning code for the village center. Many residents told the commission they want more restaurants and small businesses in the center, and Goman & York reported that increasing nearby residential density is crucial to doing that.
“The market and financial strength of multifamily residential can aid in the feasibility of commercial development as part of mixed-use developments — allowing commercial space to be built that would otherwise be marginal,” the report concluded.
The Jackson proposal would build on two parcels that total a bit more than 3 acres. Both are owned by 12 School St. LLC; it bought both properties in March. The 2.4-acre lot at 14 School St. has a small garage, while the half-acre at 12 School has a 90-year-old, two-bedroom house.
Architect diagrams in the application indicate the building would have a footprint of slightly less than 20,000 square feet, with the second and third floors very slightly smaller.
There would be 16 one-bedroom apartments of 785 square feet with 90-square-foot porches. There would also be 24 larger units, each measuring 1,290 square feet with a 120-square foot porch. Twenty of those would be two-bedroom apartments, the other four would be one-bedrooms.
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