The former Honda dealership at 290 Mason Street came down Saturday, July 25, clearing the site for Chilston Court, a 75-unit condominium development that has drawn opposition from neighbors and conditions from the Planning and Zoning Commission since 2023.

But demolition is outpacing the legal process. Mason Street Partners LLC, the developer led by principal Josh Caspi, is still suing the town's Planning and Zoning Commission over conditions attached to the project's approval. A Hartford Superior Court judge has not yet ruled in the case, and no hearing date has been announced.

What's planned

Chilston Court would place two buildings on either side of Mason Street near the Greenwich Train Station: a six-story building at 275 Mason Street with 55 condos and a five-story building at the demolished 290 Mason Street site with 20 condos. Of the 75 total units, 24 would be priced as affordable. Units will be sold, not rented, a departure from the rental model typical of 8-30g developments, according to Greenwich Free Press reporting on the project.

Mason Street Partners paid approximately $21 million for the parcels, which also include 405 Greenwich Ave and several adjacent lots. The site has a long industrial history, having housed blacksmithing, stone cutting, and a succession of car dealerships including Studebaker, Pontiac, and Honda.

A long road through P&Z

The application first landed before the P&Z Commission in 2023. Commissioners unanimously denied an earlier version 5-0 in September 2024. The final iteration won approval on Tuesday, December 17, 2024, in a 4-1 vote. Chair Margarita Alban, Dennis Yeskey, Arn Welles, and Peter Lowe voted yes. Commissioner Nick Macri voted no.

The approval came with strings. The commission barred new commercial uses except those already operating at 405 Greenwich Ave and required that below-market condos be sized at 90% of market-rate units. Developer attorney Timothy Hollister had argued that 8-30g does not explicitly prohibit retail, but the commission disagreed.

During P&Z public hearings, residents on Ridge Street and Bruce Park Avenue raised objections about pedestrian safety, property values, and potential loss of on-street parking.

The lawsuit and the grant

In January 2025, Mason Street Partners filed suit in Superior Court (Case No. HHD-CV25-6197979-S), asking a judge to invalidate those conditions. The case was transferred from Stamford/Norwalk to Hartford. No ruling has been issued.

The pending litigation did not block the demolition. The site qualifies as a brownfield, and in December 2025, Gov. Ned Lamont announced $8 million in state remediation grants for the Mason Street parcels through the Department of Economic and Community Development's Brownfield Remediation and Development Program. The money was split into two $4 million grants awarded to the Western Connecticut Council of Governments.

The lawsuit's outcome will determine whether Chilston Court proceeds under the commission's conditions or under terms more favorable to the developer.