<< back
Sticking Pointe - Norriego Point condo project down, not out?
July 28, 2009
Destin – two months after Regions Bank launched foreclosure proceedings against the Pointe Beach and Yacht Club, Rod Wright of Pointe One LLC says the Norriego Point condominium development isn't going under.
"It's not going to happen," Wright said recently. "We're already working on refinancing. It's going in a different direction."
In May, Regions filed a lis pendens, an announcement of foreclosure proceedings, "seeking to foreclose a mortgage lien on the property and a security interest lien on personal property."
A spokesperson for the bank's attorney said legal proceedings still were under way.
Wright said the filing wasn't even newsworthy because the foreclosure was not going to happen.
The Destin City Council approved the 79-unit condo tower development in 2005 after Pointe One LLC dropped plans for a marina from the project. Charter captains and boaters told the city the marina would be too close to East Pass, increasing the congestion and safety risks in what already was a crowded stretch of water.
Two months later, Pointe One applied to the Department of Environmental Protection for a marina permit. Although Pointe One sales material has heavily advertised the marina, sales representatives have said the condos will sell even without a yacht club.
The DEP rejected the application in 2007. Pointe One reapplied to build a 53-slip marina, and the application still pending. The DEP has requested additional information from Pointe One, which has until Aug. 31 to respond.
Even with a DEP permit, the company would need the city to approve the marina. In 2006, Pointe One offered to pay all or part of the cost to relocate Destin Harbor's navigation channel and to dredge the sand shoaling part of the harbor, provided the marina would be approved. The amount the company paid would depend on how big a marina they were allowed to build.
City Manager Greg Kisela said the application still is in the DEP permit process.
By Fraser Sherman, Destin Log Staff Writer; Article courtesy of The Destin Log
