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Windsor Planning & Zoning Administrator James “Jay” Randolph gave the town’s Planning Commission an update on an as-yet-undeveloped 212-unit residential project called Cambridge Villas at Windsor that had been set to be located on North Court Street.

“Staff was recently contacted by a partner in this project to discuss the viability of the project and whether the town of Windsor would be open to considering amending the proffers that were originally adopted as part of the conditional zoning in 2011,” Randolph said.

He gave a brief history on the Cambridge Villas at Windsor development.

“This is a development to be located on North Court Street just past the middle school,” he said. “It would be adjacent to Twin Ponds Manufactured Home Park.

He stated that as commissioners may recall, the project consists of a total of 212 units, with 110 being single-family detached and 102 being single-family attached, primarily townhouses and four ten-plexes. He said there are amenities in the project including a clubhouse, walking trails and pocket parks. 

“This project would be developed as a condominium development with all interior improvements, including the streets being privately owned and maintained by the condominium association,” he said. 

He noted that the property is currently zoned C-HDR, Conditional-High Density Residential. 

The project was originally considered by the Windsor Planning Commission beginning in 2010, he stated. After considerable review and discussion over the course of several months, a recommendation for approval was adopted by the commission on Nov. 17, 2010. 

“Subsequently, the Windsor Town Council considered this rezoning, held their public hearing and ultimately adopted a motion to approve the rezoning request, as conditioned, which means it contains proffers that were voluntarily offered by the developer, they were accepted as part of the rezoning approval, and the Town Council approved that on March 8, 2011,” he said.

He noted that over the past 13 years since the rezoning was approved, there have been no development plans submitted for approval, other than a preliminary stormwater management and erosion and sediment control plan that the town reviewed in 2012 but never formally approved. 

It was then that Randolph stated that town staff was recently contacted by a partner in the project to discuss the viability of the project and whether the town would be open to considering amending the proffers that were originally adopted as part of the conditional zoning in 2011.

“The town manager and myself met with one of the project owners,” Randolph said. “We indicated that many of the elements in the original project proposal, including the Traffic Impact Analysis, the sewer infrastructure component and design, (and) the wetland delineations would all need to be updated prior to any development plans being submitted. It’s been many, many years since this was done.”

Randolph explained to the Planning Commission that the voluntary proffers accepted during the rezoning approval are now a binding condition on the project. 

“Any amendments to the proffers would require a formal application to the town, a public hearing, review and recommendation from this Planning Commission and then subsequently a public hearing and consideration by the Windsor Town Council,” he said.

He noted that the half-acre parcel in question is the most significantly zoned residential property in the town of Windsor that is not yet developed, and town staff was simply updating the Planning Commission on its status.

“There have been no formal applications for modifications to the subdivision, including the adopted proffers,” he said. “The developer is simply doing their due diligence to gauge reception from the town of Windsor should they potentially move forward with modifying elements through a formal submittal.”

“I wanted to make you aware of this,” he continued. “Essentially there are two partners in the project. One of the senior partners on one side has passed, so the other side’s deciding whether or not they wish to kind of purchase the other partner out for the project.

“It’s been on the books here for quite some time,” he reiterated, in summary. “It’s the only major project here in town that’s still kind of waiting out in the wings, but it would require quite a bit of updating to those previous elements.”

A brief series of questions and answers followed among commissioners and town staff.