Thursday’s Selectmen agenda includes a first read for a request for referral for municipal improvement status for a possible Strickland Road Housing development.
The applicant is Sam Romeo, Chair of Greenwich Communities (formerly known as Greenwich Housing Authority).
The proposed location is a town owned commuter parking lot by the Cos Cob train station.
It is abutted by train tracks on one side, I95 on one side, and existing housing authority units on a third side.
Across the street are condominiums, whose owners will be interested in learning about the proposal.
The agenda materials (see page 84) are limited to 3D renderings and an aerial photo of the possible development site, a commuter parking lot on Strickland Road, so we reached out to Mr. Romeo for some details.
Mr. Romeo said what is requested specifically is Air rights for MI over the parking lot.
He seeks to build 48 workforce housing units in what is a transit district given the train station is next door and walking distance to the Cos Cob business district, Cos Cob School and Cos Cob Park.
He said ideally the development could serve town employees including nurses, teachers, police and firefighters, and that all the apartments are proposed to be 2 bedroom units.
“It would be 100% affordable,” Romeo said. “To count all against 8-30g.”
“I’m checking all the boxes that they’ve been advocating for,” Romeo added. “A lot of planning is going into it. I’m excited over this one. I think this is the first project that addresses that transit district.”
He said many people are unaware that the housing authority owns property next door where there are five affordable units in a duplex and cottage.
“We’re the abutting neighbor,” he said.
Romeo said the housing authority would seek funding from the state and have to compete with other projects from other municipalities, but he was optimistic.
Questions Mr. Romeo might anticipate being asked include how many total units are already in the purview of Greenwich Communities, how much closer these 48 units would bring the town to the 10% requirement of the state, and what rents would be charged.
Thursday’s meeting is in person at town hall starting at 10:00am, but also has a Zoom link.
In this 3D rendering by Rudy Ridberg it appears there is a parking level at grade, one above grade and two stories of residential units above.
