Post by jdelisa on Dec 26, 2012 14:41:00 GMT -5
Newsday.com story below; I'm sure we'll read lots more as the new year goes on:
Donald Trump and state kill Jones Beach catering hall
By BILL BLEYER bill.bleyer@newsday.com
Trump on the Ocean is dead.
Donald Trump and state parks officials have agreed that the developer's proposed and controversial $24 million Jones Beach catering hall and restaurant will be canceled because of the damage to the beach park from superstorm Sandy.
Construction on the litigation-delayed project, which was to have created hundreds of construction and permanent jobs, was scheduled to start next year.
Parks officials say they still hope to build something on the site of the former Boardwalk Restaurant at the Central Mall but acknowledge they will have to start from scratch.
Trump and state parks Commissioner Rose Harvey said in a statement that the storm "was unprecedented in the storied history of Jones Beach State Park and . . . caused significant damage to the park and its infrastructure."
The boardwalk and surrounded area were hammered by Sandy. The boardwalk was twisted and undermined and the snack bar on the opposite side of the Central Mall from the Trump on the Ocean site was badly flooded and damaged. The excavation for the Trump project was flooded and the fence surrounding the site was demolished.
The location of the project on the beachfront and its two-story design totaling 86,000 square feet with a full basement created concern because the site "was entirely flooded and experienced battering waves during superstorm Sandy as well as during [Tropical Storm] Irene and Tropical Storm Lee," Trump and Harvey said.
The controversial basement was the subject of extended litigation before the state and the developer reached a compromise in June allowing work to proceed. After Trump lost several rounds in court, he agreed to abide by state building code regarding the basement while the state agreed not to charge him back rent and restart his lease.
"Sandy has opened everyone's eyes to the potential risks of building directly on the oceanfront," Harvey said in the statement. "Looking over the coming decades, as we face sea level rise and the threat of future damaging storms, we have concluded that building a major new facility directly on the oceanfront, on the scale of the Trump project, is not prudent policy." She said she appreciated Trump's "long-standing commitment to this initiative."
In the statement, Trump said "we have mutually decided that it is an inappropriate time to build a luxury restaurant and banquet facility at Jones Beach. This was a difficult decision for me to make as The Trump Organization was ready, willing and able to build and commence construction next year."
He said in an interview that going ahead with the project, which he said he might still be interested in doing in the future, would require a complete redesign. Trump said he has spent millions on planning and litigation.
The site of the proposed project had been fenced off from public view by a construction fence for several years since the badly deteriorating previous restaurant was demolished as it began to lose pieces of masonry.
As an interim step, Harvey's Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation will remove debris and clean up the site.
Next year, after damage to the park has been repaired, the parks agency will begin a planning process to determine the best future use of the area, Harvey said.
The Central Mall adjacent to the proposed catering facility "experienced tens of millions of dollars of damage to its boardwalk and park buildings," Harvey and Trump said. "Six weeks after the storm, the immediate area remains closed to the public, and it will remain closed for many months until state parks completes repairs to damaged structures and utilities."
Newsday (c) 2012
www.newsday.com/long-island/towns/donald-trump-and-state-kill-jones-beach-catering-hall-1.4376643
Donald Trump and state kill Jones Beach catering hall
By BILL BLEYER bill.bleyer@newsday.com
Trump on the Ocean is dead.
Donald Trump and state parks officials have agreed that the developer's proposed and controversial $24 million Jones Beach catering hall and restaurant will be canceled because of the damage to the beach park from superstorm Sandy.
Construction on the litigation-delayed project, which was to have created hundreds of construction and permanent jobs, was scheduled to start next year.
Parks officials say they still hope to build something on the site of the former Boardwalk Restaurant at the Central Mall but acknowledge they will have to start from scratch.
Trump and state parks Commissioner Rose Harvey said in a statement that the storm "was unprecedented in the storied history of Jones Beach State Park and . . . caused significant damage to the park and its infrastructure."
The boardwalk and surrounded area were hammered by Sandy. The boardwalk was twisted and undermined and the snack bar on the opposite side of the Central Mall from the Trump on the Ocean site was badly flooded and damaged. The excavation for the Trump project was flooded and the fence surrounding the site was demolished.
The location of the project on the beachfront and its two-story design totaling 86,000 square feet with a full basement created concern because the site "was entirely flooded and experienced battering waves during superstorm Sandy as well as during [Tropical Storm] Irene and Tropical Storm Lee," Trump and Harvey said.
The controversial basement was the subject of extended litigation before the state and the developer reached a compromise in June allowing work to proceed. After Trump lost several rounds in court, he agreed to abide by state building code regarding the basement while the state agreed not to charge him back rent and restart his lease.
"Sandy has opened everyone's eyes to the potential risks of building directly on the oceanfront," Harvey said in the statement. "Looking over the coming decades, as we face sea level rise and the threat of future damaging storms, we have concluded that building a major new facility directly on the oceanfront, on the scale of the Trump project, is not prudent policy." She said she appreciated Trump's "long-standing commitment to this initiative."
In the statement, Trump said "we have mutually decided that it is an inappropriate time to build a luxury restaurant and banquet facility at Jones Beach. This was a difficult decision for me to make as The Trump Organization was ready, willing and able to build and commence construction next year."
He said in an interview that going ahead with the project, which he said he might still be interested in doing in the future, would require a complete redesign. Trump said he has spent millions on planning and litigation.
The site of the proposed project had been fenced off from public view by a construction fence for several years since the badly deteriorating previous restaurant was demolished as it began to lose pieces of masonry.
As an interim step, Harvey's Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation will remove debris and clean up the site.
Next year, after damage to the park has been repaired, the parks agency will begin a planning process to determine the best future use of the area, Harvey said.
The Central Mall adjacent to the proposed catering facility "experienced tens of millions of dollars of damage to its boardwalk and park buildings," Harvey and Trump said. "Six weeks after the storm, the immediate area remains closed to the public, and it will remain closed for many months until state parks completes repairs to damaged structures and utilities."
Newsday (c) 2012
www.newsday.com/long-island/towns/donald-trump-and-state-kill-jones-beach-catering-hall-1.4376643
