Major Safety Upgrade Approved For West Hartford School

WEST HARTFORD, CT — A local elementary school is getting a security/safety makeover this summer, along with new parking areas and traffic flow enhancements.

The West Hartford Plan and Zoning Commission at its last meeting, July 1, unanimously said "yes" to a special permit for the project at Wolcott Elementary School, located at 71 Wolcott Road.

This kickstarts the process to build a new, 1,459-square-foot building entrance, one that will include state-of-the-art security upgrades at the site, which is 23 acres total.

The project itself will be a one-story brick and glass addition offering more secure access to the building.

As part of that project, a new driveway into the school site will be built, according to the project narrative submitted to the PZC.

"As part of renovation, the school is also looking to expand the northerly and southerly parking lots and to improve traffic flow within the property," reads the narrative submitted to the PZC by the applicant, the Town of West Hartford.

The school system, for now, will have a temporary driveway to serve as a school bus student drop-off area.

Once construction is complete, that area will become a student pickup/dropoff area for parents only.

In addition, the project will ultimately result in 114 parking spaces at the school, much larger than the current 78 spaces.

The work will also include enhanced parking lot drainage, as well as improvements in parking lot lighting, according to the narrative.

For the minutes of the July 1 West Hartford Plan and Zoning Commission meeting, click on this link.

For the project narrative, click on this link.