Greenwich zoning board denies W.R. Berkley plans for oversized office on Steamboat Road

Last week the Greenwich Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) denied the application of W.R. Berkley to construct a new 38,300-square-foot, three-story office building at the corner of Davenport & Steamboat Roads. The proposed building would have served as a satellite office located across the street from Berkley's existing headquarters and the Delamar Hotel. To make way for the project, the plan was to merge 5 existing lots and demolish 5 structures, including a two-family house, two older office buildings and the CT Iron Works building.

Essentially, the proposed building was denied for being oversized under current Greenwich zoning laws which were significantly updated in 1976 and 1986. Berkley's existing headquarters, built in 1969, pre-dates these tighter zoning restrictions.

These updated regulations were designed to curb large-scale office development in favor of encouraging residential uses, thereby creating more housing opportunities and controlling business expansion. The rationale at the time was significant: the number of non-residential commuters into Greenwich, then 24,000, was nearly half the town's full-time population.

The sole dissenting vote came from commissioner Arnold "Arn" Wells who argued against the denial, stating, "Steamboat Road has always been commercial. Why is it called Steamboat Road? The steamboats started coming in 150 years ago, bringing supplies, bringing passengers. There were probably warehouses all along Steamboat Road at that time."

Ultimately, the zoning board found both the immediate properties and the wider area to be primarily residential, where zoning caps building size at 10,000 square feet per lot for non-residential uses.

Between the Lines: If you agree with this outcome, you can thank the hardworking volunteers on the Greenwich P&Z Commission for defending the residential character of Greenwich - one zoning decision at a time.

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