Cromwell Planning and Zoning schedules three hearings, braces for July 1 housing law
Planning and Zoning · Meeting of April 7, 2026
Cromwell's Planning and Zoning Commission scheduled three public hearings and began charting compliance with a state housing law that takes effect July 1. Director of Planning Andrew Holt briefed the commission on Public Act 25-1, which requires towns to allow two- to nine-unit residential buildings in commercially and mixed-use zones through a streamlined summary review process with no public hearing and no commission discretion. The commission discussed retaining IMEG, hired by the Lower Connecticut River Valley Council of Governments, to draft text amendments and potentially reframe the Business Park District's purpose statement as industrial, which would exempt it from the new residential rules.
The commission voted unanimously to accept a proposed text amendment removing a 1,500-foot distance restriction between on-premises alcohol establishments and adding a "cafe" definition to local regulations; that hearing is set for May 19. Applications for a rezoning at 110 Willowbrook Road and a special permit for alcohol sales at 72 West Street were also set, for May 19 and May 5 respectively. A special meeting on the housing law compliance strategy is expected to be announced by email once the consultant's draft amendments are ready.
In the full story:
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Source: the Planning and Zoning meeting of April 7, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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