Project Spotlight: Steelpointe Harbor
Bridgeport, Connecticut - A major Northeastern waterfront project has achieved lift-off. Bridgeport Landing Development, a subsidiary of The RCI Group, announced that it has completed the $15-million Phase I infrastructure improvements at its mixed-use Steelpointe Harbor project in Southern Fairfield County Connecticut and it has begun going vertical.
Steelpointe is a 2 million-sq.-ft. superregional waterfront project located adjacent to I-95 in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Spanning 82 acres, the project will feature more than 750,000 sq. ft. of retail, restaurants and entertainment, a 12-screen premium theater, two hotels, 1,100 mid-and-high rise residential units, 30,000 sq. ft. of office, and a 200-slip full-service deep water marina. Bass Pro Shops announced in April that it would open its first and only store in Connecticut at Steelpointe in 2015.
“Our leasing for Steelpointe has been heavily focused on a tenant mix of both recognizable and first-to-market retailers,” said Ferrara Jerum International partner and Steelpoint Harbor leasing consultant Douglas Jerum. “We have gained tremendous momentum in our discussions with a strategic blend of fashion, home, food, and entertainment users that will deliver a diverse and appealing combination of accessible luxury to the entire region. We expect to be making several exciting announcements following ICSC New York (Dec. 8-9, Jacob J. Javits, New York City).”
More than 1.2 million people live within a 30-minute drive of Steelpointe, with an average household income of $112,000. Steelpointe also boasts that it is the only mixed-use development in the state of Connecticut that includes Long Island in its trade area. That is achieved thanks to the presence of the Bridgeport-Long Island Ferry, a year-round ferry service operated by the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company. The ferry, which provides 10-20 daily round-trip service runs for vehicles, passengers and freight across Long Island Sound between Bridgeport and Port Jefferson, services 800,000 passengers annually. The company will soon be relocating its Connecticut terminal to a site immediately adjacent to the eastern edge of the project which is expected to increase its ridership to more than 1.4 million passengers annually in the next few years.
Steelpointe’s waterfront plays an important role in defining the project’s personality and functionality. The project’s public Harborwalk is a defining highlight: a large waterfront promenade that stretches along the southern perimeter of the site. A waterfront plaza marks Harborwalk’s midpoint, a natural gathering place where residents and visitors can enjoy breathtaking views of the 100-, 200- and 300-foot yachts moored in the marina.
The $50-million first phase of the development is expected to be completed by the fall of 2015.