What Replaced Ellington’s 50-Unit Senior Housing Plan

ELLINGTON, CT — A Wapping Wood Road property once slated for 50 age-restricted homes is instead moving forward as a 14-lot residential subdivision.

The Ellington Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously approved the subdivision at 53 Wapping Wood Road on July 27, according to the meeting minutes.

Mannarino Builders’ plans for the 28.79-acre property include a roughly 750-foot public cul-de-sac, public water and sewer service, stormwater controls and land to be conveyed as open space.

The approval marked another turn for a property that had been rezoned in August 2025 for a 50-unit senior community.

Developers returned to the commission several months later and said the market for age-restricted housing had changed. They estimated that about 400 similar units had been approved or were nearing approval in surrounding communities, representing more than a decade’s supply.

They also said competing projects were closer to shopping, highways and other amenities, making the Ellington proposal difficult to pursue.

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The commission approved changing the property back from a designed multifamily zone to a residential zone in January. That vote passed with Commissioner Jeremiah Williams opposed, according to the January meeting minutes.

Several residents raised concerns during that hearing. Barbara McCarthy of Wapping Wood Road said she would prefer the property remain farmland. Carlo and Eileen DiFilippo questioned how runoff would affect neighboring properties and whether the development would add pressure to Windermere School.

Another neighbor, Janet Young, raised concerns about existing water problems in the area. Project engineer Eric Peterson told the commission that drainage would be addressed during the subdivision’s design and that the plans would be required to prevent runoff from leaving the property.

No residents spoke for or against the final subdivision application during the July hearing.

Commissioners were told that a traffic study had not been completed. Meeting minutes describe the Connecticut Department of Transportation’s review of the proposed road design as preliminary.

The commission approved the subdivision with several conditions. Final plans must comply with the town’s drainage, sidewalk and road standards and receive approval from the town engineer.

The project also requires final sanitary-system approval, a developer’s agreement and an easement from 51 Wapping Wood Road. Other conditions cover street trees, legal documents, utility service and a cluster mailbox planned for one of the lots.

The proposed open-space conveyance appeared on the Conservation Commission’s Oct. 13 agenda for discussion related to acceptance by the Board of Selectmen.

The available meeting records do not provide a construction timetable or anticipated prices for the homes.

For more Northern Connecticut news, follow Patch editor Jay Kenney.