OLD SAYBROOK — The Zoning Commission will start its deliberations Monday on Whispering Winds, a planned 13-unit condominium project that utilizes the state affordable housing law, 8-30g.
Fire safety, drinking water and common fees were among the top concerns of zoning commissioners at a public hearing June 2. Representatives for the developer addressed each one in detail at that meeting.
Property owner Antonio Oliveira plans to build townhouse-style, two-bedroom condos in two new buildings, while retaining the existing R.J. Veitch Appliance Repair shop and a single-family home at 846 Middlesex Turnpike. The units range from 1,482 to 1,522 square feet.
Working under state law 8-30g, the project sets aside four units as affordable housing. The statute allows a developer to bypass local zoning regulations if the plan meets the standard of offering 30 percent of its units as deed-restricted affordable housing.
“The Zoning Commission can only deny an 8-30g application for public health and safety reasons,” according to Town Planner Christine Costa.
Whispering Winds is the first affordable housing development in Old Saybrook proposed without public water for drinking and fire protection, according to Costa.
Two deep wells are proposed to provide drinking water, which the Connecticut River Area Health District (CRAHD) "granted a public health approval," she said. The public health agency also requests the wells be drilled and set before construction to allow for evaluation of quantity and quality of the site’s water.
Additionally, new plans are to install a 30,000-gallon underground water tank for firefighting purposes in a location approved by the Old Saybrook Fire Department.
“You wouldn't believe the size of this tank, but it's 30,000 gallons larger than most swimming pools by a multiple of two or one and a half,” Joe Wren, an engineer on the project, told the commission.
Other changes include widening the walkway to 18 feet to accommodate a firetruck in front of the rear units, which have no garages or vehicle access, according to attorney Ed Cassella, who represents the applicant.
Cassella point out that 150 feet of fire hosing will reach around the back building as well.
“And we're in 8-30g, and we understand the law basically says, you can't apply any regulations against us unless they're for a specific public health or safety concern,” Cassella told the commission.
“So, in that spirit, we worked with the fire department to address their concerns about making sure that there's water on the property - 30,000-gallon tank - and that there's ability for all the trucks to maneuver around the site,” he added.
The fire marshal reviewed the project under the residential building code (IRC) since townhouse style developments with two-hour fire separation walls are reviewed the same as a single-family home, according to Costa.
At the meeting, zoners also asked questions about condominium common fees for necessary maintenance and repairs. They expressed concern that the extra monthly expense would hit the owners or tenants in the affordable units harder, especially in the case of costly repairs.
Consulting attorney for the town, Matthew Willis called it “a drop-dead kind of affordability issue for any crisis that is large and expensive.”
Willis said that those fees will need to be addressed in the condominium documents “because otherwise the rent is going to be going down, down and down and down” as the common fees are lumped in as part of the monthly rent charged, which can’t exceed 30 percent of the tenant’s income, under the state’s affordable housing law.
Tenants of rental units will not pay common fees, only the owners of the units, Cassella said.
For those who buy an affordable condominium unit, Cassella said, “There's a lot of 8-30g's that are condominiums and if something happens, they're subject to the common fees going up or down. And that would get that would get baked into the to the price and that's all that matters when you buy a unit.”
The developer has not decided yet whether to sell the condominium units or lease them, Cassella said.