New 55-and-over homes proposed in central CT town that’s becoming known for them

A local company wants to build 27 age-restricted houses on a vacant tract in Southington , the third subdivision exclusively for seniors that’s been proposed or built this year.

Hoylst Real Estate LLC is seeking town permission to build on 7.5 undeveloped acres off Lazy Lane, about a half-mile west of Queen Street.

Hoylst put forward its proposal last week, and residents will get to offer their opinions about the plan on Oct. 17.

Hoylst’s proposal comes the same year that Lovley Development Inc. won a zone change for an active adult community of 27 homes in the Plantsville section and AA Denorfia Building and Development began marketing its 23 new homes near the Meriden line.

After white-hot growth in Connecticut following the pandemic, the pace of new apartment construction slowed sharply this year. But privately developed senior housing has been more resilient to higher interest rates and Southington has been one of the key communities attracting developers.

Hoylst, whose principals include Town Council member Jack Perry and his father, Kurt Holyst, bought a roughly 13-acre undeveloped tract in March for $405,000 from the Yorski family, according to municipl land records.

Nature’s Estates would be built along a new road to be built north from Lazy Lane, according to plans that Hoylst filed with the town’s planning and zoning commission last week. Commissioners will conduct a hearing Oct. 17 on the company’s request for site plan approval and a zone change.

The houses would front on Nature’s Way, a new cul de sac that would have 19 houses along its outside curb. The roadway would wrap around another eight. All would have access exclusively off the cul de sac, according to plans submitted by the developer’s engineering consultant, Southington-based Cole Civil + Survey.

The application doesn’t give details about the houses themselves, but indicates that Nature’s Way would be a privately maintained roadway.

Elsewhere in Southington, AA Denorfia Building and Development LLC is completing its Highland Ridge active adult community at 570 Meriden-Waterbury Turnpike. The 23 homes are restricted to owners age 55 and up, and range in size from about 1,500 square feet to about 1,700. Recent price listings ranged from the $490,000s to the $550,000s.

Highland Ridge’s homes are primarily three-bedroom units with two full baths, a gas fireplace and a patio or deck.

Earlier this year, the town gave a zone change to Lovley Development, a Plantsville-based developer, to build the Braemar Estates age-restricted housing complex at 347 and 349 Marion Ave. and part of 153 Pine St. The 27 free-standing houses are three-bedroom models with two bathrooms and a garage. Sizes range from 1,400 to 1,600 square feet.

Mark Lovley’s Lovley Development Inc. has had previous success marketing condo-style detached homes for seniors in town. It completed Muirfield Estates on Pacer Lane in 2021 and Kings Ridge on South End Road in 2020. Each has 15 units, and both projects are sold out.

Age-restricted housing developers frequently base part of their proposal to municipal officials around the tax savings of developing land for seniors rather than families, since 55-and-over housing doesn’t attract children. For some suburbs, the prospect of more children in already costly schools has become a concern.