Planning & Zoning Commission

CITY OF TORRINGTON PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES January 15, 2025 Present: Greg Mele – Chairman Greg Perosino – Vice Chair Jim Bobinski – Member Donovan Riley - Member Donna Greco – Member Diane Carroll – Alternate Tom Telman – Alternate Starley Arias – Alternate Also Present: Jeremy Leifert - City Planner, Christine Altman – Recording Secretary and applicants 1. Call to Order: Chairman Mele called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. Attendance is by Zoom or in- person at City Hall Auditorium, Room 218, 140 Main Street, Torrington, CT. 2. Attendance/Announcement: Chairman Mele opened the meeting at 7:01 pm and announced present and serving this evening in person are Members Donna Greco, Jim Bobinski, Donovan Riley, and Chairmen Greg Mele. Serving remotely are Vice Chair Greg Perosino, as well as alternates Diane Carroll , Tom Telman and Starley Arias. Also present in the auditorium is City Planner Jeremy Leifert, Recording Secretary Christine Altman as well as applicants. 3. Minutes for Approval: a. December 11, 2024 Meeting MOTION by Commissioner Greco to approve the minutes of December 11, 2024 as presented. Motion seconded by Commissioner Riley. Motion passed unanimously Torrington Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes – January 15, 2025 Page 1 of 4 4. Public Hearings: None 5. Old Business: None 6. New Business: a. Resubdivision Location: 53 McDermott Avenue Applicant: Scott Olson Proposal: 2 lot Resubdivision of a 2.41-acre property in Local Business Zone (set public hearing date) MOTION by Commissioner Greco to set the public hearing date for February 12, 2025. Seconded by Commissioner Riley, carried unanimously. b. Site Plan #1547 Applicant: 442 High Street LLC Location: 442 High Street Proposal: Detached accessory dwelling unit in an R6-Residential Zone Jan Vlasto presented his application via Zoom, to build an accessory building in the back of his property. It will be a 2-bedroom dwelling of 400 sq ft. Mr. Leifert noted that it will meet setbacks of 8 feet from the property line. A floor plan was presented. Jeremy Leifert, City Planner, read his memo into the record. Chairman Mele asked if the dwelling would be single story. Mr. Vlasto answered that it would be a 2-story building—a garage with an apartment above. MOTION by Commissioner Greco to approve site plan application subject to conditions as read into the record. Seconded by Commissioner Bobinski, carried unanimously. c. Proposed Zoning Regulation Amendment Applicant: Torrington Planning and Zoning Commission Proposal: Amend Section 5.12–Non-Conforming Uses and Section 6.4– Excavations (set public hearing date) MOTION by Commissioner Perosino to set the public hearing date for February 26, 2025. Seconded by Commissioner Greco, unanimously carried. Mr. Leifert noted some adjustments to the proposal based on suggestion from Nate Nardi-Cyrus to match language in the landscaping regulation regarding the caliper of trees during restoration Torrington Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes – January 15, 2025 Page 2 of 4 as well as a provision to plant trees native to the United States, as well as fleshing out language regarding fencing in active construction areas. d. Proposed Zoning Regulation Amendment Applicant: Torrington Planning and Zoning Commission Proposal: Amend Section 6.5.4–Multi-Family Housing Conversion (set public hearing date) MOTION by Commissioner Perosino to set the public hearing date for February 26, 2025. Seconded by Commissioner Greco, unanimously carried e. Special Exception SE-25-1 and Site Plan 1549 Applicant: Fabian Pallasco Location: 113 Richard Road Proposal: Retaining wall within the 50’ setback (set public hearing date) MOTION by Commissioner Perosino to set the public hearing date for February 12, 2025. Seconded by Commissioner Greco, unanimously carried f. Site Plan #1551 Applicant: Keith Bodwell Location: 114 Old Winsted Road Proposal: Demolition of existing dwelling and garage and construction of a commercial warehouse build, driveway, parking lot and associated drainage. Keith Bodwell, Engineer, presented his proposal to demolish the existing garage and house to replace it with a single warehouse-type building. The parking is an existing gravel lot. Part of the application is to put in a fence to divide the two properties. Much of the parking lot will be used for vehicle storage. Mr. Leifert noted that his understanding is that the property will be used for indoor warehousing as well as outdoor equipment storage. Mr. Bodwell affirmed that statement. Discussion of the history of the existing structure followed. Mr. Leifert asked how much material from the hillside needed to be removed. Mr. Bodwell didn’t have calculations but said that it would just be carved out enough to fit the building. Mr. Leifert noted that this presentation was preliminary, and he was waiting for comments to filter in before composing his memo. Commissioner Perosino asked about screening in the front of the property and what kind of Torrington Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes – January 15, 2025 Page 3 of 4 equipment would be stored there. Mr. Leifert answered that it would be a mishmash of industrial vehicles. Chairman Mele noted it is all screened from the Winsted Road. Commissioner Persosino asked if anyone felt there should be more screening in place for the area—shrubs or something. Mr. Leifert said that because it is zoned industrial, he doesn’t believe there are requirements for tree and shrub plantings as there are in Industrial Park and Local Business zones. Chairman Mele asked if it would connect to the neighboring property and if it was on the same deed. Mr. Bodwell answered that the parking lots will be separated, and it is deeded as a separate property. MOTION by Commissioner Perosino to table the application until the next meeting. Seconded by Commissioner Greco, carried unanimously. 7. Correspondence: a. Zoning and Blight Violation update Mr. Leifert noted everyone received a copy of the report. It will be updated with he Mr. Nardi- Cyrus next week. Commissioner Perosino asked about a property on Grant Street. Mr. Leifert made a note to find out the status of that violation and report back to the Commission in February. Commissioner Perosino reported his observations. b. Discussion – Solar Project, West Hill Road Mr. Leifert received a series of letters notifying the City that the application will be submitted after January 20th. c. Required Training Discussion Chairman Mele noted required training hours needed by each Commissioner and announced upcoming training through the Connecticut Bar Association on March 22, 2025. After various questions and answers all commission members requested enrollment in the training on March 22. 8. Adjournment MOTION by Commissioner Perosino to adjourn at 7:33 p.m. Seconded by Commissioner Telman, carried unanimously. Torrington Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes – January 15, 2025 Page 4 of 4