MONROE, CT — R. Stone Co. LLC wants to move its operations from Bridgeport to 169 Enterprise Drive in Monroe, where it would cut stone for building facades and interiors. The natural rocks would come in from Newtown for processing.
Production Manager Joseph Tivadar and Alan Shepard, the engineer for the project, presented a preliminary plan to the Planning and Zoning Commission at its meeting last Thursday.
“I feel it’s exactly the type of business that we’re trying to attract,” Commissioner Robert Westlund said.
“I like it a lot. I would be moving toward approval,” Ryan Condon, the commission secretary, agreed. He added that he just wants to see the landscaping plan and for designs for the application’s two buildings to be reviewed by the Architectural Review Board.
Chairman Michael O’Reilly and Vice Chairman Bruno Maini also said they viewed the proposal favorably. A hearing on a formal application will be held on Sept. 16.
According to the preliminary plan, two buildings would be constructed on Enterprise Drive, one for production and the other for offices. Both buildings would be steel, and stand at approximately 20 feet tall with a stone veneer.
The property would be landscaped, Shepard said.
He said the company already has approval from Newtown to bring the raw materials to Monroe. Shepard said a machine in one Monroe building would split stones into the desired shapes, with the work performed in an enclosed space. Then a water system in the other building would ensure there is no dust.
The finished products will be delivered in trucks, according to Shepard. Tivadar said there would be two-to-three truck loads going out per day.
Tivadar said there would be no retail on the site. “We’re a producer/manufacturer. We’re not open to the public,” he said.
He said his company wants to get an approval from the Monroe Planning and Zoning Commission so R. Stone can buy the property at 169 Enterprise Drive.
Perfect fit for Monroe to go along with its mining and quarry operations, but the sad thing is the stone comes from Newtown, so who pays for the roads that eventually will be destroyed by truck traffic? I say have them partner with the a rock quarry in Monroe and keep all of the business in town.