The probability that southwestern Connecticut will be home to new movie studios and a theme park was diminished after New York-based Utopia Studios’ and the town of Preston’s memorandum of understanding expired last week.

Utopia was negotiating with the town to build the studios and park on a 470-acre piece of land once used for a state mental health hospital, but when the town asked for more information on the $1.6 billion project and did not get it, it allowed the memorandum to expire, according to Preston First Selectman Robert Congdon.

The memorandum meant that Preston – which houses most of the 470-acre site, with the rest in neighboring Norwich – was dealing only with Utopia. Town representatives still plan to meet with Utopia but are now meeting with other developers as well, according to Congdon.

“We’re no longer looking at [Utopia] exclusively,” he said.

Town officials were scheduled to meet with representatives of Utopia, headed by actress Cathy Moriarty and her husband Joseph Gentile, on Wednesday.

But Congdon said he also has spoken with many other developers. He said it is too early in the process to name any of the prospective companies, but noted that some of them have submitted plans to Preston in the past, while some are new.

Many Preston residents backed Utopia’s proposal, which also includes a performing arts college and hotels. Sixty percent of the town’s 3,400 eligible voters turned out in April to have their say on whether Preston should negotiate with Utopia. Residents voted 1,508 to 256 to allow the town to move ahead with negotiations for a development deal.

The town has been looking for proposals for the site for several months, and the state – which currently owns the site but wants to sell it to Preston for $1 – has been searching for a developer for years. In the latest round, 12 developers submitted proposals. Utopia’s was deemed the most promising.

The state owns the site, and will continue to do so until it identifies the extent of the environmental remediation needed to clean it up. The state Office of Policy and Management tried for years to find a developer before offering the land to the town.