HAVERHILL — It was around this time that developers were supposed to break ground on a seafood restaurant and retail complex at 205 Water St., just east of downtown on the banks of the Merrimack River.
But instead of workers and construction vehicles, a "for sale" sign recently popped up on the 1.1-acre property, commonly known as the old Cleary's Cleaners site.
It's one of several vacant and dilapidated lots along the river that have fallen victim to the poor real estate climate. Canceled projects include the retail complex at the Cleary's Cleaners site and more than 100 condominiums at another site.
On the Bradford side of the river near the Comeau Bridge, a company planned to build as many as 136 condominiums on the former Ornstein Heel shoe factory property, but that project is also dead, Mayor James Fiorentini said. Haverhill had stood to receive $3.4 million from the developers for the city-owned property.
"They couldn't get financing," the mayor said of the developers. "They're gone."
The 205 Water St. retail complex, approved by the City Council in May, was to be the first in a temporary riverfront zone. The zoning was designed to encourage developers to provide public access to the river and discourage tall buildings along the Merrimack, so public views of the river would be preserved.
The developers, Stephen Stapinkski and King Weinstein, were to give the city a 25-foot portion of their land along the river and make $200,000 in improvements to the busy intersection of Mill and Water streets in front of the property.
The property is one of several high-profile parcels on Water Street that have fallen into a dilapidated state. It is overgrown with weeds, surrounded by chain-link fence and dotted with debris.
Just a bit farther down river is the old Skelley's gas station property, another vacant and overgrown parcel that has been dormant for years. The mayor said he was contacted about a year ago by someone who wanted to build a restaurant on the site, but that he never heard back from the person.
A little closer to downtown is the largest of the riverfront eyesores, the so-called Friend's Landing property on Water Street, named after the nightclub that was demolished a few years ago. The hot-topped lot, which is about the size of a football field, is covered in rubble and weeds, many 4 to 5 feet tall. Piles of broken asphalt block both entrances to the lot.
The owner of the Friend's Landing site, Frank Franzone, received approval to build dozens of upscale condominiums there in 2003, but he never went forward. Fiorentini said Franzone wants to develop the site, but has been able to due to the down economy.
"I haven't had anyone come to see on any of these properties in a long time," the mayor said of the lots along the river. "But we're hopeful the market will turn around soon. We've seen some signs it's improving. I've had some developers come see me on other properties recently."
Economic Development Director William Pillsbury is slightly more optimistic. He said he has fielded phone calls from several people inquiring about the Cleary's Cleaners and Skelley's sites in recent weeks.
Pillsbury said his office is finalizing a proposal for a permanent riverfront zone that would stretch from the Skelley's site to the downtown post office on Merrimack Street. On the Bradford side, it is expected to run from the Crescent Yacht Club to the Comeau Bridge at the western edge of downtown.
"The City Council and the mayor, for years, have identified the river as a primary asset," Pillsbury said. "We need to use our zoning power to protect that asset."
During the last 40 years, efforts to clean up the Merrimack River have resulted in a more popular waterway, with hundreds of boats docked along Haverhill's stretch of the river each summer. Apartment and condominium developments, restaurants and other businesses have opened along and near the river.
A public 300-foot boardwalk along the river at the west end of downtown recently opened.
Another key riverfront parcel is the 23-acre former Haverhill Paperboard Corp. property on South Kimball Street on the Bradford side of the river. The company closed last year. The mayor said the owners had talked about donating the land to the city.
"We were excited about that until we found out it would cost over $1 million to knock down the building and clean it up," Fiorentini said. "I haven't heard anything about that property in a quite a while."
There's also the large property known as the old Taylor-Goodwin lumberyard site on the Bradford side of the Basiliere Bridge. Fiorentini said it has the most potential of the all the waterfront properties because of it's size and location, and the fact that its owner, Richard Cretarolo, is actively marketing the property.
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High-profile riverfront properties
Site of old Cleary's Cleaners: Approved retail development fell through
Ornstein Heel shoe factory: Approved condo development is dead
Site of former Friend's Landing club: Approved condo project on hold
Old Skelley's gas station: Nothing pending
Site of closed Haverhill Paperboard company: Nothing pending
Old Taylor-Goodwin Lumberyard: Owner is actively marketing, but nothing pending
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