Simsbury center is a bustling area with grocery stores, cafes, banks, shops, offices, churches and a senior center. Area restaurants on Route 10 and its connected thoroughfares are busy, bringing in nightlife.
Iron Horse Boulevard, which runs parallel to Route 10 (Hopmeadow Street), has athletic fields, a playground and an entertainment venue, the Performing Arts Center.
But that may only the start of a more vibrant town retail center. The town is poised to enhance its center by adding more retail as well as high-density apartments, to be built in the area between Hopmeadow and Iron Horse. The goal is to create a more pedestrian-friendly community.
Planning for an upgraded center was made possible via a new Simsbury Center Code adopted by the Zoning Commission earlier this year. The code was drafted with input from residents who shared their vision for downtown in a study process called a “charrette.”
Meantime, the town is enjoying early success with a second set of new zoning rules that would permit mixed-use developments in other quadrants of town. Building started last week on the first phase of Dorset Crossing, an estimated $40 million commercial project in the northern corner.
Both new codes allow for high-density residential, along with restaurants, retail, and offices.
“Unlike conventional zoning, form-based zoning puts more emphasis on the form of development, the shape of the buildings and build-to lines,” said Simsbury Director of Planning and Development Hiram Peck.
The Simsbury Center Code also allows for a speedier planning process, he said. As long as a developer’s plan conforms to the new code a quick approval is possible, making the process less expensive for applicants in the front end.
“We hope it will encourage developers,” Peck said. “The way the market is, and likely will be for the foreseeable future, it will spark good quality development and add to the grand list.”
No large-scale developments have been proposed that fall under the new code.
“We’re taking advantage of this quiet time while the economy is down to get some more planning done and the regulations in place,” First Selectman Mary Glassman said.
Marc Lubetkin, proprietor of the Red Stone Pub that opened earlier this year, submitted the first application to be reviewed under the center code, a request to build a patio outside his business.
Under the new code, the patio has to be larger in size than under the old regulations, which means a bigger price tag for him.
“The process was smoother than the old way but painful for a new business,” Lubetkin said. “Because of that, we’re waiting until next year.”
Simsbury recently adopted another new set of zoning regulations, a “planned area development” (PAD) zone that allows for mixed-use projects in other parts of town. The first application was for Grist Mill Commons, where apartments and townhouses will be built behind the centuries-old former grist mill on West Street. The old mill will house a restaurant and a branch office for the developer, Landworks of Farmington.
“The business community ought to be excited that we’re moving good development forward,” Peck said.
The PAD zone has attracted the attention of another developer, The Keystone Companies of Avon, for Dorset Crossing, their estimated $40 million mixed-use development on Route 10 in the town’s northern gateway.
As proposed, Dorset Crossing will include approximately 50,000 square feet of new medical space in three buildings, two retail pad sites — one 3,500 square feet and the other 14,000 square feet — and more than 300 residential units in the rear portion of the site.
“We’ll be submitting our PAD application in the next week to 10 days,” said P. Anthony Giorgio, Keystone’s managing partner.
He and business partner, Karl Krapek broke ground last week for Dorset’s first medical office building. The town approved that project last year. The anchor tenant will be St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center, which is under lease to occupy 10,000 square feet for physician offices, an urgent care service, and a community room for public lectures.
“Healthcare is changing, and it’s not about being in the hospital anymore.”
Krapek said the healthcare industry is booming right now due to an aging population and the types of commercial tenants that Dorset attracts will hinge on the economy. A bank is one possibility, he said.
Georgio said that about 20,000 square feet in Dorset Crossing will be retail, which will primarily be service retailers such as restaurants, adding that interest has been expressed by both CVS and Walgreen’s pharmacies.
“We do not want to create competition with Simsbury center,” he said.
