P & Z Okays small animal clinic

By Lloyd Garrison
Norfolk’s Planning & Zoning Commission (P & Z) has approved Dr. Kim Maynard’s application for a special permit to establish a clinic for small animals inside the town’s village residential zone.
The commission voted unanimously to waive the five-acre zoning requirement for kennels and veterinary medical services within the town.
The vote reflected an impressive outpouring of support for Dr. Maynard, a Norfolk resident for six years whose Litchfield Hills Mobile Veterinary Clinic can often be seen parked across from the post office and making house calls around the area.

Kim Maynard DVM and her mobile clinic.

“Given the state of the economy, getting an animal clinic would be a real plus for the town,” said Barbara Mulville, the first of four residents at the public hearing who rose to speak on Dr. Maynard’s behalf. P & Z also received 11 letters of support for the clinic.
In making her presentation, Dr. Maynard said she wanted to cut down on her driving and needed a permanent facility closer to town “to provide for the surgical and medical needs of animals.”
“Small animals, right?” asked commission member West Lowe.
“Yes, mainly dogs and cats,” said Dr. Maynard. “No farm animals.”
P & Z Chairman William Riiska noted that dogs recovering from surgery would have to remain indoors if staying overnight. The permit does not allow for a kennel for boarding dogs. It also mandates off-street parking and prohibits “unsightly appearances and offensive odors.”
“I am not looking to build an animal hospital,” said Dr. Maynard. “I want to occupy an existing location visible to the public on or near Route 44 where I can do check-ups and surgery and keep records and do the billing. There would be an assistant on duty when I am not there.”
Dr. Maynard, who grew up in Bradenton, Florida and went to college and took her veterinary training in that state, became acquainted with this area when she interned at an animal medical facility in West Hartford. She then served 13 years on the staff of the Trumbull Animal Hospital in Fairfield County.
“When I got married,” she said, “we drove all over and finally bought some land and built a house on State Line Road in 2004.” Their home is in Norfolk, but only a few steps this side of the Massachusetts border.
Her husband, Andrew Luciano, is an ex-Army Ranger who teaches high school history. The two met while competing in a triathlon and now train together, biking and running the Norfolk hills and swimming at the Geer YMCA in Canaan. They have an adopted son, Kyle, 3 ½, who is Korean, and shortly expect a baby girl, also from Korea, to join the family.
The Maynard house is also home to four cats, two Australian cattle dogs and a rescued mixed Golden Retriever.