The “extraordinary” and rapid growth of Stamford”™s Harbor Point district is the exception rather than the rule as a recent example of a successful waterfront development, according to a new report that studies the challenges of developing shoreline projects.
Building and Land Technology has constructed several buildings since the onset of the recession, backed by Philadelphia-based Lubert-Adler. Last month, the city of Stamford decreed any new buildings would be put on hold until Stamford-based BLT adequately addresses replacing a boatyard that was shut down for environmental remediation work at the site.
Harbor Point is one of two big-scale, mixed-use waterfront projects proposed for Fairfield County, along with Bridgeport”™s Steelpointe district that last month secured an initial retail anchor tenant in outdoor outfitter Bass Pro Shops. Numerous similar projects have failed, according to Barry Hersh, a researcher with New York University”™s Schack Institute of Real Estate, because developers were spread too thin, lacked key capabilities or were too far removed from the project.
The Hersh study was published online last month by NAIOP, the commercial real estate development association.
Hersh dubs Harbor Point a “mega-project,” lumping it into a small group of successes along with the redevelopment of Delaware River sites in Philadelphia and Trenton, N.J., and a former naval base in Vallejo, Calif. north of San Francisco. If completed as planned, the project would total $3 billion of construction totaling more than 1 million square feet of commercial space and 4,000 units of new housing ”“ making it one of the largest developments in the Northeast.
Stamford”™s fourth attempt to redevelop its waterfront has proven the charm, Hersh states, following efforts by initial visionary Arthur Collins; an earlier attempt to develop the Yale & Towne property, since completed by BLT; and Antares Investment Partners, “an overly aggressive” developer in Hersh”™s words that was replaced by BLT as the lead developer of Harbor Point.
“The approval process moved relatively swiftly for such a massive project,” Hersh stated in his study. “As Robin Stein, the longtime Stamford planning director and now chair person of the state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority noted, this developer”™s approach was to focus on speed and push the envelope in the field. With strong political support and little opposition, many items, such as providing parks, affordable housing and environmental sustainability requirements, were agreed to and negotiated quickly for a project of this size.”
Hersh ticks off several BLT coups, including the new Fairway market, the conversion of the Yale & Towne property into chic housing and commercial space and the creation of the Waterside school. Most recently, BLT landed Kayak Software Corp., which is moving its headquarters to 7 Market St. in the Yale & Towne parcel (see related story on page 1).
Hersh points to a January 2010 issuance of tax increment financing (TIF) for infrastructure improvements as key to moving Harbor Point forward. He states new Mayor Michael Pavia was cautious and wanted all related bond paperwork completed before he took office, replacing current Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. The deal was underwritten by Stone and Youngberg, and includes $16 million under the Federal Recovery Zone program and the remaining through tax-exempt, special obligation municipal bonds.
“It is all about the timing: Will the project move quickly enough to keep creditors, including the $10 million annual TIF payments that start soon, at bay?” Hersh wrote. “Projects build momentum, political support and market awareness; slowing down is almost always a negative ”¦ Stamford”™s Harbor Point expert team utilized a series of land-use strategies and a combination of entitlements following existing provisions in innovative ways. The team sometimes negotiated specific code revisions and dealt with a number of land-use boards.”
