Hastings receives approval on $20 million development project

FOXBORo, MA Tom Hastings is a real estate developer with a 30-year track record of success and a penchant for taking on "impossible projects."  So it's no wonder that he's part of the group that's decided to develop a 100-acre site, the former Bentley Porter property - that nobody else wanted to tackle. His group's development plan received preliminary approval from the town's planning board earlier this month. The development entity Foxborough Land Partners LLC, in which The Hastings Companies is a partner with Brownfields Real Estate Development LLC, plans to break ground during the fall of 2008 to prepare the site for an executive-style subdivision of 40 single-family homes, each sitting on one to four acres. Wetlands and low-density zoning will translate into a good amount of open space. The site abuts the Rumford River. Hastings, currently building $45 million townhomes in Hingham, Mass., also a complex project -- says River Ridge's proximity to Rte. 95, the Mansfield T Commuter Rail Station and Foxboro Center make it an ideal location for young families.