The first phase of a project to redevelop the Port of Rochester includes a 10-story destination hotel. Gregory Weykamp, president of Edgewater Resources, presented his company’s vision of a redeveloped port area at Charlotte High School tonight.Â
Weykamp gave the media a preview of the designs prior to the meeting.Â
The $30 million first phase would sit on three-quarters of an acre at Corrigan and North River streets. In addition to the hotel, which would have 40 to 60 rooms, there would be 12 to 24 condos; three to five town houses; a restaurant that would be anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 square feet; and a coffee shop that would be 1,200 square feet to 2,400 square feet.Â
The project and Edgewater have come under fire from some members of the community who say that the height of the proposed building would block views, take away parking, and privatize the port area. But project supporters say that opponents are a small but vocal minority.Â
Weykamp says the project’s first phase would create a total of 400 jobs — 100 of those being construction jobs. He said he’d like to start building sometime next spring. It would take about two years to construct the first phase, he said.Â
A comprehensive look at the port project and the controversy surrounding it can be found here.Â
This article appears in Sep 17-23, 2014.
Looks great! Can’t wait for it to be built!
300 jobs, 100 being construction?! PLEASE! He is planning on bringing in the same people he worked with on Harbor Shores in Michigan. He as much said so himself. There will be little to no local construction used.
His math is really fuzzy if he believes a 60 room hotel and restaurant will support 200 employees. If you’re going to embellish, (lie) at least make it SEMI plausible Mr. Weycamp!
The truth is, this project is chock FULL of red flags. #1- 20 million dollars in taxpayer money being used #2-EB-5 funding- google it-it’s strife with problems. #3- THERE IS NO NEED for a luxury resort hotel in an area only utilized about 2.5 months a year. This is upstate NY, NOT MIAMI. #4- the height of the building blocks river and lake views for all except those living on the top floors of the high rise. #5.Selling public land to private investors is not the way to develop a waterfront where you want and expect the general public to use.
Phase one may happen and certain people will benefit financially from this phase. But it will NOT be viable and phase 3 and 4 will never happen. This will leave an empty ten story eyesore.
The developer DID NOT LISTEN TO CONCERNS Mayor Warren! Sakaski pulled out for very good reasons. Its really too bad Rochester never learns from their past mistakes.
To those who may see this Charlotte Strong group spreading fud, please look past the outrageous claims, lies and myths being propagated by this group. It’s a small minority who are screaming the loudest and making absurd accusations that are blatantly false.
The truth is here:
http://www.cityofrochester.gov/portfaq/
accountability
This is Rochester, NY not Portland, ME we are the 8th largest city in the Northeastern, United States, and our metropolitan region has added over 100,000 residents.
Since the decline of Kodak, Xerox and Bausch and Lomb. Kodak has split into many smaller and more focused companies many of which are now hiring and growing. Paychex has surpassed B&L in size. And Constellation brands has emerged as the largest producer of wine in the world.
A 8 story building in Miami would be laughable, if you look at the list of the typical high rise in Miami they are all 50 stories or higher…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Miami
Now Miamis metro population is about 5 million Rochester is about 1 million. If anything an 8 story building is less 1/5th the size of the typical 50 story waterfront high rise in Miami… I think it’s sized appropriately for this city.
EB-5 Investment is used everywhere across the united states especially down south in miami. If your that upset about EB-5 funding why don’t you focus your protesting effort down south where the majority of the EB-5 funding for projects like this is going? Did you know the federal government recently designated Miami as a “EB-5 Regional Center for Foreign Investment”?
Finally building this project in phases actually reduces the risk of this being a failure to the taxpayer, the next phase can be adjusted based upon the success of phase one.
Lessons clearly have been learned, the fast ferry was an example of going all out instead of starting with a small boat and eventually phasing in a large boat based upon market demand. I think it will be successful.
I think that this project has great merit and we should all give it serious consideration. It does not seem obtrusive or terribly out of scale to the rest of Charlotte and in the end may be a very good development for the neighborhood and city. After all, cities across the Northeast (and North America) are reinvesting in their waterfronts with great success. We can not move forward, if we are continually stuck in the past. However, this controversy does still point out that the current city administration is indeed having significant problems developing positive relationships with some city neighborhoods. Although the administration is frustrated by opposition to the plan, the city’s web site FAQ blasting the neighborhood group is a poor strategy for working with neighbors. Such negativity only engenders greater resentment and volatility. I hope this great project moves forward, but I also I hope the administration retools its approach in order to rebuild trust.
Lies and propaganda? I don’t think so. Selling public park land to a private developer for an ill fated luxury hotel and condo development is just not smart.
Rochester is the 8th largest and 3rd poorest city in the country. I’m not sure where you found stats stating we are growing in population. Seniors especially are leaving in droves for better weather and lower taxes. http://www.actrochester.org/Monroe
Instead of building new on a postage stamp parcel of land on the waterfront, how about rehabbing what is already there and in decline?! Photos do not lie. Some of these homes are in Charlotte. http://www.pbase.com/joldfield/rochester_in_decline
As far as EB-5, anyone can google and find out why it’s not the best choice for funding. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-23/coming-to-america-costs-500-000-with-job-plan-prone-to-failures.html http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/feb/18/issues-of-corruption-fraud-in-investor-visa-progra/?page=all
As far as 400 jobs- I’d like an exact break down (besides the 100 construction jobs. I believe that number, but they are temporary) 300 jobs for a 60 room hotel? Really? Maybe 100, tops, but certainly not 300. And the majority of those 100 jobs will be minimum wage- servers, bussers, bartenders, housekeeping, front desk. Is adding 100 minimum wage jobs really a great financial boon for our city?
They are talking about 30 million dollars for phase 1 . Some of that will come from taxes. This came right from Edgewater’s proposal——
” Additional funding sources may include LIHTC Equity, NYS Tax Exempt
Bonds, and possible consideration of City Home Funds for a small portion
of the affordable housing components if appropriate.”
Where do you think that money comes from? TAXES.
These are not lies, nor propaganda. There is no reason to lie. I love this city. I love Charlotte. It NEEDS development. It just needs the RIGHT development.
If you expect this to benefit the Rochester and surrounding area your are mistaken. This project consists of a hotel that will not be utilized by local residents and one coffee shop and one restaurant. How much revenue will that bring in to the City tax base. This hotel is supposed to be unique because it will have spa amenities. Many hotels in this area offer this same thing closer to beautiful shopping (Eastview Mall, etc.). This hotel will be empty in the long winter months and eventually will be a large empty building similar to the Port building now that is mostly empty and a sad reminder of past “Grand Mistakes” made by the city.
I don’t care what’s happening in Miami afa questionable EB-5 funding. I don’t live in Miami.
Why would Edgewater even display the 2nd drawing when it’s not even going to be a part of phase 1? Isn’t that leading people to believe it will be part of phase 1?
I believe the mayor and city have good intentions as far as the future of Charlotte. I just don’t believe this particular project will work. Selling public waterfront property to private developers never ends up well for the citizens.
The marina was a good start for revitalization. Because it’s PUBLIC. Everyone will (should) has access and the opportunity to enjoy it and the waterfront. Private waterfront housing will not. If the units do sell at the proposed prices (which I doubt) the residents who pay all that money are going to expect certain amenities.
I would imagine one expectation will be a level of privacy and quiet. Charlotte in the summer is anything but quiet. What happens then? Reduced public activities, more restrictions as to where the public can go, who knows what residents will demand and receive?
Keeping that area public will keep those issues from ever happening.
@ accountability
“strife with problems”
probably inadvertent, but nice…
$200,000 for a one-bedroom condo seems excessive. Additionally, residents would have to pay for property taxes and fees. Only a handful of people would seriously consider the condos. So, 12 to 24 condos makes sense.
I’m guessing that the hotel, restaurant, and coffeehouse would be equally overpriced.
Wouldn’t this repel the vast majority of the population? Isn’t this the opposite of what we want?
Truilla (real estate) Charlotte neighborhood in Rochester, NY. The average list price for Charlotte is $77,377. for a 2 bdrm, 1 bath. Yeah, that’s right in line with these million $$ condos!
I would like to respond to Jason regarding Charlotte Strong. I am not ashamed to be a part of a group who has questions. Do you live here? I do and have for 40 years. This affects me and mine. We are not crazies. We are homeowners who have been burned before by the City of Rochester. you can see who I am. How about you?
Yes. Let’s move forward with this proposal. It’s NOT being built on parkland. It’s being built on an unused parking lot, leaving almost 1000 spaces that will still be vacant most of the year. It won’t block any views, but will create new viewing areas. It will be great to have more dining options in Charlotte. Mr Dominics has gone downhill since opening a second location in Fairport and Windjammers is closed every holiday , just when people come to the beach for a great experience. It’s embarrassing for a metro of 1.1 million people not having a thriving waterfront. I can’t wait!!!
Petitions against this project with over 2,000 signatures have been given to the mayor and city council. The amount of signatures speaks volumes, but unfortunately the concerns fall on deaf ears. A 8-10 story building will not fit with the current landscape in the area. Please go back to the drawing board Mayor Lovely like you said you would do!
Oh surprise. The Charlotte Strong group is trolling the boards with their misinformation as usual. Hey “Accountability” poster. You say Rochester is third poorest city in the US? I didn’t realize the developer was marketing these towards residents on Avenue D. Oh wait. Can we include the wealthy suburbs in your “poor city” statement? Did you know Pittsford is one of the most wealthy suburbs in the US and the richest in the state relative to population?
I thought I’d share a few more things with our fellow posters…
Rochester’s Metropolitan Area has added 100,000 residents since 1970, that’s official data retrieved from the us census (census.gov).
You’re right that Rochester does have a high concentration of poverty however when you break this down by neighborhood you find Charlotte doesn’t have a high concentration of poverty http://www.racf.org/Portals/0/Uploads/Images/Concentrated%20Poverty%20SMALL%20for%20web.jpg .
As for the hotel, the average full service hotel has about 290 rooms. Even the average limited service hotels have at least 115 rooms. (http://www.statisticbrain.com/hotel-revenue-statistics/) This hotel is scaled far below the average capacity of a typical hotel with 40-60 rooms.
Let’s now turn to the limited public access argument… the plans clearly indicate that there is going to be ground level retail & restaurants. Why would it be in their interest to limit waterfront public access, wouldn’t that hurt the ground level retailers and restaurants paying rent to the developer?
Lastly it’s not unusual for lake view waterfront properties to be be very pricey, the desirability and scarcity of a property like this will be higher than many of the properties in this region. http://homeguides.sfgate.com/waterfront-property-cost-more-34701.html
Dearest Jason, the group that you speak of, CHARLOTTE Strong, are all taxpaying residents who have done substantial research and obtained their information from the City of Rochester own public documents (e.g. their own RFQ, their website) and Edgewater Resources proposal answering the City’s RFQ along with information provided to attendees of the POORLY attended workshops that the developer loves to mislead the public by saying they are very well attended. If the facts are incorrect on the City’s RFQ, Edgewater’s proposal and the City’s website, blame THOSE SOURCES… It’s a farce that will not gain the current City Administration any kudos, I promise.
It ‘s a true shame & disgusting City government ignored 2500 petition signatures and has forgotten who they really work for – the citizens of the City of Rochester.
Perhaps there should be some accountability placed on the leadership of the Charlotte Community Development Corporation (CCDC) who has failed miserably to add any value to the Charlotte neighborhood in 14 years and FAILED, along with the Charlotte Community Assoc. (CCA) to get a Vision Plan in place BEFORE (e.g. at least 10 years before) this debacle started. Several other neighborhoods have Vision Plan’s in place and it’s no excuse except that they (CCDC & CCA) think they know it all – another farce. There are so many CURRENT failures that are negatively impacting Charlotte because of self-serving greed.
Jackie,
2,500 Signatures represents 1% of the city of Rochester’s total population. There are 210,358 taxpaying residents in this city that are also considered stakeholders in this property.
Yes, Charlotte, just keep resisting until there is nothing left.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/money/columnist/tobin/2014/09/21/cheeburger-cheeburger-moving-port-rochester/15820375/
I don’t live in Charlotte, but, I do live in the city. It kind of feels like no matter what anyone tries to do there to grow our community, some residents believe that they, not all of us, own the area. Growth comes and market forces, not single or selfish interests can stop it. Build it…
this reminds me of that big boat to Canada
“this reminds me of that big boat to Canada “
And if we’re lucky we’ll get another one. What a shame that no one understands how much we could benefit with a direct connection to Toronto.
“I don’t live in Charlotte, but, I do live in the city. It kind of feels like no matter what anyone tries to do there to grow our community, some residents believe that they, not all of us, own the area. “
Exactly Clint. This “Charlotte Strong” group seems to have a victim complex and they keep trying to use manipulative tactics to convince others. They act like they live in some commonwealth village that they own. What they seem to refuse to accept is that they actually live in the city of Rochester.That’s why it’s important that those of us who are also stakeholders in this project living in Rochester to not let this group bully us around.
I’m very worried that Gregory Weykamp will not be able to generate revenues for the City of Rochester. He’s from Chicago, so if this project begins to fail, it won’t be covered in the Chicago press like it would be here. Personally, I’d be far more comfortable with a local developer; for MANY reasons: Mostly, out-of-towners with grand plans just scare the daylights out of me.
Mayor Lovely Warren has delegated ALL port development to an outsider: Chicago based Edgewater Development. I just hope it’s not snake oil we’ll ALL be getting.
Look, if we can’t reasonably expect this project to generate money for us, then it MUST be cancelled! There are no other benefits. Gregory Weykamp can afford to be flexible and ambiguous. I suspect he’s merely establishing a foothold here. He wants to privatize the whole park and turn it into a playground for the rich. As bad as this would be for the average citizen, it would be much worse if he were to fail; and that’s what I think will happen.
I would love to see our beech developed into a better destination but this project seems unlikely to do this in any way. From the start I have wondered how building town houses and condos will create a destination location and improve a persons experience at Charlotte? Yes it will add a little density but not enough to bring any new businesses to this area. As for the hotel it is surprising we do not have the name of an operator yet. Normally on a hotel project we have the name of an operator of that hotel long before we get to this point of the project. Not having one I wonder what is really going on? Finally the jobs numbers are ridiculous. The hotel will have a 7 person desk staff, a 6 person cleaning staff,, 3 person maintenance staff, and a manager for a total of 17 people. The restaurant will have less than 50 and perhaps as few as 20 while the coffee shop will never have 20 even counting the live entertainment in the shop as jobs. Thus the total is less than 100 jobs and even this is misleading as new retail projects usually mean other existing retail suffer so they lose jobs. If we really want to improve the beech we need to start being critical of projects, insist developers tell the truth and have a real plan which will further our purpose.