Cheshire has placed a temporary six-month moratorium on commercial applications in the center of town in order to give land use officials time to review and possibly modify development regulations.
The “temporary and limited” moratorium was requested and approved for all developments within the town center commercial zoning districts along with planned residential developments and special development districts in the center of town.
The moratorium took effect April 29, and will not apply to applications received before that date, or to applications outside the central districts.
Members of the Planning and Zoning Commission said the moratorium will give them time to review proposed uses for those central commercial zones, which they said are scarce throughout Cheshire.
Also under review will be residential developments since the regulations regarding such projects were written before numerous applications throughout town for apartments were approved.
In the last three to five years, several hundred apartment units have been approved throughout town. Projects such as Old Towne Commons, a 16-apartment complex off Main Street, would have been subject to the moratorium if that application were received this month. The project was approved in 2021. The work at Stone Bridge Crossing would not have been subject to the moratorium since it is not in the central districts.
Members of planning and zoning said they want to ensure that future development projects, especially in central commercial districts, are in line with the town’s Plan of Conservation and Development, which was last updated eight years ago before many projects started taking shape.
The review period will also look at whether projects support the intended look and feel of the center of town.
