2008 Woodie Awards
Vote Absentee
Finally, A First Step
Storrs Center Proposal Officially Submitted
Aaron Lescroart
Issue date: 3/29/07 Section: News
The Mansfield Downtown Partnership and Leyland Alliance presented their Storrs Center application to the Planning and Zoning commission Wednesday, taking the first step toward the beginning of construction after six years of planning and research.
"In order for the Partnership to execute an image of community, university and protect nature, they had to engage in a process in which they had to be patient and careful," said Steven Bacon, chairman of the Planning and Design Committee for the partnership.
Patience was indeed needed as this application - presented over four hours Wednesday at Town Hall - is a culmination of over 400 meetings as well as multiple studies and research over the course of six years.
The Storrs Center is a planned development that is set to be located alongside Storrs Road and Dog Lane. The purpose of the center is to create a downtown with a vibrant main street environment for Mansfield and UConn.
Macon Toledano, a representative of Leyland Alliance, said that they provided a plan that puts forth everything they want to do fully and efficiently, not piecemeal.
"This process is about collaboration and teamwork from the beginning," Toledano said.
The applications submitted proposed amendments to the zoning and planning text regulations as well as rezoning the 47.7 acres of land where the Storrs Center will be located. The rezoning will set the area as a special design district which will allow Storrs Center to be a mixed-use area. In other words, it will be able to contain residential, retail, restaurant, office and other uses in the zone.
The Storrs Center was presented in sections, or neighborhoods, as Toledano put it, showing what was to be planned at each stage. They presented each section at a time in the order that they were going to be built, presenting each neighborhood with conceptual drawings of what each area would look like as well as three-dimensional models they manipulated to show different angles.
The plans included influences that were taken from other communities and college towns, according to Paul Gratzel. One such influence was containing prominent corner towers on buildings and setting the buildings to allow for maximum visibility down the proposed village road that would be built.
Current plans show that only 17.7 acres of the 47.7 set aside are being developed. The rest is being left alone to preserve the wetland environment and protect the vernal pool.
Also presented to the Planning and Zoning commission were studies done on traffic and parking in Storrs Center and why proposed changes should be made. Changes such as combining Bolton Road, Dog Lane, and Storrs Road into a conventional four-way intersection were planned to offset the intersection they have currently.
The committee did not allow for public comment due to the length of the presentation. There will be a continued hearing on April 5 where public testimony will be taken.
"In order for the Partnership to execute an image of community, university and protect nature, they had to engage in a process in which they had to be patient and careful," said Steven Bacon, chairman of the Planning and Design Committee for the partnership.
Patience was indeed needed as this application - presented over four hours Wednesday at Town Hall - is a culmination of over 400 meetings as well as multiple studies and research over the course of six years.
The Storrs Center is a planned development that is set to be located alongside Storrs Road and Dog Lane. The purpose of the center is to create a downtown with a vibrant main street environment for Mansfield and UConn.
Macon Toledano, a representative of Leyland Alliance, said that they provided a plan that puts forth everything they want to do fully and efficiently, not piecemeal.
"This process is about collaboration and teamwork from the beginning," Toledano said.
The applications submitted proposed amendments to the zoning and planning text regulations as well as rezoning the 47.7 acres of land where the Storrs Center will be located. The rezoning will set the area as a special design district which will allow Storrs Center to be a mixed-use area. In other words, it will be able to contain residential, retail, restaurant, office and other uses in the zone.
The Storrs Center was presented in sections, or neighborhoods, as Toledano put it, showing what was to be planned at each stage. They presented each section at a time in the order that they were going to be built, presenting each neighborhood with conceptual drawings of what each area would look like as well as three-dimensional models they manipulated to show different angles.
The plans included influences that were taken from other communities and college towns, according to Paul Gratzel. One such influence was containing prominent corner towers on buildings and setting the buildings to allow for maximum visibility down the proposed village road that would be built.
Current plans show that only 17.7 acres of the 47.7 set aside are being developed. The rest is being left alone to preserve the wetland environment and protect the vernal pool.
Also presented to the Planning and Zoning commission were studies done on traffic and parking in Storrs Center and why proposed changes should be made. Changes such as combining Bolton Road, Dog Lane, and Storrs Road into a conventional four-way intersection were planned to offset the intersection they have currently.
The committee did not allow for public comment due to the length of the presentation. There will be a continued hearing on April 5 where public testimony will be taken.
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