Key moment finally arrives for Glen Cove waterfront
A condominium building with two 11-story towers is among the structures proposed by Uniondale-based RXR's for its Garvies Point development in Glen Cove. Credit: RXR Realty
Glen Cove’s waterfront has been through decades of waiting, decay and stagnation, environmental analysis and cleanup, meetings and lawsuits, criticism and compromises.
For the last 10 years, developer Scott Rechler and his team at RXR Realty have tried to push through all of it, promising to transform the waterfront into an economic engine. But they, too, were stymied. With every step forward, they were pushed back, even as they tinkered to make the project palatable to those worried about density and traffic.
Until now.
Next week, the developers will break ground on the first phase of the Garvies Point redevelopment. Excavation will begin, foundations will be poured, and soon, two buildings with 385 rental apartments will rise. Crews will start to build the promised infrastructure, from roads and utilities to an esplanade along the water, and there will be open space. Hundreds of people, many from Glen Cove, will be put to work.
Developers plan to go from breaking ground to cutting ribbons in two years, a fifth of the time it took to get to the point of being able to build at all.
The roadblocks aren’t all gone. The Village of Sea Cliff and some area residents filed appeals on a court’s dismissal of two lawsuits that tried to stop Garvies Point. Glen Cove’s planning board still has to approve the second phase.
Eventually, 1,110 rental and condo units are expected to be built. Residents of Glen Cove are at the cusp of an important moment for their city, one that should lead to the economic activity they’ve awaited for so long. — The editorial board
