The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Record-breaking contract signed for luxury condo
GUILFORD — A quintessential New England town is enjoying a hot market for ultra high-end, million dollar condos.
The $5 million luxury penthouse condo to be built in 2022 at The Residences at 66 High Street is under contract and expected to break the record for condominium sales in New Haven County when it closes, according to One & Company, a team from William Raveis Real Estate.
In addition, the individual who signed the contract for the $5 million unit also pre-bought another one in the building — the third floor unit at $1.8 million.
This presale follows the recent record-breaking $3.65 million closing on a deluxe penthouse condominium in the Leete building at the award-winning 66 High Street development. The sale also represents at record breaking per square foot price at more than $912 per square foot. The purchaser of this unit was the Robert J. Leary family Spray Trust, with Thomas Leary and Janet Lemere named as co-trustees.
“There’s nothing else like it on the Shoreline,” Nicole White of One & Co. said of the luxury development.
When developer Kenny Horton first developed the property, once home to Clinipad Corp, his venture was considered risky by naysayers, according to Byron Levine also of One & Company.
Horton, Levine said, “created a new market” for uber luxury condos.
“There were no million dollar” condos “at this level,” Levin added. “Nothing at this scale.”
Horton faced “huge risks when he took this project on,” Levine said. “I don’t think many individuals in town thought he was going to be able to pull it off.
“He literally created a luxury market out of thin air where buyers, who have second and third homes in other areas, could truly treat this like a hotel room and come and go as they please,” Levine said.
“It’s like staying at The Ritz Carlton where you close your door and you don’t have to worry about anything.”
The project required extensive site work, Levine noted.
“He cleaned up the entire site for the community in Guilford.” Now the development is among the top five taxpayers in town.
Horton estimated that is cost “probably $1 million” for the envionmental clean-up of the former
industrial site, that was once a working mill in the late 1800s. The entire project cost “north of $50 million,” he said.
So far, The Residences holds the top four spots for the highest condominium sales in the county: $3.7 million, $2.3 million, $2 million and $1.6 million, according to One & Company.
Horton said the value of the units are growing since he sold the first units in the new buildings. “I think the first buyers that bought for about $1 million, they could probably sell for double
their money now.”
What is the appeal of the highend complex?
Horton said he “fell in love” with the prime location at 66 High St. — its nearness to the historic town green and downtown.
“In three or four minutes you can walk to the town green, you can walk to the train station, you can walk to the town beach, you can walk to the town docks,” he said. “I felt the location was so important — I’ve .basically built award-winning units with the
best of amenities in the perfect location. I just thought over the years, this location would be so valuable, people would start buying here.”
Units start at $1.4 million and all three buildings, The Leete, The Mill, The Whitfield are completely sold. Condos in The Chittenden, expected to be completed in 2022-23, are offered for presale now.
The project has won Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Connecticut Awards for “Project of the Year” and “Best Luxury Condo Development” in 2021.
Horton, who has lived in Guilford with his wife for a few years, is clearly proud of the devlopment. He said he promised his wife that he would build something special.
His wife told him, “‘Kenny, if you are going to do something in our hometown, you better make sure it’s going to be the most beautiful thinkg that people have ever seen,’ ” Horton recalled.
The penthouse in the yet-to-be built Chittenden will offer panoramic views of marsh and Long Island Sound. Some units offer views of the West River as well.
The $3.65 million unit in The Leete offers views of unspoiled marsh and the Guilford Yacht Club, according to White.
Top-end finishes and materials are used throughout the units, which have an open floor plan with high ceilings. The gourmet kitchens feature premium appliances such as Wolf and Subzero. Marsh views abound as the 15-acre property is comprised of some 11 acres of marshland.
“The finishes on the unit are spectacular as well as the construction,” White said. “It’s the top-of-the-line — everything.”
Creature comforts abound: “The finishes are all custom. In this unit there’s hardwood floors throughout,” White said. “There are two islands in the kitchen with quartz countertops, a soaking tub in the master, heated floors.”
White said of Horton’s attention to detail: “His lighting package is stunning. He ended up using scones made of rock — he’s a rock collector.”
White said that many who live at 66 High Street are local residents who have downsized. They wanted a place here in town,” she said.
Also, many buyers came from New York, White said.
“We had a bunch of New York buyers that wanted to get out of New York or wanted to get something a big different from the Hamptons,” she added.
Horton said COVID first slowed sales and left them “stuck here for nine months with no one visiting to buy a unit.” But, once the shut down ended, it was an entirely different scenario, he said.
The hot real estate market allowed local residents who wanted to downsize to sell their waterfront homes quickly and buy into 66 High Street, Horton said.
“A lot of people lived in big houses on the ocean they wanted to get out of,” he said. The condominium complex has much to offer empty nesters, he added.
The development is elevator serviced and offers one-floor living and handicapped access. It also offers an onsite dog park, a private fitness center outfitted with top-of-the-line equipment, a community garden and a pool.
White noted that Horton is also a resident and that fact “speaks volumes to the residents,” White said. “Not only does he build it, but he chooses to live there as well. They have full access to him with questions.”
About the residents, White said, “They certainly help us sell it — they really do love their community.”