Selectmen OK Funding for Hoyt Street Sidewalk Land Survey

Efforts to install a sidewalk along the north end of Hoyt Street took another stride forward on Monday as the Board of Selectmen approved funding for a study of the site.

The $8,500 transfer, which requires sign-off from the Board of Finance, would cover a property line survey on the east side of Hoyt Street from Country Club Road to Barringer Road.

A number of residents in the area for pedestrians to travel on without a sidewalk — a particular headache for those who commute via the Talmadge Hill station just over the New Canaan border.

Monday's vote of residences on Hoyt Street, Barringer Road, Country Club Road, and Leeds Lane. Of the 55 households that responded, 42 favored a sidewalk, six did not, and seven did not indicate an opinion.

According to a memo from Darien's , the land survey will map out rights of way, trees, buildings, surface features, and other potential obstacles within a corridor surrounding the proposed sidewalk site. Because Hoyt Street is a state road, any sidewalk built along it must conform to state specifications.

The approved funding does not cover the small section of Hoyt Street between Country Club Lane and Leeds Lane. Selectman David Bayne asked at Monday's meeting if that strip should be included in the survey, but the board agreed to consider the issue separately if a transfer request comes from DPW.

The survey will also exclude the west side of the street, which had been considered for possible sidewalk placement. First Selectman Dave Campbell said that DPW had determined the west side "wasn't feasible" for the project and that the neighbors on that side of the road were opposed to the plan.