NEW SEABURY, MA-American Real Estate Partners LP has received the green light to begin construction on a multimillion-dollar, mixed-use project after the firm reached a settlement in a long-standing legal dispute with the Cape Cod Commission over additional residential, commercial and recreational development here.
New Seabury Properties, LLC, a Mashpee real estate development company which was a party to the lawsuit, started construction on 450 residences, recreational amenities and between 10,000 sf and 50,000 sf of retail space in the 1,240-acre seaside community on June 1, Mark Romanowicz, director of development for New Seabury Properties tells GlobeSt.com. The development firm is a subsidiary of the Mt. Kisco, NY-based American Real Estate Partners, a development and management firm. "We're happy we were able to come to a final agreement with the commission and the water district," Romanowicz says. He said the project is expected to be completed within five years.
"It's a victory for both sides," Jessica Wielgus, attorney for the Cape Cod Commission, tells GlobeSt.com. "The settlement presents a reasonable compromise that protects the water rights within New Seabury."
The legal dispute, which dates back to 2001, was settled in Barnstable District Court after the parties agreed to protect about 40 acres of land from development and put other conservations methods in place during the construction. The firms also agreed to monitor groundwater quality, restrict pesticide and fertilizer use in environmentally sensitive areas, hire an independent environmental monitor to confirm compliance and establish an emergency response fund to clean up environmental incidents during construction.
In a statement issued following the court settlement, William A. Burke with New Seabury Properties said the company made the design accommodations "necessary to meet the commission's high standards of environmental stewardship." Burke could not be reached for further comment and officials from American Real Estate Partners did not return phone calls seeking comment on the settlement.
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