Developer may create wetland in College Point

From the Times Ledger:

Developers looking to build a six-story condo complex on the shores of College Point are mulling over an agreement with environmentalists that would create wetlands in front of the property, an amenity that could prove useful if the city is slammed by another serious storm.

Waterfront Resorts Inc. is currently seeking the city’s permission to build a 134-unit condo complex that incorporates into the design the aging brick building once known as the Chilton Paint factory, where 15th Avenue meets the water. The owners have to jump through bureaucratic hoops to build the residential complex in a manufacturing district, but they are also considering honoring a contract that would create wetlands and an artificial oyster bed off shore.

“If it’s within our budget, we can do it,” said Benjamin Lam, project manager at Waterfront Resorts. “If it’s a considerable amount, I need to make sure that my books can handle it.”

The books for the project have been of constant concern for Lam and his company, since they have been trying to finance the project since 2008.

In fact, they purchased the property from another developer that year, just as the financial crisis made it exceedingly difficult to get investors to commit to capital spending for the development.

Many aspects of the project carried over, including the rough plans for how the building would look. But it was uncertain whether Lam and the company would honor the contract to build wetlands signed by the previous developer, Silvio Spallone.

Funding for the project is still far from complete and the permission sought from the city is merely an extension of an initial 2005 request. But should the project come to fruition, a College Point environmentalist contends that the wetlands would not only be a bonus for the environment, but could also make a modest contribution to protecting the city from weather events like Superstorm Sandy.