MIDDLESEX TWP — The third upscale housing development in the township has received preliminary approval by the township supervisors, if not by nearby residents.

Architect Steven Victor said at a hearing Wednesday that 95 single-family Ryan Homes are planned for 74 acres on the northeast corner of Browns Hill and Leslie roads.

The homes, which Victor said would sell for $300,000 to $350,000, would be built in three phases in the Blackhawk plan.

The Oakmont Water Authority would extend a two-mile line from the southern part of the township, up Leslie Road, to the plan. The Saxonburg Area Authority would provide sewers.

The homes would be built on the flat section of the oddly shaped property, and the area in the rear with the steepest slopes would remain wooded. The perimeter of the property also would remain wooded.

Five stormwater retention ponds would dot the plan to control drainage.

About 25 residents of Browns Hill and Leslie roads attended the hearing to share their concerns.

Cynthia Patterson told Victor and the supervisors that she disagrees with the developer’s assertion that the value of existing homes would not be affected by the project.

She also said the plan is too dense and it would affect the rural character of her property and those of her neighbors

“We don’t care about building a housing plan,” Patterson said. “What we care about is giving up the true nature of this area.”

Chris DeGutis said when he bought his home on Leslie Road this year, he was told by the plan’s developer Frank Kelly that two of the plan’s homes would have driveways on Leslie.

“Now there’s six or seven,” DeGutis said.

Jerry Mizgorski lamented the spread of development into Middlesex, which has remained rural until recently.

He said he understands that more homes means more tax revenue for the township, but that income would be offset by the need for increased infrastructure and a possible tax increase by the school district for more children moving with families into the development.

The residents asked Victor about road work from the Oakmont Water Authority line, and Victor said the line would go in when grading on the land begins. He said if all permits proceed as expected, that would occur in late 2014 or early 2015.

Victor said Leslie Road residents can tap into the water line if they choose, but Patterson rebutted that she has not heard of any of her neighbors who want public water.

Regarding sewers, Victor said Kelly bought land easements so that residents within 150 feet of the sewer line could tap into the Saxonburg Area Authority line if they need to.

Kelly said while growth is inevitable, he and Victor did not ignore the neighbors.

“Progress is always difficult, but (the residents) need to understand too that we’re bringing in a water line at a cost of a half-million dollars,” Kelly said.

He said such a line would be unaffordable if the plan’s lots were one acre each. He also said he is spending $100,000 to bring a natural gas line to the property.

“These are things they get to enjoy,” Kelly said.

But Patterson was unmoved.

“We’re self-sufficient,” she told the supervisors. “We don’t need his help.”

The supervisors approved the preliminary plan. Victor will present more detailed final plans when they are complete.