Business

Nail Salon Owners to Town: No More Nail Salons

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A group of nail salon owners and workers say there are too many such businesses in New Canaan and they’re urging the town to limit the number of them, officials say. About a dozen salon representatives came to Town Hall this month to meet with the town planner about regulating the number of nail salons in New Canaan, such as through a moratorium, according to a memo issued by Town Planner Lynn Brooks Avni ahead of Tuesday night’s meeting of the Planning & Zoning Commission. 

“The nail salon owners did note that the additional wellness boutiques that are opening in the downtown also provide similar services,” Brooks Avni said in the memo. “From a land use perspective it would be difficult to justify a moratorium on nail salons. Several boutique wellness studios have opened downtown as a result of the innovative legislation adopted by this Commission at its April 2018 meeting which included ‘wellness activities’ in the definition of ‘Personal Service Establishments.’ These boutique wellness studios have occupied what were previously vacant storefronts in the downtown.”

She referred to P&Z’s decision to amend the regulations so that service businesses could occupy street-level commercial spaces on Main and Elm Streets so long as they have a retail section in front. A Google search of “nail salon” in New Canaan returns 18 businesses, including spas that offer nail-related services.

Amy Murphy Carroll

Did You Hear … ?

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First Selectman Kevin Moynihan during Tuesday’s Board of Selectmen meeting congratulated Caroline Garrity on being named chairman of the Waveny Park Conservancy. Garrity is known to many for her volunteer work with the New Canaan Garden Club. ***

New Canaan Police at 12:05 a.m. Tuesday cited a 21-year-old Waterbury man for possession of less than .5 ounces of marijuana after stopping him at Lakeview and Millport Avenues for driving with a defective headline and marker light. ***

The selectmen on Tuesday voted 3-0 to appoint Dave Hunt to serve on the Board of Assessment Appeals. Bob Avery resigned from the post, Moynihan said. 

***

New Canaan Public Schools announced Thursday that Darlene Pianka, the district’s assistant superintendent of pupil and family services, will succeed the retiring Gary Kass in the role of human resources director.

Business

Town Seeks To Enforce Rules About Keeping Downtown Sidewalks Clear

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Seeking to ensure that downtown sidewalks are clear for pedestrians, officials said last week that a Planning & Zoning officer could be assigned to enforce local rules. Under the Town Code, items such as benches, tables, chairs, signs or commercial displays cannot obstruct sight lines or pedestrian passage on sidewalks. Though the town allows for “certain things that are considered good,” merchants sometimes take advantage by going too far, according to Public Works Director Tiger Mann. “It’s nice to have bench and put a table out there, but four chairs around it as a display case in front of the building, it’s a little too much,” Mann said during a Jan. 29 meeting of a Planning & Zoning Commission subcommittee.

‘Fresh Green Light Driving School’ Seeks To Open New Canaan Location

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A driving school with 10 Fairfield County locations is seeking to open up on Cherry Street in New Canaan. Fresh Green Light Driving School has applied to the Planning & Zoning Commission for site plan approval at 111 Cherry St., a site that includes Swirl frozen yogurt shop, Club Sandwich, a salon and podiatrist Dr. Jennifer Tauber. Owned by Cherry Street LLC, the property is in the Business A Zone. According to its website, Fresh Green Light was founded by Laura Shuler and Steve Mochel, parents to four children, seeking to improve safety and confidence among teenage drivers. Under the New Canaan Zoning Regulations for the Business A Zone, any non-office use is permitted with site plan approval and general office use is permitted so long as no more than 10,000 square feet is used as such in any one building, unless permitted by Special Permit (see page 77).

Arnold Karp

P&Z Looks Into Withholding Building Permits for ‘Merritt Village’ Until Retaining Wall Concerns Are Addressed

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Saying a local builder has been slow to address concerns regarding a widely discussed retaining wall that’s taking shape at the edge of downtown New Canaan, officials on Tuesday night called for the town attorney to issue an opinion on whether building permits for a major project can be withheld. Merritt Village developer Arnold Karp has not responded to the Planning & Zoning Commission’s assertion that a faux stone retaining wall appearing above Park Street will not be sufficiently screened by landscaping and therefore must get a fieldstone veneer, members of the appointed body said during their regular meeting. “There are still permits to be issued, and I think at a minimum, we have to make sure” that Karp adheres to what P&Z approved for the 110-unit project, Commission Chairman John Goodwin said at the meeting, held in Town Hall. He added that Town Attorney Ira Bloom already has been apprised of the situation and “I think we should have further discussions with attorney Bloom as to what our recourse is here, because I for one am extremely unhappy about this.”

“We all know the visibility of this project,” Goodwin said. “I think this entire Commission is unhappy with what is going on right now.