WHITE RIVER JUNCTION — Developers are proposing an “extensive” apartment complex containing 240 residential units on Sykes Mountain Avenue, on an undeveloped 24-acre property sandwiched between existing single-family homes.

The Hartford Planning Commission met on Monday for an informal discussion with real estate developer Earle Simpson, of Wilder, who is seeking to build three apartment buildings, a small building for amenities and a parking lot with 344 spaces on a parcel between Hickory Ridge and Lily Pond roads.

The project is still in its conceptual phase. The Planning Commission met with the project team, including Simpson, engineer Nick Fiore, of Engineering Ventures, and Adam Wagner, of Market Square Architects, to provide project feedback to facilitate the development of a formal plan.

Each apartment building would be four stories tall, though the final heights have not been determined. Two of the buildings would contain 96 apartments, and the third building would contain 48 units.

The apartments would include 40 studios, 169 one-bedroom and 31 two-bedroom units, ranging in size from 424 square feet to 1,050 square feet.

“What attracted us to (the property) was the high-density zoning that was allowed on it, together with the proximity to the downtown and the access to the municipal infrastructure,” Simpson said. “We realized that it was a great parcel of land and that we should acquire it.”

Simpson told the Planning Commission that, due to his age and the project’s size and complexity, he is partnering with father-and-son real estate developers from Venezuela, Irwin Perret Sr. and Irwin Perret Jr.

Perret Sr. is the co-founder and president of the Pering Group, a 70-year-old real estate firm that has developed properties extensively in Venezuela, Aruba and the Caribbean.

According to Perret Jr., their family owns a home in Quechee and has relatives living in the Upper Valley region.

“It has become evident to us that there is a big housing need in the area, and we look forward to seeing what we can do to help and to hear what the community has to say,” Perret Jr. told the commissioners.

“I think this is a project that could be of mutual benefit to everybody in the Upper Valley.”

“A project of this size, you are probably talking five or six years of hard work to conclude it, and that would put me to about the age of 80,” Simpson said. “I have known them for several years, and they certainly have the attributes to make good projects here.”

The property’s higher elevation from the surrounding area will require an on-site pump station to draw water from municipal lines.

Fiore said the Hartford Public Works Department is “open” to providing service to the site, though the details of that plan — including whether the pump station will be maintained by the town or the property owners — have not been negotiated.

Hartford zoning regulations require a minimum 2-to-1 ratio of parking spaces to apartment units, which would necessitate at least 480 spaces for this project. The developers intend to seek an exception to allow the proposed 344 spaces, or approximately 1.45 spaces per unit. According to Fiore, studies of residential developments find a typical ratio to be 1.5 spaces per unit.

Several commissioners, when offering recommendations, expressed concern about the project’s impact on neighbors and the aesthetic character of the area.

Commissioner Toby Dayman said that abutting neighbors may complain about the lights emanating from the elevated property, particularly from vehicles traveling up the driveway that would parallel their homes on Hickory Ridge Road. Dayman suggested creating a buffer on the property’s hillside, to block light pollution and protect privacy.

“These neighbors have enjoyed what seems like thousands of years with no neighbors in their backyard,” Dayman said. “And now you are going to add a big neighbor.”

The commissioners also stressed that the proposed buildings should be aesthetically appealing, as they will be visible to the surrounding area.

Wagner said they modeled the building style on other recent apartment projects in White River Junction, including Wentworth Community Housing, a 17-unit affordable housing complex that abuts the proposed project site. Several models presented to the commission were flat-roofed structures with exteriors composed of earth-tone colors and a mix of construction materials, including galvanized steel.

“I stand in front of a lot of these boards and they say, ‘Can’t you make it look like a colonial building?’ ” Wagner told the commissioners. “But at this scale, it’s not appropriate.”

The flat roofs will allow the buildings to be retrofitted with solar panels if the developers decide to take that route, Wagner added.

Several commissioners said they dislike the aesthetic of the town’s modern buildings, particularly the inclusion of exterior steel.

“They all look the same, and they’re all boring as hell,” said commissioner Colin Butler, who recommended that the final design evoke “Vermont and not southern California.”

Commissioner John Heath also suggested increasing the number of two-bedroom apartments, citing the lack of housing for small families.

In 2015 Simpson sought to build a $6.4 million, 88-unit residential project on 11 acres of the same property.

Simpson eventually abandoned that project despite the Planning Commission approving the site plan.

Dennis Marquise, director of development at the Simpson Cos., told the Valley News that the “economics were not quite right” at that time to complete the project.

Patrick Adrian may be reached at padrian@vnews.com or at 603-727-3216.

]]>