MANCHESTER, Vt. (AP) – A proposed housing project wouldn’t affect an area where hundreds of endangered Indiana bats are known to hibernate, wildlife officials say.

Developers Tommy Harmon and Neil Joseph are seeking a state land use permit to build 27 housing units at the Rocking Stone Farm on Route 7A, just south of Manchester village.

The site is adjacent to what was recently identified as Vermont’s largest Indiana bat cave, which is home to 297 of the creatures.

Several other bat species also hibernate in the cave, including the little brown bat, northern long-eared bat and eastern pipistrelle, said state wildlife biologist Scott Darling.

“Based on our current understanding of small-footed bats, the proposed project is not likely to adversely affect their habitat needs,” Darling wrote in a letter submitted to the District 8 Environmental Commission.

Harmon said the Rocking Stone Farm partners would follow a forest management plan aimed at avoiding the loss of any trees the Indiana bats might roost in.

“We’re going to pay close attention to that kind of thing,” he said.