About BROM
Despite recession, developments succeed
By Nicole M. MalecSOUTH WINDSOR -- Apparently avoiding the recession crunch, two new affordable housing projects in town have sold more than 60 percent of their houses, one even before construction is complete.
Town officials said sales have picked up in the past month, after starting out slowly in the beginning of the summer.
The two projects, Peach Brook and The Neighborhood, are offering moderately priced houses, ranging in price from $113,900 to $149,900.
"We saw a niche that no one was providing for and we developed the land to provide entry-level housing," said Joseph Mannarino of South Windsor, whose family business has completed construction of The Neighborhood, a 51-home development at Sullivan and Ayers roads.
Mannarino said the company's plan was to give the houses "curb appeal." Turn-of-the-century styles were used for the homes, which have front porches, pillars and window crowns.
"If you drive by and don't see what you like, you don't stop. If you like it you may buy it," he said.
The development is set up like a New England village, with gazebos, greens and walkways. Homeowners own a lot and a house, which ranges in size from 1,200 to 1,575 square feet. Residents share about 6 to 7 acres of woods and greens in the development, he said.
Forty of the 51 homes in Mannarino's planned community are sold, he said. The two- and three-bedroom houses are priced from $113,900 to $146,000.
The Peach Brook development on Sullivan Road has only begun construction on three houses, but has already sold 21 of the 33 planned.
Marianne Mastronunzio, of BROM Builders of Norwich, the project developers, said the houses should be completed by the end of 1992.
"Almost all of the houses will have a view of the Hartford skyline, because they are built on a sloping hill," she said.
The development will have a basketball court and two playgrounds, she said.
Many of the homes, which range in price from $116,750 to $149,900, are being sold to first-time buyers. But Mastronunzio said many retired or semi-retired people have been purchasing homes.
"Older people or couples who no longer need a large house, but don't want to live in a condo, are buying," she said. One of the reasons they are so attractive to older people is that several of the five home styles are single-level, she said.
Copyright by The Hartford Courant. Published on 11/14/1991.