Despite some remaining hurdles, the owner and applicant behind a proposal to build a mini golf and ice cream café on Route One near the Madison line says the project is still alive.

In the winter of 2019-’20, news that an application to build a mini golf course and ice cream café in Clinton was had been filed with the Planning & Zoning Commission caused a tremendous amount of excitement in town. The development was proposed to be built on a piece of undeveloped land adjacent to the Hammonasset River near the Madison border on Route One. The project was eventually approved by the PZC in March 2020; since then, there have been no signs of progress on the property.

When contacted by the Harbor News earlier last month seeking an update on the property, Lurrae Lupone, the owner of the property, said that she had been meeting with potential developers. Lupone said she didn’t have new information to share, but said the project is still being worked on.

“The project is alive and well,” said Lupone.

When the application for the mini golf course was announced, many lauded the proposal as the exact kind of project Clinton needed to bring people to town and spruce up Route One. The project was approved by the PZC just before the COVID-19 shutdown occurred. Since then, despite the excitement there has not been much discussion about the project.

The only time the project has been discussed publicly since the approval was granted was at the Sept. 14, 2020, PZC meeting. A commission member asked for an update on the property and Zoning Enforcement Officer Kathy King said that she’d spoken with the property engineer on the application, who informed King that the project was in doubt.

“She might not be able to complete the project. They’re not quite sure where it stands right now,” King said to the commission during that meeting,

Lupone told the Harbor News at that time that she was still doing her due diligence on the project and that it may take a long time to complete.

Lupone declined to get into specifics about the progress of the project in fall 2020 but said, “Time will tell. I need to get more ducks in a row. Patience is a virtue.”

King told the Harbor News in 2022 that the land use office still had not heard from Lupone within the last year.

If built to completion, the development will offer an 18-hole miniature golf course and a 49-seat ice cream café that offers patrons views of the neighboring wetlands.

To fulfill a requirement from the Department of Energy & Environmental Protection that waterfront property be used for water-related activity, the applicant had proposed using a portion of the land as a kayak launch.