News and Media Blog - Latest Happenings
Check out this article in the Hartford Courant Community section (Avon)! Our co-presidents Robin Baran and Christopher Carville are quoted. The developer is also quoted as saying he intends to present his plan to town before the end of the year, so stay tuned for that.
Picture Credit: Patrick Raycraft / Hartford Courant
Greetings, Friends!
We hope everyone is enjoying the cool weather and getting back into the fall routine.
While the Blue Fox development still has not made it onto a Planning and Zoning meeting agenda the developer is still at work. Traffic counters are back out on Nod Road and we have seen surveyors out surveying the land. It’s only a matter of time before a plan (likely heavily revised since last time we saw one back in March) is proposed to the town.
We would like to address something that we have been hearing around town from various people: “It’s a done deal” (meaning the development of Blue Fox Run is a done deal). This could not be further from the truth. First, no sale of the land has taken place. Second, the developer has not yet formally proposed the plan to the town Planning and Zoning Commission and therefore there has not yet been a vote on the zoning change that is required for this development to even happen. The developer also must get approval from the Inland Wetlands Commission and the Water Pollution Control Authority. None of this has happened yet and any one of those 3 town authorities has the ability to stop this plan in its tracks. So if you hear someone say “it’s a done deal”, feel free to correct them and direct them to www.savenodroad.org
Sunset over Nod Road
Save Nod Road has rented booths at some upcoming local events and we would love to see our supporters! Look for us at Celebrate Avon this weekend, September 29th, at Thompson Brook School from 11 to 5. We will be selling our SNR merchandise (tee-shirts, magnets, lawn signs), giving out some goodies, and answering questions. Then, we will be at the Simsbury Spooktacular Chili Challenge on October 27th from noon to 5 on Iron Horse Blvd. At both events, the first 50 people to sign up to receive our email newsletter get a free Save Nod Road reusable shopping bag!
As always, thank you for your support. Please tell your friends and neighbors about our cause and keep checking here and Facebook for the latest news and updates.
Happy August, Nod Road Friends!
While things have been seemingly quiet on the BFR proposal front we did notice something unusual over the past few weeks: traffic counters laid across Nod Road and, more recently, across the entrances to Hunters Run, Woodford Hills, and Ridgebury.
This immediately begged the question: who in their right mind would do a traffic study in the middle of summer? People are on vacation and schools/colleges are not in session so the traffic volume on Nod Road (and everywhere, for that matter) is at its lightest. We didn't want to jump to conclusions so we did some investigating, talked to the town, the state, and a couple local engineering firms and no one knew anything about it. Then, today, the residents of Hunters Run received a notice from their management company informing them that traffic counters had been placed at their entrances as part of a traffic study related to the Blue Fox Run development. Aha! Mystery solved. But again, why would someone do a traffic study in August?
As always, thank you for your continued support. Please keep spreading the word. Recently several local businesses have allowed us to post our green and white signs on their property so our reach continues to expand, but you wouldn't believe how many local people still don't know what Save Nod Rod is all about.
Watch for us at some local events this fall. We will have our own booth!
Happy July, Friends of Save Nod Road! The proposal from Keystone (informal or formal) still has not been brought to the Planning and Zoning Commission BUT there is an item on the Water Pollution Control Authority meeting agenda for Thursday July 12th regarding the "Blue Fox Run Sewer Review." This is related to development at BFR so there will be several of us in attendance to see what that is about.
In other news, we are holding a tag sale on Saturday July 14th from 9am-2pm and all proceeds will benefit Save Nod Road! Numerous neighbors and friends have donated items and we will also be selling SNR merchandise (including tee-shirts) and baked goods. Stop by and see us at the bottom of Woodford Hills.
As always, thank you for your support.
June has been an amazing month for Save Nod Road. Thanks to generous donations from neighbors and supporters from in and around Avon we met an important fundraising goal last Friday the 15th. It was truly exciting to see donations showing up in our mailbox and email inbox from people who support our cause and want to preserve open space along Nod Road. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Then, on Saturday the 16th we held our first fundraiser, a bake sale run by the kids of SNR! It was a complete success. We sold treats, bottled water, Save Nod Road tee-shirts, magnets, lawn signs and pins and raked in almost a thousand dollars. Thank you so much to everyone who baked, volunteered, stopped in to buy something, left a donation, or at least drove by us and gave us a thumbs up.
We continue to monitor the Planning and Zoning meeting agendas and there are always some of us in attendance at the meetings. Even though there has been no news on the Keystone development we are learning a lot by being at these meetings and seeing how they are run as well as the different styles of the P&Z board members. When the Keystone plan is on the agenda we will be ready!
As always, thank you so much for your interest and support in this important cause.
While I haven't made any updates to the website in a month and it may seem like things have been quiet in the Save Nod Road world I assure you there is a lot happening behind the scenes!
Here's what has been going on:
Here is a shot of the stormy skies on May 16th:
In the April 19th edition of The Valley Press (<---click to be brought right to it) there is an article about the (still not formalized) plan to build on Blue Fox. There are quotes from members of our group as well as quotes from the developer. It's good to see another media source getting the word out there. Judging by what I am seeing when I drive around town (signs and car magnets bearing our logo), Facebook likes, website traffic, and people stopping to ask us what's going on, word has really spread. We appreciate everyone's support and hope to be able to share news in the near future about other ways you can help. If you are interested in a car magnet, sticker, button or lawn sign just send an email to contact@savenodroad.org
The developer did not make the deadline to be on the next Planning and Zoning meeting agenda (May 8th) so we will be keeping our eyes out for the June 12th and 26th meetings.
If you've driven down Nod Road in the past few days you probably noticed the sea of green Save Nod Road signs in most of the residential yards. If you take a turn onto Woodford Hills Drive you will see even more signs in those yards. I won't mention any names but the few outliers on Nod include a relative/employee of BFR, a friend of the developer, and an unoccupied house whose owner opposes the development (but obviously isn't there to post a sign). It's safe to say that most of us here on Nod are united in opposition.
We now have a limited number of lawn signs available for $7. We also have 5" decals in addition to magnets and pins. These are a great way to show your support and start up a conversation with someone who isn't familiar with what's going on. If you would like to order something send an email to: contact@savenodroad.org
On Tuesday March 19th Tony Giorgio of Keystone Companies LLC and his consulting engineer from F.A. Hesketh met with residents of Hunters Run (condominium community off of Nod rd) to present his current plan for developing Blue Fox Run golf course. In the revised plan the apartments have shifted south and are now closer to the Blue Fox clubhouse and main entrance and right next to the cluster neighborhood of 52 houses. 5 free standing houses have replaced the apartments further north right along Nod. According to Giorgio, these houses would be in the range of 3,000-4,000 square feet and would be on about an acre of land each (current zoning calls for 2 acre lots).
In other news, we now have a Facebook page! Please "like" us and spread the word.
