Stonington PZC agree to settle appeal with Toll Brothers' project
Mystic — The Stonington Planning and Zoning Commission has approved a settlement of an appeal filed by Toll Brothers Inc., developers of a stalled luxury home project on Pequot Trail in Old Mystic.
The agreement, which now goes to a Superior Court judge for approval, would settle a long running dispute between Toll Brothers and the town over drainage problems with the 48-lot Old Mystic Estates project.
The history of the project stretches back to 2004 when neighbors unsuccessfully appealed the orginal 2004 approval for the project, then called Clairemont. The original developer Meehan Group, LLC cleared the land but never built the homes. It then sold the development to Toll Brothers in 2010. After major flooding in the spring of 2010, the town discovered that the drainage plan created by Meehan Group contained a a major error as Whitehall Pond, where much of the water from the project would flow, did not have an outlet pipe into Mystic River. This meant that if additional runoff was sent to the pond it would be in danger of flooding nearby homes. Meanwhile, runoff from the site in heavy rain had already damaged adjacent properties.
The town halted construction on the portion of the site that drained into the pond. In 2013 Toll Brothers applied for a plan modification that called for three additional drainage basins on the property but the Planning Zoning Commission denied the application citing concerns from town staff. Toll Brothers appealed to Superior Court.
The settlement plan approved by the commission calls for providing an outlet for Whitehall Pond to the Mystic River, deepening the existing basin along Whitehall Avenue so it does not overtop, modifying a swale and and making other modifications so runoff does not impact homes down the hill.
The commission attached 10 stipulations to its approval. Among them is that Toll Brothers post bonds to ensure erosion, sedimentation and drainage work is properly completed and development of a detailed blast plan with $5 million of liability insurance.
j.wojtas@theday.com
@joewojtas
Comment threads are monitored for 48 hours after publication and then closed.