An application for a permit to demolish the house and other structures at 21-23 Sylvan Road North has been filed with the Building Department. Known as the Brosnahan-Bernhard Estate, the 2¾-story colonial revival has 7,822 square feet, was built in 1921-1922, and is located on a 12.3-acre property. Because the house is older than 60 years and is on the list of the historic resource inventory, the application will be reviewed by the Historic District Commission. According to the HDC, the house was originally built for George C. Engel of New York City. In 1945, it was sold to the Bernhard family. The current owner is listed on the demolition application as Jane Bernhard et al trustees. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
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8 thoughts on “WestportNow Teardown of the Day: 21-23 Sylvan Road North”
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Here we go again. and still. With 12 + acres, why can’t the esiting home beleft and incorporated into whatever development(assuming multiple homes) is planned? Isn’t 7,800sq ft large enough for someone to live?
This huge house has charm and character. It ought to be left standing and the interior updated to current standards and not be replaced with a generic monster house. No doubt the 12+ acres will be pretty much clear cut to make room for whatever.
Janet Beasley
A good friend was married in this home back in the 60s and I remember how gracious and lovely it was. I too would love the interior to be updated but the outside to be kept the same so that the character isn’t lost. Oh well, another historic home (85 years is a long time) about to be a tear down. When will it end?
it will end soon. Look at the already massive layoffs on Wall Street (with more to come) and bonuses of the same that will be down big-time this year. I wish the builders our area good luck….
The state recently changed the delay time on a demolition to 180 days from 90.
Incidently – Sadly the Norwalk mayor just vetoed a common council ordinance seeking that time. Too bad, our Norwalk neighbors have worked hard to preserve their history. Hopefully they can bring it back for signing with some tweaks.
Westport needs to get a grip on all of this and slow down the wrecking ball. The HDC will certainly be requesting of the RTM to change our ordinance to match the state.
As to this property, I think we need to know what is coming before we say yeah or nay to this tear down. Once gone its gone.
Hopefully the proposal will be in character with the neighborhood, that being single family houses. The developers need to know that a proportional amount of open space will be requested. The 10% the P&Z will require through the subdivision regs is no where near enough. This is a large parcel and a large piece can and must be saved.
David is exactly right. Be careful whom you vote for!
I’m whole-heartedly supporting Mike Krawiec and Helen Block as the only P&Z commissioners who haven’t taken leave of their senses and will work to turn back the tide of the wholesale overdevelopment and demolition of this town.
Get out the vote, people! There is a lot riding on this election!
This is a huge house. Maybe it could be condominimized and converted into affordable housing condos or apartments, with a few other appropriately scaled outbuildings on the property, also for reasonably sized condos.
Maybe the town should snap this one up for senior and workforce housing? It beats the plan Gordon is proposing for Baron’s South.
It’s a beautiful house and property that should be carefully handled. Let’s hope!
Off topic, but given the many people that gave sincere and sustained input into the Town Plan process, I would have hoped to have seen more publicity given to the P&Z’s final adoption of the Town Plan on October 25. It is not yet posted on-line but is available at Town Hall.
John D. McCarthy
Candidate for RTM District 9
————————-
LEGAL NOTICE OF DECISION Notice is hereby given that at a meeting held on October 25, 2007, the Westport Planning and Zoning Commission took the following
action:
ADOPTED: 2007 WESTPORT TOWN PLAN OF CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT, pursuant to section 8-23 of The Connecticut General Statutes and Section C10-2 of The Westport Town Charter. Effective date: 12/15/07
The above item is on file with the Town Clerk and the Planning and Zoning Office in Town Hall at 110 Myrtle Avenue.
Dated at Westport, Connecticut this 2nd day of November, 2007
Eleanor Lowenstein, Co-Chairman, Planning and Zoning Commission
Ron Corwin, Co-Chairman, Planning and Zoning Commission
Soon there won’t be a house left in town that was built prior to 1985. Westport used to be a beautiful town. Now, like New Canaan, its a town of giant mcmansions, where the residents are obsessed with “keeping up with the Jone’s” and “maintaining property values”. The worst part about this, is that the demolished homes built prior to the 1950s were constructed with superior building materials that can’t be replicated, the crafsmanship that went into building the tear downs was better (I don’t believe they used prefab construction in the 1940s) and (gasp) had character. My theory is that all of the giant, energy ineffecient monstrosities that are replacing the nice houses in town will, over the course of the next 20 years be converted into condos or apartment buildings. Why can’t this builder upgrade the 7,200 square foot house? Too small for the targeted market?