Westport mill to become condos at $1 million and up
Westport — The large brick, stone and timber building on Richmondville Avenue got its start back in the early 1800s as a timber mill. Since then it has served as a home to other businesses and a space for artists.
Now, it will come fullcircle, sort of, in its latest iteration as The Mill Westport, a planned luxury condominium complex with units starting at just under $1 million and going as high as $3.85 million.
“With exquisite architectural design and contemporary aesthetics, The Mill Westport will be a cut above in luxury design,” said Joe Feinleib, principal of Coastal Luxury Homes, one of the companies involved in the project. “Vast amenity spaces and turnkey living offer a unique residential experience in the heart of Westport.”
The project sits on a 2.41-acre site, which includes the buildings, parking, a small dog park, a swimming pool and surrounding gardens and terraces. There are 31 units planned, ranging from $995,000 to $3.85 million. It includes a mix of oneto three-bedroom units in either the new modern or vintage modern styles.
There are also shared spaces, including a great room, cafe, patio, rooftop deck, hot tub, health and wellness centerand concierge service.
Sales just started with the units expected to be completed by early 2023. The project comes as Westport is trying to diversify its housing stock.
Alex Chingas, the listing agent for the property, said a handful of units are already under contract.
“This building — along with the Bankside project — represent the first new condos developed in Westport in a number of years,” said Danielle Dobin, the Planning and Zoning Commission chairwoman.
First Selectwoman Jennifer Tooker said the project is an alternative to single-family living and the associated maintenance.
“It also offers a multifamily housing option in a residential zoning district, distinct from the Post Road where most other similar developments are located,” she said.
Chingas said the other condos in town are generally attached townhouses,
as opposed to a fully serviced building. The 10,000 square feet of amenity space and the fact the project is a restoration are also unique, he said.
And while the marketrate units won't contribute to the town's affordable housing inventory, the project does include some off-site affordability elements.
Westport zoning regulations require 20 percent of the total units in multifamily projects to be affordable, or for the developer to provide off-site affordable housing in compelling cases with the location and design approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission.
In this case, the developer
renovated a townowned historic building on Riverside Avenue and provided the equivalent of the required affordable units there instead, offering them to adults with special needs, and providing living space for one staff member. Four are rented at 40 percent of area median income and one is rented at 60 percent of the area median income, officials said.
The town approved that project back in 2019.
Dobin said the project also showcases the value of public hearings because the developer worked with the immediate neighbors to address their concerns, including those over height and traffic.
“Public hearings provide an opportunity for neighbors and applicants to work together to create positive change with community buy-in,” she said.
Both Tooker and Dobin said they're pleased to see the former mill restored.
“It always feels like a victory to preserve and adaptively reuse historic buildings of this scale,” Dobin said. “It often requires a lot of funding and sensitivity to design to ensure an antique structure isn't demolished. Here, the design team was really able to preserve and enhance historic elements while creating a modern project.”
She said it has an interesting history and could have ended up as more office space or demolished for single-family homes given its history and neighborhood it's in.
The restoration included removing the additions put up in the 1950s and 60s and adding historic replica windows, helping the building look more like what it did back in the 1800s. The new additions that will go in the back and north side of the building will play off the earlier factory aesthetic, according to a release from the company.
“This is a wonderful project,” Tooker said. “Adaptive re-use of the Lee's Mill Building at 41 Richmondville Ave., will allow an important part of Westport's manufacturing history to be preserved and environmental remediation activities to be completed.”
Those connected to the project also tout its offerings to potential residents.
“Location is everything,” said Sam Gault, president of Gault Family Companies, one of the company's involved with the project. “From the amazing downtown events like the Fine Arts Festival and concerts at the Levitt Pavilion to being steps away from some of the top eateries in town, residents at The Mill will enjoy the best of both worlds; a walkable neighborhood setting with access to all that Westport has to offer.”