Letter to the Editor: Smith Neck Road Neighbor Calls for Public Oversight of Zoning Meeting, Monday

Dear Editor:

The Old Lyme Zoning Commission is meeting Monday, Jan. 13 at 6:30 p.m. in the Old Lyme Memorial Town Hall to review and possibly approve a new plan for 43 Smith Neck Road next to the Smith Neck Boat Launch.

The Issue:
43 Smith Neck Road (revised special permit application for Jeffrey and Emily Merriam, whose prior application for an 11,000 sq ft house was rejected a year ago) is on the agenda, again.

In January 2025, the Zoning Commission unanimously denied the Merriams’ application for an 11,000-square-foot house that did not comply with town regulations. The Connecticut River Gateway Commission also recommended denial, as did 100+ citizens who attended the zoning meeting. Normally, a zoning denial would require the applicant to start the zoning application process over from scratch, unless there is a lawsuit involved.

In February 2025, the Merriams sued the town, claiming that the regulations were illegally vague despite the fact that hundreds of prior applicants have figured them out. The CT Examiner provided the context for the lawsuit in an article from Feb. 11, 2025: “Emily Merriam, owner of the property at 43 Smith Neck Road, told CT Examiner after the meeting that she was disappointed by the decision and expected to take the town to court. ‘I’m not changing my house. I mean, I bought that. We’ve paid so much money already, going back to giving them what they want. We have to go to court,’ Merriam said.” 

The Merriams recently made a new proposal to the town to settle the lawsuit based on a revised site plan that was not publicly disclosed, as it would be in a normal zoning process. If the new proposal is compliant with zoning regulations, the Merriams should present it to all concerned parties (in advance) and not work behind closed doors. At the very least, they should have to get any plans approved through the normal zoning process.

Why You Should Attend:

The Zoning Commission plans to meet in closed session and may vote on the latest proposal as part of a legal settlement WITHOUT sharing materials for public review prior to the meeting or allowing public comment. This is possible, only because there is a regulation that allows for settlement of a lawsuit without requiring the normal zoning review process. It seems wrong that anyone unhappy with a zoning decision can circumvent the normal process by filing a lawsuit.

What we can do by attending:

• Require public input and transparency in the public building and zoning process.
• Stop construction of a huge house built next to the boat landing at Smith Neck Road that does not comply with zoning requirements and blocks the views that many people enjoy at the boat landing daily.
• Ensure that spending money does not give anyone the right to ignore the rules or litigate with our town, zoning officials and ignore the Connecticut River Gateway Commission.

Please come to the meeting on Monday, Jan. 12, at 6:30 p.m. to support the Zoning Commission and require the Merriams to follow the same zoning review process as the rest of us and protect our community’s voice in this process.

Editor’s Note: Richardson stated that he is the direct neighbor on Smith Neck Road. This detail was unintentionally omitted in the publication of this letter. LymeLine apologizes for the error.