Court ruling clears path for 102-unit Weed Street housing project
Other Committee · Meeting of March 9, 2026
New Canaan housing panel says court ruling clears last hurdle for 102-unit Weed Street project. The Affordable Housing Committee, with a five-member quorum including Hillary Ormund, Mike Sweeney, Maria Weinearten, Jane Williams and Chris Wilson, unanimously approved its February 9 minutes and heard that neighbors recently lost a suit to block a developer's sewer easement access at 751 Weed Street, following earlier court wins by the town and developer in related disputes. Separately, a competing 14-unit Parade Hill proposal under the state's 8-30g statute could generate 10 or 26 affordability points depending on which of two plans advances, pending unresolved questions about whether Section 8 vouchers from a Bridgeport nonprofit qualify it as assisted housing.
Members also flagged a state bill, House Bill 5507, up for a Wednesday hearing in Hartford that could weaken property easements and covenants. Ormund said getting town officials' input on the sites "will be pretty critical as we go forward."
In the full story:
- The complete report — 910 words
Source: the Other Committee meeting of March 9, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
The Full Article
NEW CANAAN — March 9, 2026 — The New Canaan Affordable Housing Committee learned Monday that a state Superior Court ruling has removed what members called the last legal obstacle to a 102-unit affordable housing development at 751 Weed Street, while a separate 14-unit proposal at Parade Hill remains in early, contested stages before the Planning and Zoning Commission.
The committee, meeting with five of nine members present to make quorum, also heard that a pending state bill up for a public hearing Wednesday in Hartford could strip away property covenants protecting easements and access rights, a change members said could have direct bearing on the Weed Street case. No dollar figures or building-related votes were before the committee Monday; the only formal actions were procedural.
The Full Story
Committee members Hillary Ormund and Mike Sweeney, appearing by video, and Maria Weinearten, Jane Williams and Chris Wilson made up the quorum. Kristen Nielsen was attending a concurrent Planning and Zoning Commission meeting elsewhere in the building; Bill Brett joined later by phone in time to second a motion to adjourn; Bob Strong and Jeff Williams did not attend. Members voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the committee's February 9 meeting, on a motion by Williams, seconded by Sweeney.
Ormund and Williams updated the committee on the project subcommittee's review of design schemes for three potential affordable housing sites, sketched by planning consultant Amanda. The subcommittee is scheduled to meet town officials Wednesday, including a Department of Public Works staffer identified as Tiger, planning office staffer Sarah Carrie and the town engineer, identified only by the first name Maria, to gather input on engineering and water management issues at each site.
Members also revisited two ongoing 8-30g development disputes making local news. At 751 Weed Street, a developer's application for 102 units was denied by the Planning and Zoning Commission; the developer sued and won, then was denied a request to the Water Pollution Control Authority, also known as the Board of Finance, to extend a sewer line. A court upheld that denial. The developer then sought to access the sewer system through an easement across a neighboring property; neighbors sued to block that access and recently lost. Members said the neighbors have not yet appealed, and barring an appeal, that ruling clears the way for the project to proceed.
At Parade Hill, the subject of a packed Planning and Zoning Commission meeting held simultaneously elsewhere in the building Monday, a developer has proposed two alternative plans under the state's assisted-housing statute. One plan calls for 14 total units with five designated as Section 8 housing, generating 10 affordable-housing points; a second plan would make 11 of the 14 units affordable under varying designations, generating 26 points, revised down from an initial 28 after input from a town official identified as Sarah. Members raised questions about whether a letter from a Bridgeport-based organization, referenced as Homes for Hope, committing to place Section 8 voucher holders in five units is sufficient to qualify the project as "assisted housing" under the statute, and whether the town would receive credit for the resulting housing points.
Members also discussed a pending state bill, cited as House Bill 5507, set for a public hearing Wednesday in Hartford, which they said would weaken deed restrictions and covenants, including those protecting senior-housing age limits and access easements for utilities, water and sewer lines. A sign-up deadline to testify was set for 3 p.m. Tuesday.
"We're meeting this Wednesday. I believe Tiger from DPW, Sarah Carrie from the planning office, and Maria, the town engineer, will be meeting with us. There might be engineering things or water management issues that we just don't know about for each of the sites, so getting their input will be pretty critical as we go forward." — Hillary Ormund, committee member
"No, I think you summed it up well. The main point of the meeting is to make sure there isn't something critical, like a pipe going through the middle of the property, that would be a game stopper." — Mike Sweeney, committee member
"I would concur with that, that that area needs a master plan for the entire development, not just a one-off to address housing and not the rest of it." — Maria Weinearten, committee member, on the town-owned lumber yard site
Why It Matters
The Weed Street ruling, if it stands without appeal, would clear the last legal barrier to a 102-unit development built under the state's 8-30g affordable housing statute, which limits local zoning control on qualifying projects. The Parade Hill proposal remains far from resolved; town attorneys have not yet determined whether it even qualifies for review under the assisted-housing statute. Separately, the pending state legislation heard Wednesday in Hartford could affect the very easement dispute at the center of the Weed Street case, and more broadly could limit how towns and property owners enforce deed restrictions statewide.
The committee also postponed a planned public information session at the library, citing the sensitivity of ongoing news coverage of both local projects, with no new date set.
Key Motions & Votes
- Vote: Approval of February 9, 2026 meeting minutes Tally: Approved unanimously - Action: Motion to adjourn meeting — Approved by voice vote, moved by Maria Weinearten, seconded by Bill Brett
Source
Town Of New Canaan: Affordable Housing Committee meeting, March 9, 2026