Affordable Housing Development Proposed In Fairfield

FAIRFIELD, CT — In the near future, the Fairfield Town Plan and Zoning Commission will consider an application for a 39-unit housing complex at 1477 Congress Street in the town's Greenfield Hill section.

A public hearing for the proposal has not yet been scheduled, but the project, which would be set on a 1.88-acre lot, falls under the state 8-30g affordable housing provision.

The state regulation requires a percentage of the units to be designated as affordable, and the project's developer, Easton resident Stephen Shapiro of 1477 Congress Street, LLC, is planning on 12 of the 39 units being affordable. Those 12 units would be deed restricted for 40 years.

In addition to the 39 units, the proposal also calls for a 49-space parking lot.

Fairfield was recently granted a four-year moratorium on new affordable housing projects, but this and other applications were filed before the moratorium was issued.

To accommodate the project, called the "Congressional Apartments," the house currently on the property, which was built in 1834, would be demolished. Additionally, the developer is seeking a zone change and text amendment to allow for the complex in a residential zone.

"It is submitted that the apartment building proposed is in a good location for both younger and elderly residents who seek a rental unit," the application reads. "If the zone change and text amendment are approved, the applicant will file final site plans in order to obtain a certificate of zoning compliance and building permit."