A Westbrook developer has sued the town of Rocky Hill citing an “illegal” denial of its proposal to build a $10-million hotel and restaurant on Silas Deane Highway.
Developer Ron Lyman, of Sam Center LLC/REL Inc., filed the lawsuit in November just weeks after the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously denied his application for a special permit and site plan approval to allow construction of a four-story, 126-room hotel and 5,660-square-foot restaurant on the east side of Silas Deane Highway adjacent to the Interstate 91 northbound on-ramp at interchange 24.
Months earlier, Lyman, who has owned the property for two decades and has proposed several unsuccessful developments there over that time, scored commitments from Woodsprings Suites Hotel and LongHorn Steakhouse restaurant to occupy the two proposed buildings on 12.91 acres.
Lyman also received a wetland permit from the town’s Open Space and Conservation Commission to conduct regulated activities related to development and enhancements on the commercially zoned site.
The town’s Economic Development Commission also unanimously endorsed the project last summer stating that it would add value to the Silas Deane Highway corridor by creating jobs and increasing the town’s grand list.
But residents last year came out against it. A number of residents delivering public comments at zoning commission meetings argued the proposed extended-stay hotel would bring more crime and disruption to the area. Others said the project would negatively impact nearby hotels, reduce property values in the area and discourage the use of nearby buildings, further decreasing their value, among other concerns.
However, Lyman’s complaint and appeal of the zoning commission decision argues that “there is no legal support for any of the reasons for denial cited by the commission… .”
It also states there is significant distance between the proposed hotel and homes on Sutton Road, which would be buffered with landscaping and fencing and by major changes in elevation.
“The alleged impact on property values from the nature of a hotel use is illogical and unsupported as the existing, abutting, motel, use is longstanding and clearly any impact of that use would already be absorbed by the neighborhood,” the complaint continued.
Town officials said they could not comment on pending litigation.
The town’s zoning board is scheduled to discuss the matter in executive session, meaning a closed-door meeting, at a special meeting Wednesday night.
Appeals success
It remains to be seen whether a judge will overturn Rocky Hill’s denial, but the appeal process has been favorable to other area developers blocked by municipal planning boards.
The Mass.-based developer-landlord of a proposed $32-million affordable-housing project in Newington — which was denied in 2018 by zoning officials over safety concerns — is moving forward with the development this summer after a judge overturned the town’s decision.
Planning officials had denied the 108-unit apartment complex, proposed by Dakota Partners Inc., citing several concerns, including the safety of the development near one of Newington’s CTfastrak busway stations.
Dakota filed a lawsuit against the town arguing the rejection was illegal.
Last August, Judge William A. Mottolese overturned the town’s ruling, stating that its reason for denial did not provide enough evidence that the development at 550 Cedar St. would pose public harm.
