Continental Property Group, the Minnesota company that was to have developed a mixed-use project as part the of riverfront development, no longer has an active presence in Fort Wayne.

Two other projects proposed by Continental in recent weeks have been canceled or put on hold – the North River development across North Clinton Street from Science Central and a project to develop an industrial area near Fort Wayne International Airport.

Continental had signed a purchase agreement for a 66-acre tract off Airport Expressway between Coverdale and Smith roads and planned to develop an industrial building or buildings.

But in mid-February, Continental told the Fort Wayne Airport Authority the company was withdrawing from the agreement, Scott Hinderman, executive director of airports, said Thursday.

He said Continental did not provide any reason “other than it failed their due-diligence test.”

For the North River property, Continental was the only party to respond to a formal Request for Proposals by its deadline. The company included the locally generated Headwaters Junction railroad attraction in its proposal.

But city officials have put the North River project on hold, pending a consultant's comprehensive master plan for the second and third phases of riverfront development, said Mary Tyndall, the city's spokeswoman for community development.

The city has not excluded Continental from consideration for the North River project, according to Nancy Townsend, redevelopment director. But officials haven't said yes, either.

“A definite timetable hasn't been established for moving forward with North River,” Townsend said in a statement.

The commissioned study by David Rubin Land Collective “will help us better gauge the best fit for next steps. Having control of the property, as we do, will better position us for future private development,” Townsend's statement continues.

An emailed request for comment from Continental did not elicit a response Thursday.

Despite Continental's conclusion, Hinderman said he did not see “any impediment” to future development of the property near the airport. The airport authority worked to secure general industrial zoning for the tract and also had it included in a tax increment financing district, he said.

Such districts can benefit a future owner by allowing any increase in tax revenue from developing a parcel to be reinvested in the same area, generally in infrastructure improvements.

Plans for the tract had been somewhat vague, showing only that Continental would develop one building, either for a tenant or without one. Other buildings might follow, planning officials were told.

Hinderman said Continental's purchase agreement was for $1.98 million and the company had been interested in an option to buy some or all of the remaining 64 nearby acres.

All the land will be put back on the market, likely with the help of Greater Fort Wayne, Hinderman said.

“It's a bummer,” he said of Continental's withdrawal. But it could pave the way for something better, he added.

Meanwhile, longtime Fort Wayne developer Don Steininger said Continental approached Headwaters Junction LLC about including its historic rail attraction in the company's proposal for the North River property.

Steininger is board chairman of Headwaters.

Continental's North River proposal calls for splitting the land, formerly an OmniSource recycling facility, into four smaller parcels. Headwaters Junction, which would showcase an operating steam locomotive built in the city and other attractions, would be situated west of North Calhoun Street in a corner of the 29-acre plot.

In a recent Journal Gazette op-ed and an interview this week, Steininger said he generally supports dividing the parcel. He said streets and utility lines, some of which cannot be moved, split the land.

However, he worries the attraction may not be included in upcoming plans. And he cautioned against thinking “a national developer will drop in from the sky and propose one massive development for all 29 acres.”

On Monday, city officials announced they were dropping Continental as developer for the $62 million HIVE project on the northeast corner of Harrison and Superior streets. They said the company could not fulfill its development contract with regard to financing.

The project would have included a 1,000-space parking garage, apartments and retail space facing the riverfront. City officials said they would start over in their search for a developer.

In response, officials from the Wayzata, Minnesota, developer said they had spent millions on the project and were willing and able to see it to completion.

rsalter@jg.net