So far 25 condominium units have been built.
WILBRAHAM - With its bid to purchase additional land defeated at Monday’s annual Town Meeting, development of Cedar Ridge condominiums off Stony Hill Road will continue as planned, a spokesman for the developer said.
Developer Kent Pecoy was defeated at Monday’s annual town meeting in his request to have some abutting town property declared surplus so he could bid on purchasing the property.
With the bid defeated, the developers will continue to develop the project as planned, Paul Robbins, spokesman for Pecoy, said.
Robbins said Mile Oak Land Holdings LLC which owns the Cedar Ridge condominium project wished to bid on purchasing an additional 19 acres if the town declared it surplus.
In return for the developers acquiring the 19 acres of town-owned land, Mile Oak offered to convey 25 acres of woodland to the rear of the property to the town for permanent preservation.
The 25 acres currently are permitted for three-story attached units.
If the land exchange had taken place, the developer would have continued developing free-standing, detached condominiums, and the three-story buildings would not have been built, Robbins said.
Robbins said the developer could not get the required two-thirds vote required to have the 19 acres of town-owned property declared surplus.
“It is difficult to get a two-thirds vote at Town Meeting,” Robbins said.
Richard Butler, a member of the Planning Board, said residents in their wisdom said they cared more about preserving the trails which have been developed on the existing property than in the additional tax revenue from condominiums on that portion of the property.
“The townspeople, in their judgment, said no,” Butler said.
The town’s Open Space Committee has been cutting trails on the public land to connect to the old McDonald Farm, Butler said.
Following the vote, the developer will continue with his plan to develop free standing condominium units and the three-story buildings in the rear, Robbins said.
So far, 25 condominium units have been built on the property, Robbins said.
With the downturn in the economy, the market slowed for condominium units, he said.
He said the market has started to improve.
The developer had wanted to reconfigure the property because there is more interest from buyers in free-standing units, Robbins said.
The developer will continue building free-standing units, and will continue with the original plan to build three-story units in the back, Robbins said.
The site is permitted for 218 condominium units. Pecoy was offering to reduce the number of units to 203 if he had been able to purchase the additional land.