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Chadwick Bay living

CCIDA offers tax abatement for development

Local officials and the developers gathered in 2017 at the location set for the Battery Point Villas.

On either side of Lake Shore Drive East, two signs proclaim development promised for Dunkirk. On the south side, Athenex in the town of Dunkirk; on the north side, Battery Point Villas in the city of Dunkirk.

Erie Land Development, LLC aims to bring modern housing to the city amidst a market dominated by subsidized rentals. Owned by Bill Gugino, Mark Baerwaldt, and Kody Sprague, this project will soon be located at 468 Lake Shore Drive East in Dunkirk.

“This will be three separate housing complexes — a mid-level, high-level and then condos,” Dunkirk Mayor Willie Rosas explained. “Obviously the hope is some of the staff of Athenex, which will be located right across the street would be interested in taking some of these upper-end apartments. We’re very excited about it. Again, I think this is the beginning of the development that the Athenex project has spurred here in our city and we’re expecting more.”

The County of Chautauqua Industrial Development Agency’s Board of Directors took official action Tuesday toward approving financial incentives supporting the planned market-rate apartment housing project. This project will result in the construction of up to 100 rental apartments, initially including 32 apartments and expanding as appropriate. The 31-acre development site, which encompasses an approximate 111,800 square-foot development, may also include a private clubhouse and small retail spaces. Battery Point Villas will begin with the demolition of certain existing buildings and construction of 11 eight-unit apartment buildings, most of which will house two-bedroom, two-bath units.

Assistance for the project will be provided by the CCIDA through sales tax abatement (7.5 percent) and mortgage recording tax abatement (1.5 percent). The sales tax abatement will last as long as the construction period, while the mortgage recording tax abatement will happen when the mortgage is filed. According to CCIDA Business Development Manager Kristine Morabito, the project cost will be approximately $7.1 million. However, no loans or PILOT were requested by the Erie Land Development.

“It is a great honor to be able to partner with an entrepreneur like Bill Gugino. This is another example of someone from outside of our area investing in Chautauqua County and the City of Dunkirk,” said Kevin Sanvidge, CCIDA’s administrative director/CEO. “We look forward to working with Bill on many other projects that he has on the drawing board in the city of Dunkirk.”

Rosas added, “The City of Dunkirk is a community with 96 percent of its housing stock built before 1979. With the coming of Athenex, local businesses expanding, and new development projects coming, there is a need for new housing stock within the city of Dunkirk. There is also a need for new high end market-rate apartments to house young professionals and our older population looking to downsize.”

The city of Dunkirk has been instrumental in collaborating with the CCIDA and the developer to bring this project to fruition. “I would like to thank Erie Land Development, the CCIDA, the City Council, the Planning and Development Department, the Building and Zoning Office, and all those that played a role in the project. We look forward to the opening ceremony,” said Mayor Rosas.

The project’s timeline will begin as soon as possible, with the anticipation of completing 32 units by June 2018. In addition to acting as catalyst for further development, Battery Point Villas will create three new jobs over three years in areas such as management, labor, and administration. An estimated 30 plus construction jobs will also be created during the project.

“We are in the final stages of the engineering and architectural part of the project. We are hopefully looking at demolition in the near future and if everything goes OK with permit approvals and things like that, then we’ll be looking at breaking ground in the spring. We are starting the marketing part of it right now to see what the demand will be for our rental units. Between working with the city and the IDA, we’re hopefully putting everything together we need to get it off the ground,” Gugino explained.

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