Darien News Review

September 12, 2006
Downtown Mixed-Use Project Wins Approval
Plan Will Bring Brooks Brothers, Other Retailers and Restaurants to Darien
By Jennifer Gode


Darien could be welcoming a Brooks Brothers men's clothing store and a host of other retail shops and eateries -- to downtown as soon as next spring.

On Tuesday, the Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously approved a mixed-use project proposed by brothers Daniel and Phillip Dolcetti for a series of parcels on Post Road, Day Street and Squab Lane. The plan includes a new home for Darien Rowayton Bank at 1003 Post Road and properties owned by the Dolcettis at 975 and 987 Post Road, as well as 2 Squab Lane.

"We are very happy," Phillip Dolcetti said. "At last, a change in Darien. We're happy about Brooks Brothers coming in. We want to keep the residents of Darien shopping in town."

After many discussions, the Planning and Zoning Commission had only one issue left to discuss before voting: a one-way driveway from the bank into the shared parking lot that will be created for the buildings. Town zoning regulations read that there must be a 25-foot setback, but the commission read it as a 25-foot setback for a two-way driveway.

Chairman Patrick Damanti suggested that it could be closed off as a green space, but Jeremy Ginsberg, director of the town's Planning and Zoning Department, said the applicants thought it would not be practical.

"The fact that they have access to Day Street and Grove Street really puts them in compliance," Damanti said. "The driveway off of the Post Road is only one-way."

Because it is a one-way road, 25-foot requirement does not apply. Damanti said a one-way road would have to be half of that, which the project would meet.

Darien Rowayton Bank will raze the existing building and build a new one that will house the bank and have office space on the second floor.

The Dolcetti building on Post Road will hold Dolly's Cleaners, Brooks Brothers clothing store and Ching's Table, a Chinese restaurant that currently has a location in New Canaan.

The second building on Squab Lane will be able to hold up to three retail stores and a restaurant with outdoor dining. Until earlier this year, the building housed Dolcetti's, an Italian restaurant.

Phillip Dolcetti said work on the buildings could begin as early as next month. The final resolution for the applications will be approved by Sept. 30.

"It's going to be a great project for the town," Dan Dolcetti said. "Its going to make the town more pedestrian friendly with shops people want. The community has been very supportive."