The Western Middle School fields project advanced Thursday night at the Greenwich Planning & Zoning commission meeting.
The fields have been closed since 2016 when toxins were discovered in the soil. At the time the town was investigating temporary locations for students during construction of a new New Lebanon School. PCBs found in concentrations above federally allowed limits were attributed to fill used to grade and fill portions of the site in the 1960s.
Role of P&Z Commission
Before discussion P&Z chair Margarita Alban cleared up misinformation circulating that the commission had held up the remediation.
That was not true; remediation to a depth of two feet is already underway.
“For those of you who think, or are here to tell us that we have held up the project, I entreat you not to,” Alban said.
At the time, there were about 55 attendees on Zoom.
“We have bent over backward to move forward whatever we can move forward so that WMS can regain its playing fields as soon as possible.”
Artificial Turf
Ms Alban explained that there is no zoning regulation pertaining to the use of artificial versus natural turf.
She noted that while municipalities including Boston had banned artificial turf, and there were efforts to do so locally, it was not in the commission’s purview to specify turf versus real grass.
“We cannot forbid you from using artificial,” Alban said. “We had raised the question only because we had been asked to by the Sustainability Committee and Conservation.”
“There are several people on the commission who wish with all their hearts that we do have a regulation about artificial turf. There are people within the commission who continue to have significant concerns about the long-term safety of turf…” Alban said. “Because there is no regulation, and we stick to the our regulations, we can’t touch this one because this is not a special permit (application).”
Trees
The Western Middle Schools fields project includes the removal of 185 trees.
Joe Aveni, landscape architect from Langan, said that of those trees, the primary species were Norway Maple, Black Cherry, Tree of Heaven, Eastern White Pine, and Black Locust. About a third of the trees to be removed are considered invasive.
The plan is to reintroduce native species and “leave it better than we found it.”
Another goal is to provide seasonal interest, Aveni said, noting that plantings could provide both wildlife habitat and an informal learning opportunity for students.
During public comment, Alex Popp expressed concern that tree replacement might not be funded.
“At New Lebanon School where 206 trees were removed, they came up 40 trees short on that property. It is critical that a tree plan is funded before any trees are cut,” Popp said.
BOE chair Joe Kelly replied, “We will certainly make it a priority, and I certainly understand … some of the shortfalls in the past.”
JoAnn Messina, director of the Greenwich Tree Conservancy, also voiced concern.
“Historically the landscape plan is last done and therefore funds are not available,” she said. “I want to make sure there is some guarantee that landscape is being done.”
She noted that initially there were 325 trees to be removed, and the number had been reduced to 185 as a result of the efforts of the Greenwich Tree Warden Dr. Greg Kramer, which included a survey.
But, further Messina said she hoped there would be an effort toward replacing the tree canopy.
“It’s not all about just the numbers of trees, but it’s about the tree canopy, specifically in the western part of town.”
Lighting
No field lighting was proposed in the application. However, there are plans to install foundations with conduits under the turf cap in case lighting is proposed at a later date. The idea is not to have to remove the cap for that effort.
The foundations are typically about 4-foot in diameter because they serve a larger pole.
The lights along the walkways are 14-feet high pedestrian fixtures that are “full cutoff” and Dark Sky compliant.
Also, the lights along the property line will have a shield to prevent light spill onto other properties.
“All LED nodes are facing downwards. There’s no glare,” Aveni said.
Aveni said 14-feet high pathway lights would prevent “mischief.” The alternative is lighting on bollards, but children tend to jump on them.
Illuminated American Flag
There was a discussion about whether to illuminate the flagpole.
Commissioner Arn Welles suggested not illuminating it and rather raising the flag in the mornings, a ritual the children could participate in, and taking it down in the afternoon, resulting in conservation of electricity.
The Langan consultants said the state of Connecticut required flag poles to be illuminated and that three fixtures per flag was typical. The fixtures are exempt from LED calculations. Typically they are on a timer to go on at dusk and off at sunrise.
The flag will be up about 25-30 ft high depending on the size of the flag.
“The town’s policy is to have the flags up at the schools all the time. As you know, if you take the flag down you don’t have to light it,” Mr. Welles said. “It might be a nice ceremony – flag raising and flag lowering – giving the kids some responsibility for that, as an alternative to keeping it up all the time and showing spotlights on it.”
Board of Education chair Joe Kelly said other schools did not all have illuminated flags.
“We’ve been talking about that a little bit. We were approached about taking them up and down on weekends. It’s a union duty,” Kelly said. “So there’s an added cost as a district, for union workers having to come in on the weekend, putting them up and taking them down. So the lighting option would save us having to do that.”
“Your suggestion of having that ‘a kid thing’ – I’m going to float that past the superintendent. That would be very patriotic and something I’d be behind,” Mr. Kelly said.
There was also discussion about timers for the lights along the pathway from the school to Armstrong Court and points to the north, but residents commented that it was used by more than the school community.
Joe Pecora said the pathway was used 24/7 by people walking to work from Port Chester or to Armstrong Court, or even just for exercise or to navigate the neighborhood.
“To have it lit at night, not as a spotlight, but for safety purposes would be wonderful,” he said.
The application was approved with some conditions, including that the district return to the commission and the Architectural Review Committee, which is advisory to the P&Z commission, if they pursue stadium lighting on the fields.
In the meantime, light fixture foundations will be installed during remediation so as not to disturb the cap at a later date.
The motion passed unanimously 5-0.
The vote to approve the application included this wording about artificial turf:
“Although the choice of artificial versus natural turf was not subject to the scope of current zoning regulations, the commission continues to express concern about the potential environmental and health issues associated with artificial turf.”
See also:
P&Z Watch: Cries for Real Grass at Western Middle School Won’t Delay Start of Remediation Work April 20, 2023