Milford P&Z Approves the 90-Foot Rule That Keeps New Shoreline Houses From Creeping Toward the Sound

MILFORD — New houses on Milford’s waterfront lots will have to stay within 90 feet of the street.

The Planning and Zoning Board on Tuesday night, Oct. 20, approved “as modified” a petition from Justin Falco of 71 Milford Point Road that adds a new section, 3.1.4.2, to the city’s residential zoning rules for lots abutting Long Island Sound. The result is in the board’s notice of action, signed by the planning office on Wednesday, Oct. 21.

Milford Voice previewed the proposal on Sunday. Here’s where it stands now.

What the rule says

The version that went before the board Tuesday, as printed in City Planner David Sulkis‘s staff summary dated Oct. 16, reads:

The building envelope of the principal structure shall not be located more than ninety (90) feet from the front property line (edge of street or city right-of-way).

Proposed Section 3.1.4.2(a), Milford zoning regulations

A second line says the limit applies to all principal buildings, meaning the main house on the lot.

The notice of action says only “approved as modified.” It doesn’t say what the board changed in the wording Tuesday night, and the meeting minutes haven’t been posted yet. Milford Voice will update this story once the minutes or the city’s legal notice spell out the final text and the date it takes effect.

Why the city wanted it

Sulkis explained the reasoning in his staff summary. Milford’s shoreline swings between erosion and accretion, and accretion, the buildup of sand where there wasn’t any before, “extends the beaches of a handful of properties in the city,” he wrote. The rule is meant to keep new houses from being built out on that newly built-up land, more than 90 feet from the street.

Although we have not had this type of dwelling placement yet, this regulation would prevent it from occurring.

City Planner David Sulkis, in the staff summary

The original petition, filed in July, said the goal was “to prevent incremental encroachment toward Long Island Sound,” keep new construction in line with existing development patterns, “preserve coastal character, and support flood resilience.”

It may cover more than beachfront

The rule applies to residential lots that abut Long Island Sound, and the staff summary points out that state law defines the Sound broadly. Under that definition it includes tidal marshes, bays, estuaries, navigable rivers, the harbor and the Housatonic River up to a certain point. So owners of waterfront lots along the harbor, the marshes and the river may want to read the final text closely before planning a new house.

How it got here

• July 23: The petition was filed. That version also required every structure to stay at least 25 feet from the mean high water line.
• Aug. 7 to Sept. 14: The state DEEP coastal office found the original version consistent with the Connecticut Coastal Management Act. The South Central Regional Council of Governments’ planning commission found no negative impact on neighboring towns or on the Sound’s habitat, and the Connecticut Metropolitan Council of Governments found it not regionally significant.
• Sept. 15: The public hearing opened, and it was continued into October.
• Oct. 15: Sulkis met with Falco, and the 25-foot section was dropped because staff “had differing understandings” of what it meant, according to the staff summary.
• Oct. 20: The hearing had to close, and the board approved the petition as modified.

Also Tuesday night

• The board approved Sharon Lynn‘s request, under state statute 8-24, to install a fixed galvanized steel awning 8 feet 6 inches above the public sidewalk at 34-36 Naugatuck Ave.
• The city’s own proposed change to the CDD-2 zoning rules was listed as postponed on the agenda.

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