Purnell v. Inland Wetlands & Watercourses Commission

Citations

• 209 Conn. App. 688

Syllabus

The plaintiffs, P and G, appealed to this court from the judgment of the Superior Court dismissing their appeal from the decision of the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission of the Town of Washington to grant a permit to W Co. to conduct certain regulated activities on its property pertaining to its proposed construction of an inn. After the expiration in 2018 of a permit the commission had granted in 2008 to conduct regulated activities on the property, W Co. filed a new applica- tion that was largely identical to the 2008 proposal but contained minor changes in response to building and safety code requirements. In response to a petition by residents, the commission, pursuant to statute (§ 22a-42a (c) (1)) and the applicable provision (§ 10.03) of the Washing- ton Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Regulations, conducted a public hearing on the new application during which it heard from, inter alia, P, experts who appeared on P's behalf, and, on behalf of W Co., S, the civil engineer who had been involved with the drafting of plans for the development since 2008. S told the commission that W Co. was seeking reapproval of the expired 2008 permit and that it would be incorporating into its application by reference plans that had been submitted to the commission in 2008. L Co., which had been retained by the commission to review the modifications in the new application, then submitted a report in which it stated that the application was, for the most part, identical to the previously approved application and that its modifica- tions would not result in impacts to wetlands or watercourses. During the public hearing, P objected to the submission of L Co.'s report and the revised plans W Co. had submitted in response to that report. P claimed that she lacked sufficient notice as to the report and stated that she was unable to question L Co., which did not have a representative at the hearing. The commission then continued the hearing, after which a representative of