Submitted photo The Chautauqua County Land Bank Corp. has announced the sale of the former Hideaway Bay property in Silver Creek that will be redeveloped into luxury cabin rentals and a year-round recreation hub with adventure sport guide services.

SILVER CREEK — The potential redevelopment of the former Hideaway Bay site has been a longtime in the making, but it’s one step closer to reality.

On Thursday, the Chautauqua County Land Bank Corp. announced the sale of the former Silver Creek lakeside restaurant site for $225,000 to Adventure Sports Development & Tundo Construction. Land bank officials said the company purchased the property to redevelop the site into luxury cabin rentals and a year-round recreation hub with adventure sport guide services.

There will be public access to the beach and lake that will be encouraged with the development of a walking trail with connections to the public beach across Walnut Creek and a kayak launch.

A restaurant and events venue will be developed in the second phase.

The development is estimated at a $ 1.35 million investment, it will create up to 50 jobs and is targeted to open spring 2022.

Gina Paradis, land bank executive director, told The Post-Journal the land bank first took control of the property in 2016 from the county to “shepherd the sale and to ensure a positive outcome with redevelopment.” She said it’s been a long road to finally find a quality redevelopment proposal.

“We’ve actually been talking to this company for about 18 months,” she said. “We’ve been working with Kevin (Cullen of Adventure Sports Development) for a while to make sure we have a project that we have confidence in. When COVID hit we had to revisit his business plan and check his numbers. The (Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency) helped him and … so did the Small Business Development Center at (Jamestown Community College). They mentored him on his business plan and revisited his financial plan to pull everything together. It’s been a long process, but we are really, really happy with were we are at.”

Paradis said through the years there has been other proposals for redeveloping the site, but this is the first viable project, which is why it was approved by the land bank board.

“We’ve had other people show interest, some to a serious degree,” she said. “Either the project wasn’t really reflecting our values and vision for the site or there were other issues that didn’t allow us to move forward. Some developers pulled out as soon as COVID reared its head.”

Cullen said as Western New York native and resident of Silver Creek, his employees are very excited to showcase the area’s natural beauty and leverage its recreational attributes to draw visitors and sports enthusiasts to the area.

According to the land bank, the team of Adventure Sports and Tundo Construction has already partnered on container pop-up shops that beach goers may be familiar with at Sunset Bay Beach Club and Mickey Rats. As professional watersports athletes and business owners, with degrees in Urban Planning and Recreation Tourism, the team is uniquely qualified to breathe life into the long abandoned parcel and develop a successful destination that complements the site and the community’s vision for tourism development.

Adventure Sports Development has operated in the county for about five years, offering guided stand-up paddleboard tours, rentals and kite sailing lessons. Cullen and his partner are also avid ice climbers and believe that there is sufficient interest and resources to build a year-round destination anchored by unique accommodations in Hideaway Bay.

“This is a tremendous example of local and countywide collaboration, as the land bank, the Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency, Chautauqua County Partnership for Economic Growth, the Small Business Development Center and the village of Silver Creek came together to support and advance the development concept,” said Diane Hannum, land bank board chairwoman.

Cullen echoed the sentiment and added his appreciation for the positive response and collective assistance he received throughout the 18-month planning and vetting process, complicated by the impacts of the pandemic.

“Initial studies are indicating that this type of accommodation, glamping, boutique hotels, Air B-n-B’s have fared much better than traditional hotels during the pandemic,” he said. “The growing demand for unique accommodations and guided sport adventures supports the concept in spite of the strange new travel reality we are facing.”

Mark Geise, IDA CEO, said the proposed project is great and long in the making, with patience and fortitude paying off.

“This is exactly the type of project we envisioned when the legislature agreed to make this property available to the land bank,” he said. “I hope this project bodes well for similar county foreclosed properties in the future. The partnership between the Land Bank, CCIDA, JCC SBDC, village and county demonstrates our commitment to unity of effort.”

Paradis expressed her gratitude to the IDA for their assistance in vetting prospective buyers.

“They have been great partners in the marketing of this property, and helping to ensure that we settled on a developer and plan that was credible, and economically beneficial to the community,” she said. “We were committed to finding the right fit. It was also important to the land bank that the development is congruent with vision of the Local Waterfront Redevelopment Plan and that it complemented the site. I’m really excited that Cullen, and his team appreciate these considerations and understand the significance of connecting the development to the community. “

Jeffrey Hornburg, Silver Creek mayor, said he is excited to see the development of the former Hideaway Bay site.

“I’ve talked to the owner and I offered any support the village can give to him to make this endeavor successful,” he said.

Natasha Matteliano contributed to this story.