Glen Cove development a half-century in the making

Last month the Garvies Point waterfront development in Glen Cove passed another milestone with the ribbon-cutting of a 167-unit condominium building. The Beacon at Garvies Point condominiums are about 60% sold, said developer RXR Realty's executive vice president for residential construction and development Joseph Graziose.

"We’ve created a destination on this waterfront," Graziose said.

When finished, the approximately $1.25 billion mixed-use development is expected to include 1,100 units of housing, 75,000 square feet of retail and office space and 28 acres of esplanades and parks. Graziose said another luxury condo development and luxury rental development in the plan should be finished in five to seven years.

The Beacon condos are the latest component to be completed in the approximately $1.25 billion development that has been decades in the making.

1970s and 1980s

Glen Cove officials sought to find developers for the polluted former industrial waterfront at Glen Cove Creek as part of urban renewal plans. Several projects were proposed, including a failed condominium project known as Gatsby’s Landing and Captain’s Cove, but legal and environmental problems plagued efforts. The Environmental Protection Agency oversaw the cleanup of the former Li Tungsten site, which was on the federal Superfund list of hazardous sites and contained low levels of radioactive slag and soil.

1990s

Newsday reported in 1990 that "City officials optimistically envision a redeveloped waterfront with marinas, restaurants, parks and retail stores" in the blighted area. Mayor Thomas Suozzi championed waterfront development, building a ferry terminal and environmental cleanup, and he reached a deal to keep closed a waterfront incinerator that his predecessor had sought to reopen. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began dredging the mouth of Glen Cove Creek. In 1998, the city received a $1.4 million federal grant and designation of the site as a "Brownfield Showcase Community," an EPA pilot program to clean up and redevelop former industrial sites.

2000s

An agreement with the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation in Connecticut to operate a ferry to Wall Street fell apart. Glen Cove selected Glen Isle Development Co. LLC, as developers to transform the waterfront into a mix of housing, shops and a hotel and conference center in 2003. Residents pushed back on the scale of the project — including 16-story towers — as it went through the environmental review process. Scott Rechler, chief executive of a predecessor to RXR Realty, joined with Glen Isle Development. The towers’ heights were reduced in response to public concerns.

2010s

The Glen Cove Industrial Development Agency approved tax breaks for the project developer, now called RXR-Glen Isle Partners, in the form of payments in lieu of taxes. RXR-Glen Isles Partners broke ground on the project in 2016. The village of Sea Cliff lost court cases trying to stop the development. The ferry terminal was built. The apartment project Harbor Landing at Garvies Point began leasing.

2020s

Glen Cove finalized agreement with Hornblower Metro Ferry LLC, an affiliate of San Francisco-based Hornblower Yachts Inc. in 2020 to operate commuter ferry service . Roadwork serving Garvies Point was completed. The Beacon at Garvies Point condominiums opened to buyers. Ground broken on affordable housing component.