Lake’s Edge Seneca Seen as ‘Magnet’ for More Development
Lake’s Edge Seneca seen as ‘magnet’ for more development
GENEVA — Lynnora Sable-Smith is a Canandaigua realtor who believes Geneva is on the cusp of something big.
She said you have to look no further than Lake’s Edge Seneca, the $25.2 million mixed-use development on Lochland Road, where groundbreaking ceremonies took place Thursday.
“Geneva is an up-and-coming place,” she said while enjoying hors d’oeuvres and awaiting the start of a short groundbreaking ceremony featuring addresses by Mayor Steve Valentino and Marc Demshock of River’s Edge Capital and Pine Ridge Construction, the project developers.
Sable-Smith, who represents the developer of Orchard Park Drive, a nearby home development in the town, said it’s natural for the locals of a community to not appreciate their assets. However, the redevelopment of the former Geneva American Legion property by a Pennsylvania company into luxury condos, a Marriott hotel, a restaurant and brewery indicates the potential others see in Geneva and the Finger Lakes.
The former Legion site is an impressive chunk of property, she said.
“You’ve just got a beautiful view here,” Sable-Smith said.
Demshock said he’s been coming to Geneva and the Finger Lakes for many years.
“My family came up here when I was growing up,” he said. “Seneca Lake was a place to escape. This place is special. It’s a second home.”
Demshock believes in the power of water and its ability to provide solace in stressful times.
“We need to recharge,” he said.
Lake’s Edge Seneca is designed to do just that, he said.
However, that recharging won’t come cheap when it comes to the 51 luxury condominiums planned on the property, where work started a couple of months ago — including the demolition of the former American Legion home.
Prices start well into the $700,000 range, and some are listed at over $1 million.
Dave DeFelice of Fairport, who has a summer cottage on Cayuga Lake, attended the event out of curiosity. He said the price tag for the condos is “probably beyond what I would spend.”
But Sable-Smith doesn’t believe Lake’s Edge will have trouble finding buyers.
“I have some people over by Canandaigua looking for property,” she said on the reasons she attended Thursday’s groundbreaking. “Some are looking for a particular lake.”
Valentino said the former Legion property was known nationally as one of the best in the country, but he’s excited for the next phase of the nearly 13-acre lakefront parcel.
“I’m already looking to stay in the 113-room hotel and see if I can borrow from Craig (Miller, president of Pine Ridge) for a condo,” he joked.
He said the project will be a “magnet” for additional development in the region.
Demshock expressed appreciation for the support from the city and other government agencies, including the Geneva Industrial Development Agency, which granted the commercial portion of the project a tax-incentives package, including a 15-year property tax abatement agreement worth $5.8 million.
However, a study conducted by MRB Group claims that over the 15-year tax-abatement schedule the project will have a $36.6 million local benefit. Those numbers factor in permanent jobs related to the operation of the hotel and restaurant, along with temporary construction jobs.
The residential portion of Lake’s Edge Seneca will be built first, with condos available for occupation in spring 2023. Construction on the commercial portion will start next spring.
The condos, which will be placed closer to the lake, are offered in two floor plans, one 2,040 square feet and the other 2,413 square feet.
Other amenities include a pool, walking trails and lakefront access.
Written by: Steve Buchiere sbuchiere@fltimes.com
August 26, 2022
Officials to Break Ground on Lake’s Edge Seneca
Officials are celebrating the start of construction on Lake’s Edge Seneca, a $25M project including condos, hotel, and farm-to-table restaurant.
GENEVA — Officials are celebrating the start of construction on Lake’s Edge Seneca, the mixed-use development on the former American Legion property, with a special ceremony next week — and the public has the opportunity to attend.
Lake’s Edge Development Group, in partnership with Rivers Edge Capital and Pine Ridge Construction Management, is hosting a groundbreaking celebration on from noon to 2 p.m. Aug. 25 for the $25.2 million project at 1115 Lochland Road.
Lake’s Edge already has begun work on the site, including the demolition of the former American Legion home.
The project includes the construction of a 113-room luxury hotel with a rooftop bar and restaurant and wedding/event venue. Also planned is a 7,000-squarefoot restaurant with a brewery and 51 luxury townhomes on the nearly 13-acre property on the west side of Seneca Lake.
Additionally, the Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce is co-hosting a Member Milestone Celebration for the project, as Lake’s Edge Development has joined the organization, the Chamber said. The Chamber said guests will have the opportunity meet with developers and learn more about the project.
A light lunch and refreshments will be provided. There is no charge for attendance; however, reservations are required by Aug. 22 by contacting the Chamber at (315) 789-1776 or emailing info@genevany.com.
Written by: Steve Buchiere sbuchere@fltimes.com
August 17, 2021
GUEST APPEARANCE: A PILOT for all of Geneva
GENEVA — New York state invested more than $1.4 million in taxpayer money to help shore up the crumbling Dove Block in downtown Geneva.
When the work was completed, the 19th-century building appraised at more than $750,000. Yet, when a Philadelphia design firm finally purchased the iconic building, it had sold for less than half that amount.
The reason behind this anemic sale was the impact a $750,000 sale would have had on establishing the property’s city tax bill — taxes so high it would have made no sense for the new owner to try to operate a business here.
The Dove experience holds a difficult lesson for the many Genevans who erroneously spoke last week against granting initial tax relief to the developer planning to transform the American Legion property on Lochland Road.
It is understandable that Geneva property owners might grasp this opportunity to vent their frustration over the local property tax environment. Unfortunately, in using the American Legion project to take on this issue, they are choosing a comfortable, convenient but self-defeating position. The enemy here is not a developer trying to return a tax-exempt property to the tax rolls — an effort that eventually will add millions to city coffers. The problem is that Geneva homeowners are using this project to start fighting decades of self-serving fiscal operations in both the city and town of Geneva.
Before we drive out of town another opportunity to grow the city tax base, Genevans need to confront the reality of this city’s business environment. And someone needs to speak for the poor and working poor who will benefit not necessarily from using this new residential and tourism facility but from the jobs generated by building and operating the redeveloped property.
Development projects are collaborative efforts
The truth is a business investor — like the company that eventually purchased the Dove Block — will pencil out the costs of building and operating a business and then make rational decisions weighing the quality of what they build against what they hope to earn from the investment. As wealthy as any developer might be, the project is not solely in the control of the owners, as market forces, bank financing and city oversight play a big role in the purchase and construction costs as well as eventual revenues generated from the project. In sum, the success or failure of the project over time will determine the value of the property and the tax revenues it contributes to the city’s revenues.
In many ways, the payment-in-lieu-of-taxes — or PILOT — application by River’s Edge Capital for the American Legion property project should warm the hearts of long-suffering Genevans, not anger them.
After decades of new development fleeing the city for the lower taxed town locations, River’s Edge is planning to invest more than $25 million and add a hotel, restaurant and desperately needed new housing options. (Imagine Geneva seniors having an option of downsizing to lake-view condominiums rather than moving to Canandaigua.) While the developer takes the risk, the PILOT process allows a local public authority to grant some incentive by allowing the project tax payments to grow as the business grows.
In this case, River’s Edge is asking to pay about $7 million less in property taxes on the hotel and restaurant portion of the business over the first 15 years of operation. Still, over the first 20 years, using conservative city estimates, the project will contribute more than $22 million in taxes — even with the PILOT. And this comes from a property currently fully tax exempt.
While the PILOT slows the growth of property tax on a portion of the project, the condominiums would not be part of the PILOT and occupancy taxes, sales tax, sewer and water fees will generate funds to the city as the project opens. All of this from a property that is currently tax exempt.
If the PILOT process can manage to result in a new, high-quality project that distinguishes Geneva and helps establish it as a true “heart of the Finger Lakes” tourism industry, this tax incentive is a small and very smart, timely investment for this community. There are already rumors of other developers seeing Geneva as a great place to rise with the Finger Lakes, so the signal we send to investors is crucial. Canandaigua already has an excellent new waterfront hotel and there are many other Finger Lakes for projects to target if Geneva remains the highest cost option.
Attacking the source of the problem
The reality of the city’s tax situation continues — for all its residents — with or without the American Legion project. The question is how to improve business conditions. Counting solely on out-of-town developers to solve this tax problem will result in more development — outside Geneva.
Geneva’s tax situation for decades has resulted in most developers locating new stores and homes outside the city. A new commercial development planned for the corner of Pre-Emption and Routes 5&20 is just yards west of the city’s aging Town & Country Plaza. And the burden of paying for Geneva’s professional police, fire and city services increasingly rests on fewer and poorer city residents. This is not a sustainable model.
Further proof of the weight of this tax system can be seen in the new development that has occurred in the city. Like the Dove, the vast majority of downtown development — and all of this current downtown street construction — has occurred with government subsidies of some kind. Really PILOTs with various names.
Under these conditions, allowing a developer to titrate their assumption of this tax burden while growing their new business is not only understandable it is prudent. The Industrial Development Agency, which has the power to grant this relief, has designed the program to keep step with surrounding communities, which also use incentives to attract development. The only difference is Geneva’s out-of-line tax rate.
Geneva — including the Town of Geneva — needs to attack the fundamentals that have historically put headwinds in the way of efforts to grow the city tax base. The American Legion property may be redeveloped with or without a PILOT. It is unique land. However, as its new owners pencil out this investment, we should use the city’s influence and incentives to support the quality of the project. We need it to be more like the Belhurst and Geneva-on-the-Lake than a Howard Johnson with pre-fab townhouses.
Property and sales taxes have decades to flow from a great facility that distinguishes the Finger Lakes. If we ask a developer to ignore business fundamentals because of our historic inability to reduce the high tax rate and our high concentration of tax-exempt property, we are being naive. And the major good happening as the Finger Lakes rise will continue to happen — just outside the City of Geneva. That trend is clear.
We should grant this PILOT and work hard to assure the quality of this build. In this time of growth and opportunity, we should send a signal to developers that we understand the unique tax situation in Geneva and will work with them. Giving up an estimated $22 million in tax revenue because of a $7 million discount in its early years is applying short-term thinking to a long-term problem.
And, most importantly, we should start going about the difficult work of consolidating city and town services, reducing the property tax burden by urgently returning city-owned parcels to the tax rolls and growing the tax base as quickly as is economically possible. Only then will the Finger Lakes’ rising tide raise Geneva boats.
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Article written by: Chris Lavin
December 21, 2021
Chris Lavin is a long-time Geneva resident and a former reporter and editor for newspapers across America. He is a former Times reporter and writes occasionally for the Times. He is co-author of the recent #Porch Portrait: “Finger Lakes Rising.”
Original article linked here.
VOICE OF D'AMOCRACY: Tourism game-changers in Geneva
I would like to spend some time discussing a couple of local projects that will affect Geneva residents in several ways.
I would like to provide some context to the city Industrial Development Agency meeting that occurred earlier this month, and the contents of a letter I obtained regarding the town of Geneva and the Missick-owned property on Snell Road.
The American Legion is in the process of closing on the sale of its Lochland Road property to a development company named Rivers Edge Capital. I know there are a lot of Geneva residents who have spent a large amount of time at the Legion over the past 75 or so years, often with their families, enjoying the fish dinners, bingo, the pool, casino nights, etc. It is very difficult to see it go. But here we are in 2021, and time is moving on as I write this column.
The developer’s aim is to turn this complex into a destination resort center.
Rivers Edge has rendered an architectural drawing illustrating a 111-room hotel, which will include a ballroom, wedding amenities and, at some point, a restaurant. Marriott is the leading contender now to be the hotel brand, along with making financial investments to the hotel structure.
Also, there will be a group of 51 luxury townhouses built later, after the hotel is constructed in total, due to certain logistics.
In addition, during this same IDA meeting, Ward 4 City Councilor Ken Camera asked Rivers Edge to consider a bicycling/walking pathway into the city so patrons have the ability to enjoy the downtown area on bike or on foot.
The Rivers Edge representative seemed very receptive to this idea.
The entire complex is to be named Lake’s Edge Seneca.
I think our Geneva City Planning Board has been cautious, and diligent, while reviewing and approving this project. Congrats to them.
If all goes well moving forward with the city IDA, it is somewhat possible construction could start sometime next year.
I believe this development can be a tourism game-changer for Geneva, and may help with our tax-base numbers as well.
On another note, the Missick family, which owns Old Stone Mansion on a 63.6-acre, two-parcel lot at 463 Snell Road, is proposing to the town of Geneva (according to a letter dated Oct. 29 that was addressed to Supervisor Mark Venuti from Passero Associates Engineering Architecture) that various site-work alterations be made, as well as a maintenance barn be added, to promote this location as a wedding, banquet, wellness, and corporate retreat venue. Historic tours, nature tours, and dinner event venues would be available too.
It is now obvious our city and town are becoming a focus of attention for developers. In my opinion, despite some of the differences residents may have with respect to some members of our city and town councils, there is reason for optimism. I sincerely hope our city and town prosper moving forward, while also continuing to turn Geneva into a tourist destination.
David D’Amico lives in Geneva. A local businessman and graduate of Waterloo High School and Alfred State College, he has been a Boy Scout Cubmaster, and a Little League and Vince Lombardi coach. He was the Republican, Conservative and Independence party candidate for Ontario County supervisor in 2017. His Voice of D’Amocracy appears every other Monday.
Article written by Dave D’Amico damico42@hotmail.com
November 22, 2021
Original article linked here.
Developer Pine Ridge Construction pitches PILOT for lakefront project
GENEVA — The Geneva Industrial Development Agency is expected to get details soon on a proposed tax abatement plan for Lake’s Edge Seneca, the mixed-use development planned for the American Legion property on Lochland Road.
Pine Ridge Construction of Williamsport, Pa., is planning to build a 111-unit hotel, a 7,000- to 10,000-square-foot restaurant with a brewery, along with 51 luxury townhomes on the 13-acre property along Seneca Lake.
The project has received site-plan approval from the city Planning Board, and the company expects to close on the Legion property soon, Managing Director Marc Demshock told the IDA Friday morning, where he gave an overview of the development.
Next up: A payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement that will come before the IDA. City Manager Sage Gerling told the IDA that the PILOT proposal is getting a final review from the city’s attorneys and that IDA members should have it in their hands this week.
Only the commercial portion of the development — the hotel and restaurant — is eligible for a PILOT, noted IDA Chair Anne Nenneau. The townhomes are not eligible for a tax abatement.
A PILOT could reduce the developer’s tax liability for up to 50% of the property’s assessed value for up to 15 years, but Gerling did not provide details on what Pine Ridge is looking for from the city. No formal application has been submitted by the development company, she said.
Nenneau said the IDA has a “suggested formula,” but that the agency is not obligated to follow it.
The IDA is required to hold a public hearing on the PILOT before it can be approved, Nenneau noted.
Demshock provided a number of details about the project, saying the goal is to “create this destination resort center on the lake, the first property coming into the city of Geneva from the north.”
He said a couple of hotel operators are under consideration, but that “Marriott is the front-runner right now.”
The lodging facility would be a “soft-branded hotel,” meaning it would be tailored to the Finger Lakes market, Demshock explained.
The property will feature walking trails and pools, and “lakefront plantation architecture” is proposed, he said.
Pine Ridge has not chosen a restaurant operator, but Demshock said a farm-to-table operation highlighting Finger Lakes wines is the goal. The proposed brewery is likely a Pennsylvania brand looking to expand into the Finger Lakes, he indicated.
Some neighbors of the project, for which construction is projected to start in March, are urging the IDA to reject a tax abatement for Lake’s Edge Seneca. They argue the city doesn’t need to provide tax breaks to ensure the project happens in Geneva because the city is not competing against another community, as in the case of a manufacturer seeking assistance in exchange for locating in a particular community.
Demshock said a PILOT agreement would “make sure it’s a viable project, that we hit the ground running ... that we can be one of those iconic properties like Belhurst and Geneva On the Lake.”
Article written by STEVE BUCHIERE sbuchiere@fltimes.com
November 8, 2021
Original article linked here.
American Legion property developers eye March start date
GENEVA — Pine Ridge Construction President Jerry Lariviere and three of his colleagues grabbed dinner at Halsey’s on Seneca Street July 7, then walked over to the Geneva Recreation Complex to watch City Council pave the way for the company’s ambitious plan to create a mixed-used development on nearly 13 acres it is buying from the Geneva American Legion.
It was a good night for the Williamsport, Pa., company, with Lariviere noting that Pine Ridge can move ahead with plans to redevelop the lakefront property on Lochland Road (Route 14) for a hotel, restaurant and brewery and townhouse complex.
“We’re processing right along,” he said. “We’re right on track.”
At the meeting, City Council approved rezoning the land from agricultural residential to Lakefront District, as well as designating planned unit and planned commercial development uses for the parcel.
Lariviere said it’s rare when a property like the Legion’s becomes available, and that Geneva is the perfect place to develop such a project.
“I couldn’t imagine any other community meeting all those (positive) checkmarks,” he said, mentioning the region’s strong tourism economy and proximity to Hobart and William Smith Colleges, among other attributes.
Next up is a date with the city Planning Board for site plan approval.
Pine Ridge, doing business in Geneva as Lakefront Development Corp., plans to get rolling on the project in March 2022. It will encompass two phases, with the hotel and restaurant/brewery construction starting first and the townhouse development of up to 60 residences to follow later in the spring, Lariviere indicated.
The goal, he said, is to be finished in April 2023.
Lariviere said the company is investing approximately $30 million into the valuable piece of lakefront property. He would not disclose what Pine Ridge is paying for the property, deferring that information to Legion officials.
Legion Commander Dale Mosher said the purchase price will be divulged once the property closes.
“Dale and the whole Legion have been good partners,” said Lariviere, adding the city administration has been very helpful, walking them through the many steps of the approval process. “They’ve been very clear about what is expected.”
Lariviere said a hotel chain has not been chosen for the 125-room, five-story hotel to be built on the property.
“We’ve spoken to a number of organizations, including Marriott and Hilton,” he said.
Regardless of who is chosen, Lariviere said the hotel’s architectural features will be designed to fit into the Lochland Road neighborhood, which features, among other properties, Belhurst Castle, its next-door neighbor to the south.
The hotel is the second new lodging facility proposed for the South Main Street/Lochland Road area. Trinity Episcopal Church is being redeveloped into an inn, restaurant and events center, with the project set to come before the Planning Board Monday night for site plan review and a special use permit related to parking. Trinity is proposing to build 25 rooms at its South Main Street site.
Lariviera said there’s room for another hotel in Geneva. He pointed to a feasibility study that indicates the need for additional lodging in the area.
He noted that many Pennsylvanians, including himself, visit the Finger Lakes each year for the wine, the lakes and the food.
“You’re just a short blast up the highway,” he said. “I think we’ve all been up there growing up.”
Lariviera noted that when finished, the development will provide significant tax benefits for the city, county and school district, but did note that the company will seek a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement that would reduce the tax liability on portions of the property.
“We’ve talked with Sage and the city about the PILOT program, using other hotels as models (for tax abatements),” Managing Director Marc Demshock said. “We’ll start discussions and get down to more details in the next month.”
Beyond new tax revenue — the Legion property was off the tax rolls because the organization is non-profit — the hotel, restaurant and brewery will create about 50 jobs, Lariviera noted. Additional positions will be needed to work on the maintenance crew for the townhomes, he said.
As for the brewery, Lariviera said Pine Ridge is in talks with a regional operator who would be opening a second location at the development.
Article written by STEVE BUCHIERE sbuchiere@fltimes.com
July 16, 2021
Original article linked here.
Legion Plan Revealed
Townhomes, hotel, restaurant proposed for Geneva American Legion property
GENEVA — The long-discussed redevelopment of the Geneva American Legion property at 1115 Lochland Road is edging closer to reality after a number of fits and starts.
Pine Ridge Construction Management of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, is proposing to build a multi-use development of townhomes, a hotel and a restaurant with a craft brewery on the 12.9-acre property, according to a project description provided to the city by the company.
Jerry Lariviere, Pine Ridge president, expressed his enthusiasm for the project. “This is an amazing property in what we believe is a truly beautiful city,” he said Tuesday afternoon. “The potential for this project is really exciting, and we hope to continue to work diligently with the city, county and our partners to bring this to fruition.”
The development’s commercial components will be on the west side of the property, featuring a 125-room, full-service hotel and a 10,000-square-foot restaurant, according to the project description. The restaurant will feature a “fine regional craft brewery” as well, the developers say.
Braman said the current city-wide rezoning project should have no bearing on the development. He said the mixed-use/hospitality zoning proposed for that area of Lochland Road is “very close” to the city’s lakefront zoning, which is what Lake Tunnel Solar Village on Elizabeth Blackwell Street downtown falls under.
Braman said the current Legion home and the popular pool will be removed to make way for the project, which is expected to take time to develop. He imagines the developers would like to have all their approvals by summer but would make no predictions. “This is a complicated project,” he said.
When a potential buyer backed out for financial reasons earlier this year, Legion members opted to take the property off the market and focus on making upgrades to the building and property. However, a second developer emerged not much after they announced they were keeping the property, and City Manager Gerling and Braman began working with that developer — now revealed to be Pine Ridge — to develop a rezoning application.
Pine Ridge is developing the property as Lakefront Development Group, LLC. The company’s website indicates involvement with projects that include retail, sports arenas, hospitality, food and beverage and more across the nation.
Article written by STEVE BUCHIERE sbuchiere@fltimes.com
May 12, 2021
Original article linked here.
Meet the design team
Meet the design team
“This is an amazing property in what we believe is a truly beautiful city. The potential for this project is really exciting, and we hope to continue to work diligently with the city, county and our partners to bring this to fruition.” - Jerry Lariviere
The undertaking of a 30 million dollar project doesn’t come without collaboration, partnerships and community. We are thankful to the community of Geneva, NY for their support in bringing this to life and for all of our partners along the way.
Rivers Edge Capital
Rivers Edge Capital is a vertically integrated platform that provides in-house experience and resources at nearly every stage of the investment process. The groups work cohesively to maximize value by identifying attractive markets and assets, new construction and repositioning, operational enhancements, deal structuring, capital markets, and targeted disposition.
WJCA Architects
WJCA provides planning, project management, and architecture services that ensure every project meets our clients’ exacting standards, demanding schedules, and rigorous processes.
Our projects balance customer/user culture and behaviors with building utilization and functional adjacencies. Our highest priority is to address the unique needs of our clients and deliver beautiful, functional solutions for their brands.
WJCA is a top architecture firm in New Jersey with successful project completions across North America and around the world, we look forward to bringing our nearly 30 years of experience across many industries and sectors to your next project.
Pine Ridge Construction Management
Pine Ridge is an experienced national provider of construction management, general contractors and design build services. We demonstrate consistent professional construction standards to the project owner and deliver effective project management, functionality, on time delivery expectations including quality and safety best practices.
