A national homebuilder has received approval to build 121 single-family houses on part of 195.5 acres of historic former farmland, orchards, and woods in Mansfield, Burlington County.
Centex Homes LLC, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based PulteGroup Inc., one of the nation’s largest homebuilders, got preliminary and final major site plan approval and subdivision approval from the Township Joint Land Use Board in July. The Township adopted a resolution memorializing the decision in August.
The 89 Petticoat Bridge Road plan also calls for Centex Homes to convey 10 acres of the former Carty Farm to the Township for future development into 129 affordable housing units.
Both projects would add the most residential units to the town since 2001, according to annual construction statistics in the developer’s impact statement filed with the board.
Centex has owned the property for about 20 years and previously obtained approvals for 310 houses under a settlement agreement with the Township. The agreement has been amended several times over the years.
According to the developer’s plans, undeveloped acreage will be allowed to revert to its passive state.
Griffin Chase, the name for the development, will include two-story, four-bedroom detached homes between 2,062 and 2,525 square feet with an average sale price of $600,000, according to the developer’s impact statement.
The statement notes that the project’s total market value, based on the estimated per-unit price, will be $72,600,000.
Mansfield’s population of 8,974, estimated by the Census Bureau’s five-year American Community Survey for 2024, would increase by a projected 450 residents in the single-family home development, according to the developer.
The projections also add 102 public school children to the local district and the Northern Burlington County Regional School District. Property taxes from Griffin Chase would not cover the cost of the students in either district, the statement notes.
Centex accommodated a historical request in its plans.
The nonprofit Rev War Alliance of Burlington County asked for an informational monument and road pull-off area along Petticoat Bridge Road to memorialize the Revolutionary War Battle of Petticoat Bridge.
The organization will host a special event on December 10 at the former farm, now under development, to commemorate the battle.
