Agenda - Planning Commission - 09/07/1999

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z.g. August 10, 1999 -- Page 7 Certificate of Occupancy -- Neighbor challenges board's interpretation of zoning ordinance CONNECTICUT (6/10/99) -- Ridgeway owned a shopping center in Stamford. The city zoning board issued Ridgeway a certificate of occupancy to allow Stop & Shop to use a portion of the shopping center for a grocery store. Caporizo owned a condo near the shopping center. He asked the board to revoke Stop & Shop's certificate, claiming Stop & Shop was violating the city zoning ordinance by leasing a total of 72,000 square feet. The zoning ordi- nance provided that "individual retail food uses shall not exceed a gross floor area of 60,000 square feet." Stop & Shop was using 60,000 square feet of the premises as a retail store. The remaining 12,000-square-foot section was used for storage. The storage space was separated from the retail use by a hallway and a stairwell, and an- other tenant apparently used some of this space as well. The zoning board discussed the meaning of the zoning ordinance. The chair- man said the most reasonable interpretation was that the ordinance meant the selling floor couldn't exceed 60,000 square feet. The chairman said he didn't think the storage space was meant to be included. One board member said, "Retail is retail. You sell out of the store. You don't sell out of the warehouse." The board dismissed Caporizo's request and affirmed the issuance of the occupancy certificate, finding Stop & Shop was using only 60,000 square feet for "individual retail use." Caporizo appealed to court. DECISION: Affirmed. The board properly refused to revoke Stop & Shop's occupancy certificate. Although Caporizo's interpretation was plausible, the zoning board's inter- pretation was more logical. The extra space Stop & Shop leased was used for storage. It was separated from the retail area and was used by another tenant as well. The zoning board's interpretation of an ordinance it was responsible fall- enforcing deserved great deference and could be overturned only if it was un- reasonable. The board discussed the meaning of the ordinance and denied Caporizo's request to overturn the certificate only after it concluded that Stop & Shop's storage space shouldn't be considered "individual retail food uses." As a board member said in a very pithy manner, "Retail is retail. You sell out of the store. You don't sell out of the warehouse." Caporizo ,: Zoning Board of Appeals of the CiO, of Stamford, Superior Cottrt of Co~necticut, Judicial Dist. of Stamford-Norwalk, at Stamford, No. 980167153 (1999). .~. see also: Francini v. Zoning Board of Appeals, 639 A.2d 519 (1994). see also: Pleasant View Farms Development Inc. v. Zoning Board of Appeals, 588 A.2d 1372 (1991).