Greenwich Residents Seek Scenic Road Designation For Historic Area

GREENWICH, CT — Two residents are looking to obtain scenic road designation for a stretch of roadway they say is located in "one of the most historically significant locations in Greenwich."

Francia Alvarez and Abigail McCarthy, Representative Town Meeting members from District 12, recently submitted an application for the designation for Palmer Hill Road to the town's Planning & Zoning Commission.

According to documents on file with the town, Palmer Hill Road, which stretches from the corner of Valley Road in North Mianus up to the Stamford border, meets several criteria for scenic road designation, as outlined in the town code.

Alvarez and McCarthy said the road is bordered by mature trees and stone walls, offers scenic views, blends naturally into the surrounding terrain and parallels or crosses over brooks, streams, lakes or ponds.

The area is also "rich in natural history, going back to the last Ice Age 70,000 years ago," Alvarez and McCarthy said. Retreating glaciers released massive ammounts of water and carved out the Mianus River Gorge.

Indigenous settlements and European settlers can also be traced to the Palmer Hill Road and Mianus River area, submitted documents state.

"As early settlers came from Europe, the unique outfall of the river and the natural crossing point became a witness to history as the best east-west passage at the point where the Palmer Hill Bridge now stands," submitted documents note.

An early bridge was built and replaced by a substantial stone structure in 1687, submitted documents say. The structure became the foundation for the current Palmer Hill Road arched bridge construction in 1909.

"By virtue of its age, history and tremendous practical use it has seen over the years, the crossing is one of the most important historic locations in Greenwich," the documents added.

Additionally, during the time of the "Great Estates," Hilltop on Palmer Hill Road was once home to Henry Osborne Havemeyer and his suffragette wife Louisine. The couple donated $250,000 to the town to build the Greenwich School at Arch Street and Greenwich Avenue, which is now the Board of Education building.

The roadway also features the landmark 1832 Abel Palmer farmhouse.

Called the "gateway to Greenwich," Alvarez and McCarthy said they have often traveled Palmer Hill Road to drop their children off at North Mianus School.

"Because of these many features, we are strongly in favor of a scenic road designation for Palmer Hill Road, and we will work to help further our community's knowledge and appreciation of our natural and neighborhood's history," Alvarez and McCarthy said in submitted documents.

The two have established a website on Palmer Hill Road, its history and the plan to seek scenic road designation.

More information can be found here.

The application has not yet been scheduled to go before the Greenwich Planning & Zoning Commission.