Torrington outlines Seacoast Landing vision: 82-acre redevelopment, Costco among potential anchors

Jay Besignano, CEO of Torrington Properties, presented a detailed update Oct. 2 on the Seacoast Landing redevelopment at the former Fox Run Mall site.

Besignano said Torrington has assembled most of the 82‑acre site, demolition is in progress and the team is negotiating with large retailers. "This is 82 acres," he said, framing the site's scale, and described a layout with a ring road, two major signals and a 24–25 acre 'village' front for restaurants, retail and community uses. He identified Costco and Chick‑fil‑A as anchor drivers of traffic and said medical‑use interest has emerged: a potential flagship medical facility of roughly 75,000–100,000 square feet may occupy a portion of the village.

Besignano detailed timing and scale: he said construction has started, the first retailer is targeted to open at Thanksgiving of next year, and full completion could take about three years from this November. He described the project as a substantial private investment—"somewhere in the $300,000,000 or $400,000,000 range"—and flagged current financing and labor-market constraints. He emphasized that parking requirements drive retailer decisions and said housing at scale was effectively a "nonstarter" for this site because of market and financial constraints; commissioners pushed back about housing affordability and potential local impacts during the Q&A.