Site Work Starts on Controversial Vestal Housing Project

Crews have started the process of clearing a heavily-wooded area of Vestal for a massive housing development.

Landmark Properties of Georgia is moving forward on the 161-unit project on 43 acres between Bunn Hill Road and Jensen Road.

A group of Vestal residents spent several years trying to block the project. Opponents expressed a range of concerns, including safety issues because of the increased traffic that would be generated by the project.

A state appeals court ruled against the opponents and the current town board opted not to fight the developers.

Victor Lamoureux, who lives near the project site, said logging work started on Monday. He said "this pretty much ruins my morning walk."

Lamourex said he believes the developers "pretty much bullied the town board." He said "the board kind of wimped out" by not repealing the project approval granted by a previous board.

In an email, town supervisor Maria Sexton wrote that town board members had worked for weeks "to ascertain whether we should (or could) repeal" the planned development district for the project.

Sexton noted the board held a public forum and conducted a resident survey on the project.

The Retreat at Bunn Hill will include a variety of units ranging from two to five bedrooms. The development will be constructed a short distance south of the Binghamton University campus in Vestal.

It's not known when the first Retreat at Bunn Hill units will be available.

This story has been updated to include comments from Vestal town supervisor Maria Sexton.

VIDEO: A look at the project site off Bunn Hill Road in Vestal on April 24, 2024.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.