A proposal to redevelop Putnam Green in Byram with a six story building and 176 residential rental units received feedback from the Greenwich Planning & Zoning commission late Tuesday night.
News of the proposal broke in August, when Putnam Green Holdings LLC submitted a major 8-30g affordable housing pre-application to redevelop properties at 7 and 9 Western Junior Highway.
Today there are 66 units at Putnam Green.
The pre-application included several renderings.
The applicant was represented Tuesday night by attorney John Tesei who apologized for confusion caused by confusing working on the application:
“Thirty percent (30%) of the units above the number allowed as-of-right will be restricted to comply with the Section 8-30g affordability provisions as a ‘set-aside development.”
He explained the applicant pivoted to a strict 8-3og, applying the 30% requirement to all the 176 units, resulting in 53 affordable units.
They plan to schedule a meeting with the board of the affordable housing trust fund.
“I think that will get materially reduced on account of two things. One is if we can make an arrangement with the trust board there will be a reduction in the number of stories and a meaningful reduction in the number of units, probably more in the ballpark of 120 or so,” Tesei said.
Tesei said engineer Tony D’Andrea had walked the property with conservation director Beth Evans who also oversees the wetlands agency.
The applicant will have to go before the Wetlands Agency and apply for a permit, given there is a pond and wetlands on the site.
“We’re not coming closer to the wetlands or the pond,” Tesei said, adding that 8-30g does not waive wetlands regulations.
Commissioner Nick Macri asked Mr. Tesei to be sure the traffic study factors in both the new rink project and housing authority development, Vinci Gardens.
The vicinity is already slated for a new 52 unit housing authority senior independent living building, Vinci Gardens, at McKinney Terrace in Byram. That was approved by P&Z in 2022, but work has yet to commence.
The new Hamill rink project was also approved, but work has yet to commence. It includes massive site disturbance in Eugene Morlot Park to redo the ballfield and bring in 11,000 cubic yards of fill and adding retaining walls, in addition to an access road straight through the park.
Macri asked where green space would be located for residents to enjoy the outdoors?
“This site is actually quite mature in trees. It’s really nice because everything has grown up from when it was first approved, to really encompass the buildings that are there, and I think the buffer to the street is amazing,” Macri said.
“To develop this site you really have to denude most of the site to get this to work right.”
Ann Noel Jones said the development today features a park like setting.
“Why does the western side of town deserve a 6-story, 176 unit building?” Macri asked Mr. Tesei.
“The clients brought the property with the idea of redeveloping it,” Tesei said. “It’s their decision of how they want to propose it.”
Tesei said he represented the original applicants when they received approval in 1976 for Putnam Green to be developed.
“So far as Chickahoniny and Byram are concerned, I know there is an overall concern about the projects, but the way our zoning works is you tend to find larger parcels because of how the area originally was allowed to be developed in the GBO zone – and actually before the GBO zone it was kind of like the wild west,” he said. “So you’re seeing these parcels get redeveloped and we’ve all seen that the vast majority of time they’re developed to a greater extent than they historically were.”
Mr. Macri asked if the existing renovated buildings were profitable, noting that as-of-right four stories are allowed along with a .5 FAR, while 8-30g allows .62 FAR with six stories.
“If you did it as an as-of right, you could work into the neighborhood at four stories with a smaller FAR and have a lot more green space around the building to make the building more pleasant for the people who occupy it and pass by it every day,” Macri said.
Tesei said he believed the applicant would prefer to make an application for a 4 story building, and that he did not relish if it were going forward as a 6 story building.
“But that’s not the process that the trust fund follows. We have to come in with the larger building. We have to justify the economics of that building,” Tesei said. “Then compare that working with the trust fund to reduce the size of the building by about a third.”
“We have to bear the arrows of the neighborhood and hopefully we’ll work with the affordable trust fund and there will be a counter-approach to deal with the project,” Tesei said.
P&Z commission chair Margarita Alban said while she believed it was unwitting, Mr. Tesei had proposed the building bigger on purpose so he could “magnanimously offer to reduce it.”
“I heard the same thing,” Macri said.
Tesei apologized for how he had phrased his comment.
“I was trying to say we were have to take economics into consideration.”
Tesei described his clients a experienced developers, not necessarily from Greenwich.
“I know what they paid for the property,” he said. “They wanted to propose a project there that makes economic sense to them, taking into consideration what they paid and what kind of income they can garner from the project on a rental basis. That’s where the six stories came from.”
In June 2025 the property sold for $20.7 million. Putnam Green was built in 1976. The mix of units includes 28 studios and 38 one-bedroom apartments, 34 of which are two-story, duplex-style units.
Commissioner Mary Jenkins, who is a member of the affordable housing trust fund board, explained that a set aside development under 8-30 has more rigorous, lower rents for affordable housing, and therefore a building has to be larger to include enough market rate units to make the buiklding feasible, because the rents are deeply discounted.
“When it comes to get a loan from the trust, or otherwise assisted hosing, the rentals are more generous – still affordable but more generous – so the number of market units necessary to make it economically viable is reduced. So the whole size of the building is reduced. You still have 30% affordables, but your rents are more generous so the number of market rate units can be reduced.”
She said Tesei’s tone or vocabulary might be unfortunate, but the trust required the developer to show the two alternatives, “…so that we can determine that the reduction in the building or increase in the number of affordable units is economically appropriate.”
He cited Nick Macri’s comment at the staff briefing the previous day about the location being “a family area,” and said the client eliminated efficiencies from the mix, limiting it to one, two and three-bedroom units.
Tesei said his understanding was that the relevant sewer line, one that goes under Holly Hill transfer station, could handle the flows, but had yet to receive feedback from Rich Feminella from the town Sewer Dept.
Tesei said the sewer flows would roughly double.
He said they had requested a will-serve letter from Aquarion, the water utility.
Public Comment
During public comment only one person spoke, but that was likely due to the hour. The meeting started at 4:00pm and the Putnam Green discussion started around 11:00pm.
Ms Alban said the commission had all read a letter from the Byram Neighborhood Association chair Liz Eckert that is part of the file.
The letter raises concerns about size, density and cumulative impact on traffic and pedestrian safety, infrastructure, stormwater, flooding and the surrounding Byram community.
“The Board recognizes the need for housing, including affordable housing, but has significant concerns regarding the extraordinary size, density and scope of this proposal in a neighborhood already experiencing substantial traffic congestion, parking pressures, pedestrian-safety concerns, flooding and significant development activity,” the letter says.
As for the cumulative impact on Byram, they wrote, “Residents do not experience traffic, sewer demand, stormwater runoff, parking demand, school traffic or pedestrian safety one parcel at a time. They experience all of it together.”
Lucy von Brachel of Byram said she was alarmed and stunned by the proposal.
“I’m alarmed by this in a lot of ways and I think a lot of people seem to have the same feeling about this. I’m concerned as I have been for all of the projects that have been approved in a 200 ft radius of this property. The impact is enormous, and we are already dealing with as you already know we are already dealing with thousands of units being built in Port Chester.”
“That idea of taking this land and making it look like a hotel, a big brick of a building, when…you can see the landscape and mature trees on the property. I’m overwhelmed by the pictures of it.”
While Ms von Brachel was the only person to speak during public comment, residents had already vented on social media when the application was submitted in August.
On August 17, GFP’s Facebook post announcing the new application garnered 131 comments and dozens of angry and surprised emojis. Comments were that it looked like a prison.
A comment from Kevin M O’Connor was, “This is not Stamford or White Plains, have seen better compatible neighborhood designs from a six year old with a box of Legos.”
Michael Goldstein wrote simpley, “New Rochelle?”
Bob Boss wrote, “Looks like a Prison?”
Christian Jegen wrote, “Sorry but that looks like virtually every Hampton Inn or hotel new build out there.”
“Just wait till they figure out that the land is more valuable than making bread at Arnold’s. That will be next for development,” John Thompson wrote, a reference to Bimbo Bakeries at the former Arnold Bakery factory behind Western Middle School and Putnam Green.
Anne McGowan Tabacco wrote, “Putnam Green is one of the few more affordable rental properties left in town, if not the only one. Many residents have lived there for decades. These are small garden apartments surrounded by trees and a sweet pond filled with bird life of all kinds. This proposal is abominable.”
Alex Popp wrote, “All this plus 52 unit Vinci Garden and a new 40000 sqft. hockey rink within a block! Just what Byram needs especially narrow Richland Road, more traffic and congestion, not.”
x
x.”
CONCLUSING SENTENCE.
See also:
Aug 17, 2026
Putnam Green Apartment Complex on NY/CT Border Sells for $20.7 Million
June 25, 2025