NORWALK, Conn. — Attendance at events in the cavernous “Turbine Hall” of the former power plant at Manresa Island could be limited to 760 under the latest revision introduced during public hearings on an application permitting future development there.
Austin McChord, the billionaire philanthropist behind the effort, said during a meeting of the Planning and Zoning Commission Wednesday that the number was the “largest that the building is built and designed to handle” given the number of staircases and exits.
“But that doesn’t mean that we’re going to have events of that scale with any frequency or ever,” he said before noting that another of his projects, the National Havoc Robot League, is in a Water Street building authorized to have up to 800 people.
“So what we’re really looking at is saying we’re designing the space to be able to accommodate that safely, and then the actual cap, we would obviously have to go to the city anytime we’re going to have a large event and present a plan showing how people would both arrive and depart,” he said.
After nearly two hours of public comment, the commission formally closed the public hearing on the application and continued the matter to Sept. 9 for Manresa to respond and provide further information before the commission deliberates.
“We are grateful to everyone who has taken the time to share their perspective during the Planning & Zoning public hearing process on Manresa Wilds,” Manresa Island Corp. Executive Director Jess Vonashek said in a statement after the hearing. “We look forward to presenting to the Commission at the next meeting.”
Elizabeth Suchy, an attorney involved in the effort, highlighted the 760 number earlier in the meeting. She said it was in response to earlier concerns about the maximum occupancy at the so-called Turbine Hall on the property. The number could be included as a condition of the special zoning district approval, she said.
After questions from commissioners at Wednesday’s hearing requesting more specific information about traffic and other concerns, McChord and Vonashek said they would present more information during the formal rebuttal process on the application seeking approval of a special zoning district for a proposed four-phase development of a variety of educational and recreational activities focused on the waterfront.
Subsequent public comment was still mixed, as it has been during earlier hearings on the application in recent months.
Supporters cited the unique opportunity presented by the efforts led by Austin McChord and his wife Allison, who have already spent millions to begin cleaning up the property. They contrasted it with other possible uses there such as more housing.
Many neighbors again raised traffic and quality of life issues and called for more complete information on how the park would deal with people driving to and from the property through what is currently a network of local two-lane roads.
Benjamin Yeung, the city’s senior traffic engineer, said that while it would obviously be efficient to move traffic easily on a four-lane highway, “that’s not on the table at all. That would not be beneficial to the larger neighborhood.”
Instead, he suggested trying to find ways to increase transit service, “which benefits both attendance at Manresa as well as the adjacent neighborhood.”
Jacquen Jordan-Byron, a commission member, asked how many events would draw a crowd of more than 500.
“Very few, I believe,” Douglas Adams, a consultant working with Manresa Wilds, said.
Jordan-Byron asked about alternative modes of transportation.
“Are we talking about buses? Are we talking about ferries on the water?” she said.
“All of the above,” Adams said, pledging a “multimodal solution” that would “deprioritize private vehicles,” including shuttle buses from the South Norwalk train station and SoNo Collection mall.
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