Advisory Taskforce on SoNo

Sono Task Force Meeting Notes Meeting Date: Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2015 Meeting Location: Sono Library, Community Room Attendees: Bill Collins, Stephanie Pelletier, Bruce Beinfield, Tim Sheehan, Chris Loynd, Tilly Hatcher, Susan Sweitzer, Bill Finger Unable to Attend: Rod Johnson, Travis Simms, Eric Rains, Bob Burgess, Tom Rich Guests: Bruce Chimento, Dick Brescia 1) Bill C. opened meeting welcoming attendees and public attendees. Bill thanked the Library for hosting the meeting. 2) Bill C. introduced Dick B. for a parking update as follows: a. The NPA has been conducting a listening tour with the community; the NPA is anxious to talk about issues and listen to complaints. A rate analysis is underway to determine impacts. Desmond has been hired as parking consultant. b. NPA is expecting to report back later this Fall with a blueprint on how best to proceed with parking resources from Wall Street to Sono. c. Bill C. inquired about the parking hours along Washington Street and N/S Main Streets. Discussion was held about the small public/free parking resources such as at Mathews Park and at Oyster Shell park. Dick said that Desmond will be reviewing all parking resources in the area. 3) Bill asked Susan Sweitzer for a Wayfinding update as follows: a. Marje Consulting has been hired to as the wayfinding consultant. b. A public presentation is slated for Oct. 14; place and time TBD. c. The wayfinding scope is limited to the Urban Core. Some of the learnings may be applicable to other parts of the city. d. Once the design and plan have been approved, then the project can be put out to bid. The consultant is designing a system. The Bike/loop trail are part of review. 1 4) Branding for Norwalk a. The Zunda Group has been hired to re-brand the City of Norwalk. The new brand will be conveyed on the City website and in print materials. 5) Bruce Chimento reported on Trash and Garbage: a. Bruce reviewed a map of the Webster lot. b. The compactor behind the N. Main St. stores is to be replaced. 50 Washington Street owner to handle. c. The dumpster in the NW corner of the lot needs to have its owner identified. d. Bruce will discuss Haviland and Washington Street with City Carting. 6) Street Lighting update: a. Note: Steve Semaya is no longer on the Sono Task Force. Tim Sheehan provided the following update: b. It is cost prohibitive to change to LED lighting. c. There is an application to the DOT for additional lighting for Washington Street from N/S Main Streets to MLK. These would be the historic lights. d. Tilly Hatcher inquired about how the light wells can be located to prevent pedestrian ‘pinch points’. Tim commented that to remedy that situation, this project will need funding and that the request for funding be put in place prior to the Capital budget process which starts Jan. 1, 2106. e. Bruce C. commented that anyone can contact the DPW at 203-854-3200 to submit a work order: i.e. for lights to be turned on. Also, go onto the DPW website at the city website to file a work order. 7) DSSD for Sono a. There was general discussion about the status of the DSSD in Sono. GGP has indicated that they would potentially contribute to a DSSD in some way. Stephanie explained what had been done over the past few years, leading up to a presentation to the Ordinance Committee in March 2014. Draft maps, budgets and property owner lists had been compiled. b. Bill C. asked the group if the DSSD should be a Task Force agenda item. 8) Mall Update provided by Tim Sheehan a. On Sept. 15 there is a joint meeting to discuss the business terms of the LDA and the CMSP. b. The Urban Renewal Plan will have a separate public hearing on Oct. 5. c. Tilly asked if an environmental impact statement had been issued. 2  d. Bruce B. commented that the mall will potentially bring a lot of people to the neighborhood. This increase in visitation will impact Sono, so how can Sono use the mall to our advantage in terms of maximizing the visitor experience. Since the mall is so close to the river and the Aquarium, the goal should be to get visitors out of their cars and walking around Sono. e. Bill F. asked if there would be Sono wayfinding at the mall. f. Susan S. suggested that connections would be created via the use of new apps for mobile devices. g. Tilly mentioned that the Norwalk Bike/Walk task force has provided inputs to GGP. 9) The Pearl a. Bruce C. said that the project has been delayed, so the planned Washington Street paving will most likely happen in Oct. If the paving doesn’t happen in October, it will have to be delayed. b. For the proposed FD Rich hotel, the design review hasn’t been completed and the applicant has not responded. 10) Aquarium update provided by Chris Loynd a. Chris spoke about tourism marketing and provided stats and information about visitation at the Aquarium. b. Chris suggested that Norwalk is not a tourism destination, but a sum of its assets which need to be branded and marketed. Efforts need to be made to help tourists get value out of their visit to Norwalk. Building up awareness and PR are critical to keep Norwalk top of mind when visitors are making tourism decisions. c. Stephanie suggested that maybe the Task Force set up a marketing sub- committee. 11) Misc. a. Stephanie suggested that the Task Force needs new appointees to replace members who can no longer participate. 3 4