Old Lyme Residents Say They Don't Want to "Run on Dunkin'!"

Last night's Zoning Commission meeting in Old Lyme was packed with local residents all there to protest a proposal to convert a three-bay service garage attached to the Shell gas station at 85 Halls Road into a convenience store. 

More than 100 people turned out for what was a continuation of a public hearing on the issue to voice their disapproval for a variety of reasons. 

Traffic Jams Ahead? 

Traffic was one of the main concerns. A traffic engineer hired by the applicant, CDP Energy Corp. of New Paltz, New York, said that, for the most part, Route 1 would see very little increase in traffic if the proposal was approved.

Based on Connecticut Department of Transportation data, an assessment of similar operations, and the company's previous experience, he said, 90 percent of the gas station's business would come from people who are already on the road.

According to the engineer, adding a retail and food take-out store would attract just 23 more vehicles than normal at peak times in the morning and 15 in the afternoon. In all, the engineer said, that would amount to 85 directional trips during one hour in the morning and about 100 during the peak summer season.

"While the project will increase the number of patrons, the vast majority [will already be on the road]," the engineer said, adding that the increase to traffic "will be nominal." 

Local residents remained dubious, however. They pointed out that Halls Road is congested at the best of times and that making a left turn from the gas station has always been problematic. The gas station, which is close to exit 70 off 1-95, is hemmed in between two traffic lights and a one-way intersection.

Many residents said they feared even more traffic, including tractor trailers, would end up on Halls Road if highway signs (which are beyond the town's control) directed people to gas and fast food off exit 70. Already people use the road as a "cut through" or as an alternate route when traffic on 1-95 backs up, they noted. 

Here's The Pitch

DGP Energy Corp. would like to convert the mechanics bays—which are no longer money makers for local gas stations—with a convenience store along the lines of a 7/11, selling basic essentials along with hot dogs, donuts, sandwiches, and coffee to go. The latter would be in the form of a counter service area that may or may not be operated by a franchise such as Dunkin' Donuts.

Scott Parker, director of facilities for DGP, and Chris Gent, construction manager, were frankly a little taken aback by the amount of resistance to this proposal. They said their company, which is a family-run business, is making such conversions on a weekly basis and typically people welcome the idea of replacing ugly garages with coffee to go.

"This is a new experience. Usually people are happy," said Parker, adding that people would still have a choice. "If they don't want to support a cobrand like a Dunkin' Donuts, they don't have to," he said.  

What's The Hitch? 

Local residents pointed out that all the items the gas station proposes to sell are readily available in the immediate vicinity, at Big Y, at Koffee Works, Morning Glory Cafe, Jessie's Restaurant, Andy's Deli and Market, Coffee's Country Market, to name a few.

With the exception of Big Y, all of them are locally-owned mom and pop establishments that many people fear would lose business or be put out of business if a Dunkin' Donuts, or something similar, moved in. 

"You can get sandwiches, donuts, coffee," said one resident. "We might be putting local businesses out of business." 

"This is Old Lyme. It's a very quaint little town," said another local resident. "I'd like to see us maintain that." 

What Happens Now? 

The issue before the Zoning Commission is two-fold. DGP Energy Corp. is asking first for permission to reconfigure what is currently a non-conforming site in ways that will make it more closely conform to town Zoning regulations by improving drainage, parking, water and sanitation, site lines and access, additional greenspace and landscaping. 

This is one request that Zoning Commissioners would be inclined to welcome. The stickier issue is that these costly proposed site improvements would be undertaken for the express purpose of changing the facility from a gas station and automobile repair shop to a gas station with a retail store/fast food outlet.

Retail and food service are both permitted within this particular zone. The question the Zoning Commission seemed to wrestle with last night was whether selling food-to-go qualified as retail and whether a garage selling tires and windshield wipers was the same as a gas station selling coffee and hotdogs.

In short, would this be a change in use as far as the Zoning Commission's regulations were concerned and, if so, does the application meet with whatever requirements may be in place for that?

Commission members have a lot to consider: the applicants' traffic studies and site plans; testimony presented at lengthy public hearings; petitions both for and against the proposal; and letters and emails on the topic. About 285 people signed a petition at the gas station saying they supported the change, but none of them turned out to testify last night. 

To give themselves time to digest all the information, the commissioners voted to postpone any decision. The Zoning Commission will hold a special meeting to discuss the issue on April 2.