Stepne Manor in Concept Talks

Developer Roy Kirby returned to the Chestertown Planning Commission last night with the latest rendition of the proposed Stepne Manor development, which comprises over 300 units on the historic property.  (‘Stepney’ is the original spelling for the 17th century estate.).

“We had given them a list of items we were looking for,” says Chris Cerino, chairman of the commission. “They had addressed many of them. There are parts we still have concerns about.”

The main sticking point is a cluster of large multi-story buildings with a big parking lot, which the planning commission says is out of scale with the existing town. The Comprehensive Plan demands that new development be within the town’s scale, which is predominantly two-story buildings punctuated by the occasional church spire, clock tower, or former grain silo.

“The key in the process is to achieve a balance that first and foremost satisfies the planning commission and the goals of the town, which are laid out in the Comprehensive Plan,” says Kees deMooy, zoning and housing administrator for Chestertown.

Concept discussions make sense for developers since it is an opportunity to get planning commission feedback before submitting a site plan, which requires fees.

“I think we have enough direction now after going through the concept plan process that we can move forward to the application,” says John Trumpy, finance officer for Roy Kirby & Sons.

The commission had previously requested mixed housing, greater pedestrian amenities and three points of access to Radcliffe Creek due to the proposed water trail.

“They had addressed many of the items we were looking for,” says Cerino. “There were some nice pedestrian amenities and they had done a nice job of preserving the view-shed from Stepne Manor towards town. They respected and showcased the manor itself.”

One point of disagreement hinged on the three requested three access points to the creek — the concept plan showed only one. But the big stumbling block is scale.