By Staff
Project’s first phase expected to be done by spring of next year
By MIKE VOSS, Contributing Editor
The first phase of the Moss Landing residential project should be completed by the spring of 2008, according to Stan Friedman, managing partner of the Progress Companies.
The first phase includes two villas and seven townhouses, which will be located south of the intersection of Academy and Water streets, Friedman said.
Overall, the entire Moss Landing project calls for 18 townhouses, 35 condominiums and a 92-slip marina. The project’s villas, buildings that house seven condominiums each, will be named after former lumber yards once located in the area. Those names include Eureka, Moss, Kugler and Short. Most of the buildings housing townhouses will be named after former shipbuilders in the area. Those names include Havens, Blount and Myers. The residential units will go up on 8.18 acres, according to project plans.
A penthouse will comprise the fourth floor of each villa.
The two villas that are part of the project’s first phase are named Eureka and Moss.
A 119-ton pile driver was used to drive more than 1.900 pilings into the ground. The poles were driven between 20 and 45 feet deep.
Capping of the pilings will begin within two to three weeks.
Washington Mayor Judy Meier Jennette is looking forward to not just the project’s first phase being completed but the entire development being built.
Jennette said the project will “add a lot to the city’s tax base,” meaning the city will benefit from tax revenues generated by the townhouses, condominiums and marina.
With the completion of the pile-driving project comes an upswing in inquisitiveness about the project, Friedman said.
In the past month, there has been “strong interest” from area residents, out-of-town residents and people from other states in buying villas and townhouses, Friedman said.
As those residential units starting going up, interest from prospective buyers should go up, too, according to Friedman.
The condominiums and townhouses will range in price from $400,000 to $1.2 million each.
A buyer will get his or her money’s worth, Friedman said.
The residential units more than meet building codes, he said. They are “far beyond what we are required to” do to meet those codes, he added.
As for the marina, floating docks will be used to provide the 92 boat slips, said Friedman, who became managing partner of the Moss Landing development group in January after Fred Fletcher Jr. stepped down as point man for Progress Partners, now known as Progress Companies.
At that time, Michael Overton, a Washington resident, assumed the role of project/operational manager. He oversees daily operations of the development and sale of Moss Landing properties.
During an interview in January, Friedman said Progress Companies believed the Moss Landing project would recover from the soft-market condition and sales of residential units would experience an upswing.