WILTON — Selectmen held a public hearing Tuesday to discuss applying for a Community Development Block Grant to provide a means to plan for and look at economic development and low to moderate income housing needs in the downtown area.
The town is applying for the grant just for planning, Town Manager Rhonda Irish told a small audience of community members. The $10,000 grant would require a $2,500 match from the town, which would be taken from Comfort Inn Tax Increment Financing funds, she said. The funds can be used to help with economic development.
A special town meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Sept. 7 at the town office for residents to vote on whether to move forward, she said.
Within the scope of the planning, the grant would provide a look at the infrastructure of the downtown area including physical housing, buildings that house businesses, parking, roads, sidewalks and community facilities, she said. The term downtown describes a broader area stretching from Wilson Inn east to the police station and from the town office south to Route 2.
The first couple phases would also include meeting with residents and business owners, looking at previous revitalization projects and investigating how to move forward. It would also involve exploring similar communities with similar challenges and looking at the “gateways” to the downtown area such as Depot and Main streets, the lake area and East Wilton. The gateways provide a first impression for people coming in to town, she said.
A third phase would examine housing in the downtown area, much of which is along Main Street. This also includes looking at older historical buildings that may not meet current codes.
Another phase of the revitalization project would look at economic development from a tourism and recreation standpoint.
Seven citizens have volunteered to serve on an advisory committee for the project, she said.
The effort reflects the belief that if “a downtown is healthy, then the rest of the community is healthy,” she said.
abryant@sunjournal.com
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