A 25-lot residential subdivision has been proposed for the former site of a more than 250-year-old Cheshire fruit farm that closed earlier this year.
The 42.3-acre property at the corner of Academy and Wiese roads was formerly the site of Norton Brothers Fruit Farm, which closed in May after 268 years of operation.
The property owners, Norton Brothers Fruit Farm LLC and Norton Family Partnership, along with Birdsey Development LLC are seeking a permit from the town’s Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission for “regulated activities” associated with the project. The application was submitted on their behalf by attorney Timothy Herbst, a partner in the New Haven-based law firm Zabel Schellenberg PLLC.
The proposal, which the applicants have called “Farm Meadow Preserve,” would subdivide the property into lots for 25 single-family homes and install related infrastructure, including new roads, stormwater management systems and utilities.
The application states that the project “involves approximately 7.4 acres of wetlands on a total tract of 42.3 acres, with 975 square feet of direct wetland disturbance and 41,900 square feet of disturbance within the upland review area.”
It adds that the applicants believe their proposal “minimizes impacts to regulated wetlands and watercourses through careful site design and stormwater management measures.”
The property is zoned R-40, a residential zone that allows for various forms of farming.
Norton Brothers Fruit Farm, located at 466 Academy Road, was founded in 1757 and was owned and operated by generations of the Norton and Perry family. Phyllis Perry is listed as the current owner.
The application is on the agenda for the town’s Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission, which will hold its regular monthly meeting on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in Cheshire Town Hall at 84 South Main St.
