News

Ongoing Efforts

Grumman-St. John House

Update I: A settlement agreement between the parties to the lawsuit was signed Thursday, August 12, at a press conference at the Norwalk Inn featuring NPT President Tod Bryant, Rep. Larry Cafero, Sen. Bob Duff, and Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.

Update II: The joint press release is available at YourCT. News coverage in the Norwalk Hour and on News 12 Connecticut.

The Grumman-St. John House at 93 East Avenue is still threatened by demolition for an expansion of the Norwalk Inn. The Norwalk Preservation Trust has been involved in settlement negotiations with the Inn for over six months to end the pending lawsuit regarding the house. State Representative Larry Cafero and State Senator Bob Duff have been mediating a series of negotiations between the Inn and its neighbors, with the NPT acting as a facilitator. We believe that an effective settlement agreement in the lawsuit should incorporate the results of these discussions, with real benefits for all involved.

The Norwalk Preservation Trust is committed to working with the Norwalk Inn to reach an amicable resolution to the lawsuit that:

  • Restores the Grumman-St. John House, which has marked the entrance to Norwalk's Town Green for over 200 years;
  • Provides the Norwalk Inn the ability to expand their business in a manner that is acceptable to neighboring property owners; and
  • Improves the East Avenue streetscape.

Note: There have recently been distortions in the press with regard to the status of the lawsuit brought by the NPT and the State of Connecticut. It is currently pending, the judge having issued a temporary injunction against the demolition of the Grumman-St. John House. If there is no settlement, the lawsuit will necessarily continue because the house is not protected without a binding legal agreement.

For a detailed history of this historic home, its deterioration, and our legal efforts to save it, see Current Projects.

Norwalk Historic Resources Survey

As reported in the Norwalk Hour and the Daily Norwalk, on March 23 the Norwalk Preservation Trust announced the receipt of a $20,000 grant from the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism to begin work on a new Norwalk Historic Resources Survey. NPT will join forces with the Norwalk Historical Commission, which will contribute another $20,000 to the project, which will employ a team of consultants who will identify significant buildings, structures, and sites in the city. Expected to begin in May, this initial phase will cover the area bounded on the north by US 1, on the east by East Avenue, on the south by Interstate 95, and on the west by the Route 7 Connector.

The completed survey will be a planning tool to identify, record, and evaluate historic properties and districts within Norwalk, and could form the foundation for a comprehensive and proactive municipal historic preservation program.

National Historic Districts

The Norwalk Preservation Trust is actively involved with individuals and neighborhoods to create National Register Historic Districts in Rowayton, Silvermine, and Wall Street. For more information on historic districts in Norwalk, see Preservation.

Join NPT today to support these important efforts!

Recent Accomplishments

Worked with the Norwalk Historical Commission to produce the state’s first publication on using the Historic Homeowner Rehabilitation Tax Credits and to establish three new State Register Historic Districts in Norwalk.

Worked with the City of Norwalk to find new uses for Fodor Farm and to secure $100,000 in State Historic Restoration Fund money for the rehabilitation of the Fodor Farm Homestead.

Worked with developers to successfully incorporate three threatened historic homes into a new residential development at 130 Main Street, rather than demolishing them. The result, Lockwood Terrace, helps to preserve the vanishing character of Main Street, profitably combining historic preservation with new construction.

When a restored, historically valued home was demolished in Rowayton, the Norwalk Preservation Trust worked with the city to launch Norwalk’s first demolition delay ordinance. For more on the failed attempt to save the house that led to Norwalk's ordinance, see Past Projects. We are currently working with the Common Council and its Ordinance Committee to review and revise the demolition delay to extend the waiting period to 180 days.

When the Ernst House at 5 Elmcrest Terrace was originally slated for demolition for additional surface parking for Norwalk Hospital, the NPT worked with the Norwalk Redevelopment Agency and a private developer to encourage the Hospital to save the house and convert it to condominiums. For more on this wonderful house and its history, see Past Projects.