Long-Shuttered Park's Resurrection Approved By Farmington PZC

FARMINGTON, CT — As expected, local zoning officials have approved plans to resurrect a City of Hartford park located within the Town of Farmington, one that can be used by all in town.

The Farmington Plan and Zoning Commission Monday unanimously approved a special permit application to renovate and reopen now-vacant Batterson Park on Batterson Park Road, Farmington.

It came with minimal discussion, as board members were clear in their support for the project on Jan. 13.

"Great presentation gentlemen, we appreciate it," said Halstead to the applicants on Jan. 27 after the vote.

The PZC opened a public hearing Jan. 13 on the City of Hartford's special permit application.

The hearing was then continued to Jan. 27, when the PZC closed the hearing and voted to approve the permit.

PZC members delayed a vote on the project because it was awaiting approval from the Farmington Inland Wetlands Commission, which approved the project on Jan. 22.

The long abandoned park site is owned by the City of Hartford, but its area covers land in New Britain and Farmington.

The official address of the park is 76 Batterson Park Road, Farmington, which explains why Farmington's PZC must decide the project's fate.

A new address of 95 Batterson Park Road is expected following renovations and the reopening of the park sometime this year.

The new park would include a new driveway and parking area, park support buildings, a boardwalk, and picnic areas.

Batterson features a 155-acre pond as part of the 266-acre park, with 80 percent in Farmington and the remaining 20 percent in the City of New Britain.

There is a $7 million plan to reopen the park with a splash pad, picnic pavilions, a kayak/canoe launch, a fishing pier, a bird-watching tower, and a playground/hiking trails.

The new park, however, would not include any public swimming at the park pond, he said.

The park closed in 2015 when the City of Hartford faced financial constraints, harming its ability to staff, maintain, and operate the park, which has fallen into disrepair.

Hartford's difficulty in maintaining what is, essentially, a city park (even though it's not within city boundaries) had state and city officials floating the idea of creating Batterson State Park, putting the recreational site under the purview of the State of Connecticut.

But efforts to do that a year ago failed to garner necessary state approval, leading to an agreement among state, city, and nonprofit sources to operate the facility.

As a result, a deal was arranged to reopen Batterson Park in July under the umbrella of Riverfront Recapture, a Hartford non-profit that manages multiple parks in the greater Hartford region.

From Jan. 15: 'Major Park Resurrection Plans Detailed Before Farmington PZC'