[PAGE 1]
Middletown Chair Thom Pattavina (’27)
Vice-Chair Nicholas Fazzino (’21)
Vice-Chair Tyler Eckstrom (’29)
Secretary Thom Pattavina (’23)
Planning and Zoning S M e e c m re b ta e r r y s R N i a c t h h a a r n d i e P l e S ll p e e ti n e c r e ( r ’2 ( 3 ’2 ) 7) Marcus Fazzino (’21)
Members Elizabeth Emery (’27) Morgan Monarca (’27)
Catherine Johnson (’23) Vacant (’21)
Andrew Reagan (’29) Vinny Szynkowicz (‘29*)
Commission Alternates Kellin Atherton (’23) James O’Connell (’21)
Alternates
S
A
h
la
a
n
n a
C
y
u
F
n
u
n
l
i
t
n
o
g
n
h
(
a
’2
m
3)
( ’27) Emily McEvoy (’26)
Konrad Lenart (’29)
Ex- Officio Mayor Ben Florsheim
Ex- Officio Mayor Gene Nocera
Marek Kozikowski, AICP, Director of Land Use
REGULAR MEETING
MINUTES
WEDNESDAY, April 8, 2026
Council Chambers, City Hall & Virtual on WebEx
7:00 P.M.
The meeting was held both virtually and in-person. Members of the public had access via
https://webex.com, the WebEx application, and via telephone.
Start: 7:00 PM
End: 8:40 PM
1. Pledge of Allegiance
The Pledge of Allegiance was made.
2. Roll Call
Present: Commissioner Thom Pattavina
Commissioner Tyler Eckstrom
Commissioner Nathaniel Spencer
Commissioner Elizabeth Emery
Commissioner Andrew Reagan
Commissioner Vinny Szynkowicz
Commissioner Alan Cunningham (Arrived at 7:01pm)
Commissioner Emily McEvoy (Seated for Commissioner Monarca)
Absent: Commissioner Morgan Monarca
Commissioner Konrad Lenart
Staff: Marek Kozikowski, Director of Land Use
Public: Nine people.
3. Items removed from the Agenda
None.
4. Public comment on items on the agenda which are not currently scheduled for a public hearing
Page 1 of 5

[PAGE 2]
None.
5. Confirmation that all hearing signs have been properly posted
Director Kozikowski reported that all public hearing signs have been properly posted. Director
Kozikowski then informed the commission that Commissioner Cunningham has joined the meeting.
6. Public Hearings
6.1 Request for a special exception and site plan approval for the construction of a 510 SF
retail (beverage) establishment with a 2-lane drive thru located at 733 Washington Street
and 35 Boston Road in the MXC zone. Applicant/Agent: Richard D. Carella, Esq/Updike
Kelly & Spellacy, PC. SE2026-2.
Attorney Richard Carella, 179 Main Street, Middletown, introduced the application. Mr. Carella said
that 733 Washington Street is too narrow of a parcel, so the 35 Boston Road parcel will be included with
this project.
Rohan Kapor continued the presentation. Mr. Kapor gave a brief history of the business. Mr. Kapor
explained they hire mostly high school and college students giving them the experience of working in
teams and social skills. This is a very community focused business.
Mr. Carella added that this is a drive through business only. There is no seating inside for customers and
there’s no customer parking. It’s a 2-lane drive through business.
Josh Klein, Stonefield Engineering & Design, continued the presentation. With both parcels combined,
the site is 25,000 SF. There will be a single access point on Boston Road. There are 11 parking spaces
onsite. Those are for employees only. There are approximately 8 people scheduled on a peak shift. 6
people on average. This double queue lane will have a total of 23 spaces. 10 spaces in the inner lane and
13 spaces in the outer lane. At the 7Brew in Vernon, at their peak there were 17 cars in the queue. The
main canopy of the building is over the drink pickup area. There is an existing fence at 35 Boston Road
which they will keep and they will also in-fill evergreen trees for additional screening. They will also
plant additional street trees along Boston Road and Washington Street. New lighting is proposed for the
sight. All lighting is downward facing, LED full cut-off. The aerial lights are dark sky approved. Mr.
Klein presented the highlights of the traffic study. About 50% of the vehicles made to this intersection
are already there today. The peak trips are all below 50 trips. Town staff recommended that they do a
complete traffic study to make it clear that this won’t have any type of impact. There will be a minimal
change during the peak times. The driveway is about 215 feet from the intersection. They found that the
50 % cues are typically in the 170 foot range. Traffic would have no impact on their driveway or the
neighbor’s driveway. This is a drive through only, beverage only business. There will be no food.
Restrooms are for employees only. Average wait time for your order is 3 to 3 and a half minutes. Hours
of operation are Sunday through Thursday 5:30am to 10:00pm. Friday and Saturday 5:30am to 11:00pm.
Deliveries will occur during off-peak hours. Unload time is about 15 minutes. Trash pickup will occur
once or twice a week. During the winter, employees will wear hats and gloves as well as heated vests.
There is also a heater underneath the canopy.
Mr. Carella asked Mr. Klein to speak to the hours the lights will be on during operations as well as after
hours. Mr. Carella also asked Mr. Klein to speak to the signage.
Mr. Klein said there is a blue decorative strip lighting around the perimeter of the canopy as well as
canopy lights and aerial lights. The blue light is on a timer and typically turns off an hour after closing.
Mr. Klein continued to discuss the signage on the building and onsite.
Mr. Carella commented that he thinks this is a good use for this site. They believe they addressed all the
comments in the staff memo. They have already received approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals as
well as approval from the Design Review and Preservation Board.
Page 2 of 5

[PAGE 3]
Pete Smith, 218 Sisk Street, commented that he doesn’t agree with the removal of the trees onsite. He
asked if the DOT commented on the removal of the trees and if Middletown really benefit from having
this business in town. Mr. Smith said there’s already a number of coffee shops in the area.
Howard Thody would like to know the impact on Heritage Commons. He asked the applicant spoken to
the neighbors in regards to this project Mr. Thody commented that they should look for another location
and asked the commission not to vote for this project.
Bill Wilson, 220 Woodbury Circle, spoke in favor of this project. Mr. Wilson commented that 7Brew
does a great job in keeping traffic off the road. He is for this business that does well everywhere else.
It’ll bring jobs to the area and bring tax relief to the residents of Middletown.
Mr. Klein spoke to the questions and concerns of the public. He stated they are removing trees on the
property. They will be planting 11 trees including the street trees as well as 6 additional shrubs. Mr.
Klein then responded to the concerns about Heritage Commons. They want to make sure emergency
vehicles get into their site as well as the 7Brew site safely. Traffic will have no impact on this. This is
not just a coffee shop. They have shakes, sodas, teas and more.
Mr. Carella pointed out that the entrance to Heritage Commons is further down Boston Road.
Commissioner Emery asked about their snow removal plan and the site lines that will be affected on the
entry and the exit.
Mr. Klein responded that there are areas along the perimeter between the plantings to store the snow. No
snow will be stored along the entrance. The site lines will always be clear.
Commissioner Emery asked if this facility allows for customers to walk through or bike through.
Mr. Klein responded someone could technically ride their bike there. They don’t encourage walk-ups,
but there is a window to order from.
Commissioner Szynkowicz asked if the wait time is from when the order is placed to when they leave.
Commissioner Szynkowicz also expressed his concerns of the flow of traffic from Boston Road to
Washington Street.
Mr. Klein answered the wait time is from when the customer gets into the queue and then leaves from
the queue. In response to Commissioner Szynkowicz’s concern about traffic is that the queue does move
through quickly.
Commissioner Spencer asked how this site compares to other 7Brew sites.
Mr. Klein responded that this is a pretty average sized site.
Commissioner McEvoy doesn’t feel the traffic report adequately addresses emergency vehicles coming
through.
Mr. Klein said the entrance to Heritage Commons is about 40 feet away from the entrance to 7Brew.
Emergency vehicles can travel safely up and down Boston Road.
Director Kozikowski stated that this project consists of two parcels and would require a lot merger prior
to permits. Director Kozikowski asked the applicant to explain the LED branding light that goes around
the canopy and the hours of the day those would be on.
Mr. Klein stated that the LED lighting goes along the perimeter of the canopy and also along the
roofline. The LED light is on during business hours. The light is on a timer and will shut off 1 hour after
business close.
Page 3 of 5

[PAGE 4]
Director Kozikowski suggested adding as a condition of approval a queuing management plan and if
there is ever an issue, they will come back to the commission.
Mr. Klein is open to this condition. They will work on putting together a summary of the queuing
management plan and work with local public safety to develop the plan.
Pete Smith asked if people leaving Boston Road trip that light to stop traffic on route 66.
Mr. Klein responded their analysis was based on DOT’s current signal timing. Mr. Klein would have to
review if this is pressure or camera triggered.
Motion to close the public hearing.
Moved by Commissioner Spencer, seconded by Commissioner Emery.
Passed unanimously: 7-0.
Motion to approve the special exception with the following conditions:
1. Provide a queuing management plan to city staff for general operations and adhere to that plan.
2. All lights, including branding lights are to be turned off at least 1 hour after closing.
Moved by Commissioner Spencer, seconded by Commission Emery.
Passed unanimously: 7-0.
7. Old Business
None.
8. New Business
8.1 Request for a site plan approval for the construction of a new 50,000 SF warehouse, office,
and showroom facility located at 1345 Newfield Street (Map-Lot: 09-0006) in the NPC
zone. Applicant/Agent: Alan F. Lamson/FLB Architecture & Planning, Inc. SPR2026-41.
Brian Coggin, 194 Millbranch Road, Alma, Georgia, introduced the application. Mr. Coggin said that
they have been at the current location since 1987. They have outgrown the current 20,000 SF facility.
They are planning to keep this facility and then build a 50,000 SF warehouse behind it.
Mark Reynolds, Professional Engineer, 61 Main Street, Hebron, continued with the presentation. Mr.
Reynolds discussed the site plan with the commission including grading and drainage. This parcel abuts
the current 20,000 SF facility. At the existing facility, trucks come in to the property from Tuttle Road.
There are 3 modes of transportation around the building. Deliveries, customers, and employees. The
existing house and garage on the proposed site will be removed. Existing utilities come from Tuttle
Road. They’re proposing an entrance off of Newfield Street for the new facility. The parking area will
be on the east side of the building. They are looking to construct a ramp that connects the buildings so
that material can move from one building to the other building. The tractor trailer and semi-trailer
deliveries will still come through the Tuttle Road entrance, not the Newfield Street entrance. Customers
and employees would enter through Newfield Street. Electric service will be from Newfield Street.
Water and Sewer service will be from Tuttle Road. Easements are in the works for water and sewer as
well as for electric service. They will be providing 20 foot full cutoff poll mounted lights along the main
entrance from Newfield Street and along the main parking lot. There will be wall mounted packs around
the building at loading areas and security areas. This will be adequate lighting for the use and no excess
lighting off the site. Landscape buffering is proposed for areas abutting residential properties. There is
also a planned retaining wall to the north of the proposed building.
Alan Lamson, President of FLB Architecture & Planning in Manchester, continued with the presentation
and discussed the design of the warehouse. It’s a pre-engineered building. There will be 9 offices, a
break room and some storage. Mr. Lamson handed the commission a 3D representation of the building.
Mr. Lamson also presented the commission with samples of colors of the building. The darker color is
the roof and the trim. The lighter color is the building. Mr. Lamson said that he is aware that they have
Page 4 of 5

[PAGE 5]
department comments that need addressing as well as department comments pending. This was the only
night the owner was able to come to the meeting to answer any questions the commission may have.
They understand that they don’t expect any action from the commission tonight.
Commissioner Szynkowicz asked if there will be a traffic light added on Newfield Street for the new
entrance.
Mr. Lamson responded there is no new traffic light being proposed.
Director Kozikowski said that his staff comments requires additional revisions to the plans.
Commissioner Pattavina said that they’ll keep this open for a month.
Director Kozikowski said that if the applicant is ready for the April 22nd meeting, they’ll put it on the
agenda. Otherwise they’ll plan on the May 13th meeting.
9. Public comment on topics which are not or have not been subject of a public hearing
None.
10. Minutes, Staff Reports and Commission Affairs
10.1. Minutes
Motion to approve the March 25, 2026 regular meeting.
Moved by Commissioner Spencer, seconded by Commissioner Emery.
Passed unanimously: 7-0.
10.2. RiverCOG Report
None.
10.3. Staff Report
Director Kozikowski reported that he will have is first meeting with the consultant from RiverCOG to
discuss possible zoning changes needed to be in compliance with public act 25-1, housing growth.
10.4. Commission Affairs
None.
11. Adjournment
Motion to adjourn.
Moved by Commissioner Spencer, seconded by Commissioner Emery.
Passed Unanimously: 7-0.
Submitted,
Marek Kozikowski, AICP
Director of Land Use
Page 5 of 5