$1B Glen Cove waterfront project renamed Garvies Point

The massive mixed-use redevelopment project slated for the Glen Cove waterfront is getting a new name that reflects its location and the history of the site: Garvies Point.
The original lead developer for the $1 billion project on the north side of Glen Cove Creek and now a minority partner, Donald Monti, called it Glen Isle. But developer Scott Rechler decided to rename the project after acquiring a controlling interest a year ago.

“What we’re trying to do is revitalize the waterfront and redefine it and at the same time respect the history of Glen Cove and build on it in a positive way,” said Rechler, whose company became involved with the project six years ago but became managing partner a year ago.

“Garvies Point came to mind because the project is on Garvies Road, there’s the Garvies Preserve next to it, and the house of a doctor and entrepreneur named Tom Garvie was once on the site.”

Rechler said he has family ties to Glen Cove going back several generations, “so the sense of history and commitment to Glen Cove is very important to me and I didn’t want to come up with some name that was unrelated to Glen Cove and the site.”

One problem with the original name was that project was not being built on an island other than Long Island.

Mayor Ralph Suozzi said, “The name Garvies Point actually ties the future of the waterfront to its actual location, which it didn’t before, and its history.”

Rechler said with the master plan for the site approved by the city he expects to break ground by the middle of next year on the first phase of the project — the roads and other infrastructure, along with 380 residential units.

To publicize the new name and “reintroduce the waterfront to the community and the North Shore,” Rechler’s RXR Glen Isle Partners and the city are sponsoring a new July Fourth weekend event on the site: Sea Faire at Glen Cove. It will feature fireworks, entertainment, food and sails on the historic oyster sloop Christeen.