Sperry Road Development Has Neighbors Concerned

Residents in one Cheshire neighborhood are hoping the addition of four homes to their street doesn't affect the quality of life there after the Planning and Zoning Commission signed off on the preliminary plans for the development.

The plans to build four houses at Crestwood Drive, which is now a cul-de-sac, and Sperry Road brought concerned neighbors out to the commission's monthly meeting recently with concerns relating to the water supply and possible blasting.

Ricci Construction Group plans to extend Crestwood Drive and build the homes which will be hooked to private wells. But some said they don't believe the wells will be able to service the required sprinkler systems in the new houses.

"Sprinklers in houses with wells have limited output," said Crestwood Drive resident Peter Wickenheisser. "If you lose electricity, you lose your water supply."

Wickenheisser said he's also concerned about what will happen to the homes whose lawns will be affected when the road is extended. 

"We have no control as to the quality of the workmanship," he said. His own driveway is made of concrete, he said, and wants any disturbed area restored as it is now. 

"I have no reason not to trust you, but I will have no control," he told the developer.

The developer will be required to post a bond, Town Planner Bill Voelker said. While the town won't be on site to monitor the project, it will respond to any complaints, he said.

"You call us and we will be out there," he said. The work the developer does on the road "should blend in seamlessly," he said.

It won't be known until the final plans are completed whether blasting will be necessary, John Ricci told the commission.

That took Sperry Road resident Kathy Clarke by surprise.

"I was under the impression that there would be no blasting," she said. Her well is currently working well, she said, and hopes that blasting wouldn't affect that.