Rocky Point homes likely 5 years away

Rocky Point homes likely 5 years away

The site of the former amusement park is auctioned on a conference call among five finalists. The winning bid is $25 million.

01:00 AM EST on Friday, November 7, 2003

BY DANIEL BARBARISI
Journal Staff Writer

WARWICK -- It could be five to seven years before a large new residential development at the former Rocky Point Amusement Park site is complete, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration, which finalized a deal to sell the property for $25 million Wednesday afternoon.

Developer Arnold Goodstein, of Vanderbilt Capital LLC, plans to build up to 350 condominiums, townhouses, and single-family homes on the 123-acre property. Rocky Point Avenue will be used as the primary entrance and egress.

Goodstein declined to comment on the specifics of his proposal until a purchase-and-sale agreement is finalized, which Rhode Island SBA Director Mark Hayward said will happen within 21 days. The agreement must then be approved by the U.S. District Court.

The property was auctioned Wednesday afternoon in a conference call among five finalists: Vanderbilt, Fafard Company of Boston, Acquisition Strategies/Worcester Capital Group LLC, Rocky Point Land Company, and RLS/Simms, Hayward said.

The bids began around $12.5 million, and quickly headed upward in minimum increments of $100,000. Three of the bidders dropped out, but Vanderbilt and a second company, believed to be Fafard, kept upping their bids.

"As we got higher in the numbers, we were down to just a couple," Hayward said.

After two hours, the bidding topped out at $25 million, a price Hayward said the SBA was very happy with. It will go a long way toward paying off the creditors of Moneta Capital Corp, the property's former owner.

Now that a buyer has been found, the top priority from this point forward, according to U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee, is ensuring that the city gets the open space and public access that the developers promised as a condition of entering negotiations.

"The staggering price tag shows how special Rhode Island real estate has become. We all have known that but now others are realizing it," said Chafee, the former mayor of Warwick.

"I know development is important for Warwick's tax rolls, and I am sure that through the zoning and planning process, public access to the shore will be a priority," he continued.

Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian said that he's confident the city will get everything it's promised, and may use $2.25 million in federal matching funds secured by U.S. Sen. Jack Reed to leverage the open space purchases.

Avedisian said he was particularly impressed with Goodstein's proposal, which seemed to be more than a cookie-cutter housing project.

"It really creates this attitude on the property, so that it would not be only a home for people to live, but a part of the Warwick Neck community," Avedisian said.

Goodstein, 59, is a former South Carolina state senator and a personal-injury and environmental lawyer. He first became involved with the property when he stopped in Rhode Island to visit one of his children, who was a student at Brown University.

Luxury home builder Toll Brothers properties is also a member of his development team, and is believed to be the builder. Toll Brothers spokeswoman Kira McCarron said yesterday that Toll Brothers was in no way involved with purchasing the property, however.