Greenwich Free Press (https://greenwichfreepress.com/tag/margarita-alban/)
The GCDS Schwarz Campus is 41.5 acres in the RA-1 zone and the school does not receive any FAR bonus for educational use. The Schwarz Campus at 23 Fairfield Road was originally part of the F.A.O. Schwarz estate, which goes all the way to Cardinal Road. Even if the school added the requested units, they would still have remaining FAR, but the discussion revolved around the proposed multi-family apartment building in the RA-1 single family zone. Continue Reading →
“It’s a very large space and you’re saying you’re going to have small classes. We have had not positive experience with that – where people have filled the space to overflowing, creating parking problems. When you have the space, human nature fills it.” – Margarita Alban, Greenwich P&Z chair Continue Reading →
Neighbors are concerned about blasting and trucks coming and going on their narrow dead end. They worry limited on street parking will be gobbled up by guests to the 8-30g. Also they said it’s dangerous to turn left onto Davis out of Home Place because of sight lines and asked if the entrance to the development could be on Davis instead. Continue Reading →
P&Z chair Margarita Alban asked Tony D’Andrea representing the applicant if there was interest in a possible Historic Overlay for the Ada’s building at 112 Riverside Ave. Continue Reading →
In the motion to deny Berkley Insurance Co’s large office building, Greenwich P&Z noted that 1976 zoning restrictions put the brakes on large scale office development and encouraged residential uses wherever possible to create more housing opportunities. Berkley already has their global HQ at 475 Steamboat. The new office building would have been an adjacent satellite on the parcels home to the former CT Iron Works, a two family house and two older office buildings. Continue Reading →
The project was originally proposed in Feb 2025 as a Queen Anne style building, which the commission thought was beautiful but inconsistent with the streetscape. Continue Reading →
Several buildings on the north side of Railroad Ave (99, 95, 91, 89-87 and 85 Railroad Ave) include some restaurant uses that are grandfathered. 91 Railroad Ave, previously home to a cigar store, has operated as a retail use. A restaurant with 20 seats would typically require 9 parking spaces, including for staff. Continue Reading →
The applicant referred to on Oxer Place as a “de facto cul-de-sac,” but neighbors described it as a dead end with maxed out on-street parking at night, a history of flooding and pedestrian traffic via path to Henry Street. Continue Reading →
P&Z chair Margarita Alban noted a new state law that became effective in 2024 allows conversion of nursing homes to residential with a quick review, and suggested the applicant consider that route. Continue Reading →
When only 43% of the towns in Fairfield County responded to the Center for Housing Opportunity survey, the “Housing Collective staff filled in survey data gaps…Resources utilized included municipal webpages and town charters, CT Secretary of State website, voter records, municipal property records, LinkedIn, Facebook, board and commission meeting recordings, and name searches.”…That’s how my gender and ethnicity were changed overnight. – Margarita Alban Continue Reading →