Waterford— The Planning and Zoning Commission approved a site plan Tuesday for multi-family, residential buildings on 908 Hartford Turnpike with affordable apartments and reviewed a draft presentation of the town's affordable housing plan.

The site plan for Pequot Apartments consists of two residential buildings with 40 apartments. Harold Foley with Cohanzie Partners LP is the applicant attempting to buy the proposed project's 16.5 acres of land next to Target.

Mike Kleffner, the architect for the development, said the two-story buildings would have a driveway entrance from Hartford Turnpike to the back of the property, where parking and solar panels on the southside of the roof will be.

The commission voted 4-0 to approve the site plan, with member Tim Bleasdale abstaining because of his firm's connection to the abutters. The motion was passed on the condition that the project leaders followed all memorandum from the town's Design Review Board.

Prior to the Planning and Zoning meeting, the development received the approval of the Conservation Committee and the Design Review Board with some recommendations. Those included providing shutter windows on the first story, and not only the second story, and to change the exterior light fixtures to fit the style of the buildings.

Planning Director Abby Piersall said the review board also questioned the name of the project due to its reference to the Mashantucket Pequot tribe.

Foley said they named it Pequot out of respect but added they could change it.

The project will also have to follow modifications proposed by the state Department of Transportation.

The commission asked the developers if any of the units would be affordable. Foley said 32 of the 40 units would be divided between 80% or 60% of the average median income and the rest at market rate, making the development affordable.

Following approval of the site plan, Glenn Chalder, a consultant from Planimetrics, presented to the commission an overview of the town's draft housing plan. State legislature, Public Act 17-170, requires every municipality in the state to adopt an affordable housing plan by June 2022 and revise it every five years.

Chalder said four types of programs make a development count towards affordability: Government-assisted housing, rental assistance, CHFA/USDA mortgages, or deed-restricted units. Waterford has all types but deed-restricted programs. 

Deed-restricted units mean developments in which no less than 30% of the dwelling units are conveyed by deeds containing restrictions that require the units to be sold or rented at or below prices preserving housing for persons paying 30% or less of their annual income, the income being less or equal to 80% of the area median income. 

Chalder recalled data from a town survey last spring on affordable housing where 65% of 454 participants reported spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing. Affordable housing, he said, is for people earning typical wages who are getting priced out of housing.

In terms of Waterford's current housing situation, Chalder showed that while the town has 419 state-recognized affordable units, there are not enough units to meet the local need, and the town still needs twice as many units to meet the state's 10% threshold. There has also been no progress in the number of assisted units in the past 20 years or so.

Commission member Jon Bashaw said he found it "discouraging" that it has taken the town 20 years to get to where it is today.

"We still have a long way to go," he said.

Chalder assured Bashaw that it would take a series of small steps over time. As part of his presentation, Chalder proposed potential housing strategies such as establishing an affordable housing committee, reinvigorating the Housing Authority, implementing inclusionary zoning, or adding housing strategies into the Plan of Conservation and Development.

As part of the next step, the commission intends to arrange a public session and hearing on the housing plan, but a date is yet to be determined.

For now, the draft plan has been posted on the town website in preparation for the public launch.

j.vazquez@theday.com