Hiawatha Lane is back in the news.
Or it will be, after Thursday’s Planning & Zoning Commission meeting.
Just over a year after Summit Saugatuck withdrew its application for a sewer extension — postponing plans to build 186 housing units on the property abutting I-95 exit 17 — the P&Z will review a pre-application from Summit Development to construct 155 rental units.
Phase 1 would begin in early 2017, and consist of 85 market-rate units.
Phase 2 would begin in the summer of 2018. It would include 70 “affordable” units, as defined by Connecticut’s 8-30g regulation.
The site plan also includes an amenities building, and a swimming pool.
A rendering of the proposed Hiawatha Lane development.
Summit would build a privately-owned force main, pump station, and sewer line, extending 1,600 feet from the existing gravity sewer on Davenport Avenue. It would serve the 2 multi-family rental apartment developments, and also connect to 8 existing homes abutting Hiawatha Lane and Extension.
Last year’s project was scuttled because the sewer pipe running underneath the Saugatuck River to the pump station on Underhill Road could not handle the increased load.
Hiawatha Lane is a narrow street, with homes that are modest by Westport standards. Click on photo to enlarge.
Hiawatha Lane currently includes many rental properties — and some of the lowest housing prices in Westport. The land was originally developed to house immigrant workers who built the railroad.
It is accessible by West Ferry Lane off Saugatuck Avenue, between I-95 exit 17 and the railroad station eastbound parking lot.
Summit currently owns 5.34 acres on Hiawatha Lane. The company has options to purchase 5 additional parcels, totaling 2.87 acres.
(The pre-application will be heard at the Planning & Zoning Commission meeting on Thursday, April 7, 7 p.m. in the Town Hall auditorium. The meeting will be televised. The 1st agenda item could also be interesting: a discussion with public works director Steve Edwards on Compo Beach improvements.)
Hiawatha Lane extension is shown by an arrow, on this Google Map image. It’s below I-95. The entrance is via West Ferry Lane, which is off Saugatuck Avenue (diagonal road on the right side of the image). Click on photo to enlarge.