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May 5, 2021

Southington voters approve town purchase of golf course development rights

Southington Planning and Zoning Commission A map showing a possible subdivision development on the land now occupied by the Southington Golf Course.
By Zachary Vasile

Southington residents on Tuesday approved the town government’s $4.5 million purchase of development rights to the privately-owned Southington Golf Course, a move expected to prevent the construction of a 114-lot subdivision on the property.

According to the town clerk’s office, 2,419 people voted in favor of the buyout, and 719 voted against it.

The town now has authorization to secure the development rights to the nearly 100-acre property, meaning that while the land would continue to be owned by the Calvanese and Kastner families, they would give up the right to build on it or use it for anything other than a golf course or recreational green space. The same would apply to any future owners of the Southington Golf Course.

The land had been approved for a 114-lot subdivision by the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission.

Residents backing the town’s purchase had argued that new homes would bring new families, inundating and possibly overburdening the public school system with students and negating any boost in local tax revenues. They also cited the need to preserve green spaces in a community that has seen decades of continuous residential and commercial building.

Those opposed deemed the deal a waste of money, asserting that the town was simply paying the golf course’s owners to continue operating their existing business.

The Southington Town Council approved a similar deal five years ago, buying the development rights to Hawk’s Landing Country Club on the north side of town for just under $1 million. Like the Southington Golf Course, Hawk’s Landing had been eyed for possible residential development.

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