STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Backers of a mixed-use waterfront development at the base of the Staten Island ferry terminal in St. George, once home to a lighthouse plant and Coast Guard facility MAP LINK, say they are in the design phase of the project and on track to begin construction by summer 2013.

On tap for the $140 million, two-level, 50,000-square-foot Lighthouse Pointe development along Bay Street is retail, including the possibility of a supermarket, a boutique hotel and 100 condo units with on-site parking.

Queens-based Triangle Equities developers also told the Advance Editorial Board last Thursday that the upland parcel, constructed to city building code, would not be susceptible to a Sandy-like storm surge.

Borough President James Molinaro, who sat in on the meeting, agreed.

Project CEO Lester Petracca said the development would generate $64 million in direct and indirect benefits, including an estimated 458 construction jobs and some 440 permanent jobs.

But first the Federal Transit Administration, which has an interest in the property, must OK the city Economic Development Corporation's application to take control of the 3-acre track, which lies between the St. George Post Office and the ferry terminal and is a stone's throw from the proposed New York Wheel.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) publicly asked the FTA to fast-track the application back in mid-October.

"We have been in frequent contact with the FTA and understand that they are close to reaching a decision," said Schumer spokeswoman Marisa Kaufman. "We are hopeful the agency will expedite the city's application so that the Lighthouse Pointe project can move forward quickly."

Petracca said the Wheel, with its adjacent Harbor Commons development, would complement Lighthouse Pointe, with visitors and shoppers arriving via ferry, car and on foot.

The brick wall which fronts the property and runs parallel to Bay Street is landmarked and will be retained.

Certain of the six historic buildings will be renovated for new use.

Petracca said the property is being marketed to prospective tenants on a number of fronts, including: siting it in an area of the borough with few retail options, its proximity to the ferry as well as to the proposed Wheel.

The site once housed the U.S. Lighthouse Depot, where lenses were assembled and shipped to lighthouses along the East Coast during the 1800s. The historic buildings are landmarked. It was later a U.S. Coast Guard maintenance facility. The city then purchased it to be part of the ferry maintenance facility, but later determined it was not needed.

Triangle Equities built Triangle Junction Mall in Brooklyn in 2009.

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