Mystic — The Stonington Planning and Zoning Commission on Tuesday night unanimously approved a master plan to develop nearly half of 71 acres of the former Perkins Farm off Jerry Browne Road into a medical and academic campus with apartments and condominiums, a project that would easily become the town’s largest taxpayer.

The commission's approval came after the commission held a public hearing on the application. Before he can start construction, Developer David Lattizori will have to submit a detailed site plan for approval, which will require another hearing.

During Tuesday's hearing Lattizori told the commission that development of the farm was more than a decade in the making, first under his father. He said that 18 months ago he was a week away from selling the site, which had an approval for a 36-lot subdivision of single-family homes. He said that project would have created no permanent jobs and a net loss of tax revenue a year of $260,000, primarily because of the cost to educate children who would have lived there.

Lattizori has said it was then that a retired doctor, who lives at StoneRidge retirement community across the street, suggested the idea of a project with a geriatric health component. He then began meeting with a committee of StoneRidge residents to discuss the project with them and gain their support.

He told the commission Tuesday that project would pay an estimated $1.3 million a year in taxes to the town, provide hundreds of well-paying jobs and high-quality medical care for an aging community and housing for young people and empty nesters.

“And we’ll be able to accomplish all of that by saving 50 percent of the farm,” he said. “I’m confident this is a plan that is not just economically feasible to build but will be successful in the marketplace.”

Lattizori listed the many officials and groups that have endorsed the project, such as the town’s Economic Development Commission, Conservation Commission, Water Pollution Control Authority, Avalonia Land Conservancy, Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center and the StoneRidge retirement community.

But he said the one endorsement he cherishes the most came from a member of the Perkins family who told him the family supports the project after seeing him outline it at a hearing last year to create a new zone for the project. Lattizori said he intends to name the project the Perkins Farm Campus in honor of the family legacy in town.

Lattizori’s master plan calls for developing 32 acres of the farm and preserving 39 acres, most of which would be along Jerry Browne Road and block a view of the buildings from the street and the StoneRidge retirement community. Renderings show a view of meadows and stone walls from the street as well as extensive walking trails.

The plan calls for 90,000 square feet of medical office space in five one- and two-story buildings. There would also be one 10,000-square-foot academic research building. The plan also calls for one apartment building with 121 units and 50 three-bedroom townhouses spread among 13 buildings.

His development team showed the commission numerous renderings of the project Tuesday night and detailed traffic plans, parking, architecture, drainage, landscaping and other issues. The road system is private so the town will not have to pay to maintain the roads.

The application’s economic analysis states the project would produce $1.3 million in annual tax revenue for the town, about as much as the town’s two current biggest taxpayers, StoneRidge and Connecticut Light & Power, pay combined. After the estimated education expenses for students expected to live in the project, the project would produce $823,000 a year in taxes. It also would generate $118,000 a year in sewer use fees.

The project also is estimated to produce 360 permanent jobs, mostly in the medical and professional fields, in addition to hundreds of construction jobs. The town is not providing any tax incentives for the project.

Project attorney Ted Ladwig told the commission that high-paying jobs plus the disposable income of the people living in the upscale housing units will have an economic ripple effect on the town, which is one reason why the project has support from such a wide range of groups.

Over the past two decades, Lattizori’s family had made previous unsuccessful efforts to develop the site with a mix of commercial uses that were rejected by the town following opposition from some residents, including those from StoneRidge. Many residents of StoneRidge have now spoken in favor of the new plan.

j.wojtas@theday.com