4 Hartford Business Journal • February 24, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com
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developer's plan to build age-restricted, 55-
plus condos just down the road from the golf
course also faced local resistance.
Nebraska-based developer Cameron General
Contractors recently floated the age-restrict-
ed housing plan but ultimately abandoned
the site, following a cool reception from some
planning board members who felt the project
would be too dense. A preliminary project
meeting last fall was also attended by dozens
of Save Nod Road members, signaling a dif-
ficult fight ahead for the project, said David
Richman, a Save Nod Road board member.
"There was so much opposition [Cameron
General Contractors] heard from the board
that they decided 'we're not going to do it,' "
Richman recounted.
A Cameron official confirmed the firm is
pursuing other sites in town for its 55-plus
development, but declined to comment on its
reasoning for shelving the Nod Road location.
Giorgio is a longtime developer whose re-
sume includes the $40-million Dorset Cross-
ing mixed-use project in Avon, Stonebridge
Estate luxury condos in West Hartford, and
manufacturing and bioscience facilities in
Pennsylvania, Florida and elsewhere.
He said Save Nod Road members are likely
to oppose whatever he ultimately pitches, but
he also isn't willing to give up on his hopes for
Blue Fox Run.
"We do believe that it's a very good piece of
developable property and we've invested a lot of
money in it already," he said. "I think there's al-
ways an opportunity to do something. It's a ques-
tion of how it's packaged and how it's presented."
Lisa Wilson-Foley, who owns the golf course,
could not be reached for comment.
Save Nod Road is a bit more official than
loosely organized groups that crop up in many
towns to oppose a particular project.
It won nonprofit status in 2018, and since
then, Save Nod Road Preservation Inc. has
raised approximately $100,000, according to
president Chris Carville, who owns the Pickin'
Patch, a 353-year-old farm on Nod Road that's
among the oldest in the state.
It used some of that money to hire attorneys
and other experts during the fight against
Giorgio's housing proposal, Richman said.
The nonprofit's mission is to promote and
expand permanent land preservation and
responsible land management and protect
wildlife in the Farmington Valley.
While Carville declined to discuss what, if
any, hypothetical Nod Road developments the
group may support, he said members oppose
any projects on Blue Fox Run.
Another major concern the group has is traffic.
Richman, the Save Nod Road board member,
moved to a condo community located just off
Nod Road a few years ago.
Since then, he said he has seen traffic backups
grow at both ends of the long thoroughfare, which
drivers use to cut between Routes 10 and 44.
"The area as a whole cannot absorb any more
traffic," Richman said.
Even if nothing is ever built again on Nod
Road, he predicts traffic will continue to
increase, due to other nearby developments,
such as the massive Avon Village Center
mixed-use project now under construction
just a few miles away down Route 44, which
will be anchored by Whole Foods.
Richman, a commercial real estate investor-
landlord and health insurance benefits broker
by trade, said he sees no irony in his opposi-
tion to development on his street, which many
would characterize as NIMBYism.
"I'm pro development," he insisted. "It's
about smart development and it's also about
where it is."
>> Town Profile continued
Avon
General
Land area (sq. miles) 23
Median age 45
Population (2020) 19,795
Median household income $125,536
Unemployment rate 2.1%
Major Employers
Town of Avon
Norcom Management & Insurance
Women's Health
Avon Health Center
O.F.S. Fitel LLC
Housing stock
Median price $378,000
Median rent $1,404
Government
Total revenue (2017) $94,230,964
Per capita tax $4,193
Mill rate 32.9
Grand list $2,573,057,212
Economy
Top employment
industries Units Jobs
Health care and social assitance 131 1,699
Retail trade 87 1,044
Professional, scientific and
technical services 126 837
Top taxpayers (2019)
Eversource $20,563,710
Avon 46 LLC (Avon Place) $15,984,540
Two Fifty Five West Main LLC $14,651,339
Source: Connecticut Economic Resource Center
