- November 27, 2024
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The ball is now in the court of developer Bill Jones. He has received permission from the City Commission to build three-stories high along New Britain Avenue, or even four or five stories if he gets approval of the building design from the City Commission.
New Britain Avenue, now lined with a medical office building and aging houses, lies between bustling Granada Boulevard and historic Lincoln Avenue. At several public hearings, opponents have said higher buildings would mar the historic nature of the area, while proponents said residential space would benefit the downtown.
Jones has built up a lot of good will in the city with his restoration of buildings such as 31 Supper Club, Ormond Garage, Rose Villa and the Buschman Building, but there was an indication at the meeting he would not receive automatic approval for any plans.
Commissioner Troy Kent said three stories is where the height limit should be.
“I would have issues with four or five stories depending on where they are,” he said.
Some residents on Lincoln Avenue have expressed fears of a tall building looking down on their backyard, but Jones’ attorney, Glenn Storch, has said the buildings would be at different heights, and neighborhood meetings would allow neighbors to have input.
No plan for New Britain has been put forward, but early discussions show a building with shops on the bottom floor and residences above.
One of the concerns often brought forward by citizens has been what a multi-story, multi-family building would mean for traffic congestion in the area.
Commissioner Dwight Selby said there will be other factors in the future adding traffic to Granada Boulevard and the city should start looking at encouraging people to take the alternate east-west routes of Hand Avenue and Wilmette Avenue.
One of the audience members speaking against raising the height limit was Jeff Boyle, a former city commissioner.
He said the city and Jones \may have been making plans long before any public hearings. He pointed out that the city did a land swap with Jones a few years ago. Jones gave the city a lot on Lincoln Avenue in exchange for the building at the corner of West Granada Boulevard and Washington Street, which he is now remodeling. The city later used the lot on Lincoln Avenue to build waste water retention for the New Britain area. Not having to construct waste water retention makes development of New Britain Avenue more viable for commercial development.
