Land Use - Zoning

Tom has guided clients through local, state and federal permitting processes for all types of regulatory approvals associated with real estate development, including zoning map and text amendments, site plans and special permits, wetlands permits, subdivision approvals, state water resource permitting, and state traffic permitting. He has appeared regularly before planning, zoning, and wetland boards and commissions in Connecticut, as well as before state and federal environmental permitting agencies.

He has represented a wide range of clients in the permitting of new projects, such as developers of warehouse and logistics facilities, retail, wholesale, and industrial projects, multi-family residential communities, pharmaceutical companies, and health care institutions. He has collaborated closely with architects, appraisers, scientists, and engineering professionals throughout the process of bringing a project to fruition. Tom has counseled clients on regulatory strategies for complex projects, such as brownfield redevelopment and remediation, and mixed-use development.

He has drafted and obtained approval of new zoning regulations for the innovative Storrs Center Special Design District in Mansfield, Connecticut, a major mixed-use project involving the redevelopment of a new main street area for the town and University of Connecticut. The project involved preparing and approving a state-level municipal development plan, structuring public finance solutions, creating a new flexible zoning district for the project area, and project permitting.

Transactional

Tom has worked on behalf of both municipalities and developers in the negotiation of development agreements for complicated public-private projects. These projects have required coordination of public and private financing, as well as the integration of public infrastructure investments with developer-funded project components. He has counseled clients on the land use aspects of real estate-related transactions, such as acquisitions and dispositions, and he has represented large corporations in the disposition of excess property.

Litigation

At times, development projects lead to litigation, such as when project opponents or environmental intervenors appeal successful development applications. Tom has successfully defended numerous permits and approvals on appeal in court. In those instances where complex civil litigation has been started, he has worked closely with the firm’s other experienced litigators to bring significant resources to the case.

Tom has represented several municipalities involved in land use litigation. He assisted the Town of West Hartford, Connecticut, with the review of land use applications and the successful defense of administrative appeals relating to Blue Back Square, a mixed-use retail, residential and entertainment project. He also represented the City of New Haven in the successful defense of its planned development district zoning ordinance, a case that was heard by the Connecticut Supreme Court.

Before attending law school, Tom worked for four years as a city planner in the Denver, Colorado, metropolitan area, where he was responsible for zoning analysis and plan review for many large development projects.