JOHNSTON — The Town Council bowed to a court order last night and rezoned a Killian Road property to accommodate a controversial, 12-lot cluster development.

The council gave its approval despite the claims of two men who contested some basic facts in project plans, including a note that says the proposed subdivision is not within 200 feet of any “existing or proposed wells.”

Officials had to reconcile the men’s arguments in order to help the town settle a lawsuit filed by the project’s developer, Greenville Holdings.

The order filed in Superior Court, Providence, last March had been designed to end litigation that had threatened the town with some potentially costly damages, officials say.

The town had been at risk of losing the case, the town’s lawyer, Kelly Morris said. Also, damages could be quite costly if the court decides the town is liable for holding up Greeneville project as its real estate lost value, she said.

Last night, members of the council said the consent order, a type of agreement, addresses some of the concerns that led people in the neighborhood to oppose the project.

In the order, the developer agrees to allow a 200-foot-wide buffer area between Route 295 and the western border of the project.

The consent order also calls for a 100-foot buffer along Killian Road, including the place where the road for the new neighborhood, Sydney Rose Court, would join Killian.

Meanwhile, the order says that the developer will provide water lines leading to properties along Killian Road and contribute $57,000 to a fund that residents can tap to pay for connections.

The order also says the developer will reimburse $20,000 to the town for attorney fees and build a detention basin on one of its 13 lots.

Despite those advantages, the proposed rezoning, another component of the order, took a controversial turn when John Bessette, of 35 Pine Hill Ave., said the project’s master plan was factually incorrect. He cited a note about the project being 200 feet away from existing wells.

Councilman Gabriel DeFeo questioned Bessette’s information. But John Saccoccio, a resident of Killian Road, said the well for his own house is within 30 feet of the proposed project.

Raymond J. Morrocco, another Killian Road resident, urged the council to vote yes.

“I can’t see the point in not approving it with all the extras thrown in,” he said.

The council’s president, Robert V. Russo, told Saccoccio that his property would be worth more money with a water connection. The presence of a water line would also bring fire hydrants to the neighborhood, he said.

Councilman Joseph Wells suggested that the only thing missing from the proposal was sewer lines for residents.

“I think that we did OK,” he said. “I really do.”

mreynold@projo.com