Project Overview
Northern Riverfront Marina and Hotel Limited Liability Limited Partnership is commencing a new Project on the Cape Fear River in downtown Wilmington, North Carolina. This Project represents the cornerstone of an overall master-planned redevelopment. A summary of that overall development follows herein. The starting point of all good developments is the foundation. The portion of this overall riverfront project being undertaken by this Limited Partnership is the Marina and Hotel component.
The first component is the construction of a new full service Marina along the Cape Fear River in historic downtown Wilmington. The site is 11.75 acres +/- and will have up to 204 slips ranging in size from 40 to 100 feet. The Marina portion of the project encompasses a 14’ wide River Walk, several kiosk retail shops on the existing concrete docking facility, as well as a diesel fuel depot and parking.
Marina construction is expected to take 7 months for excavation and an additional 4 to 6 months to complete the first phase of slips. The engineering and construction drawings are complete. Bids for construction are finalized. Permits for dredging, demolition and construction have all been secured with all local, state and federal agencies. The developer has been released for construction by required governmental agencies. Final agreements have been executed and recorded between the Developer and the City of Wilmington to share the cost of the marina’s bulkhead, as well as reimbursement of construction costs for a River Walk connecting the property to the City’s new Convention Center and the historic downtown district to the south.
The marina will be operated by a full time professional staff. Initial operations of the marina will produce income from transient rental and short term leases. The marina income will be further enhanced by fuel and retail sales. The General Partner will determine, based on market conditions, to either commence slip sales, or maintain leasing program until initial investment period is complete. This determination will be made with priority placed on preservation of capital and maximizing profit to the Limited Partnership. Return of investment capital shall be achieved through sales of marina slips, or by selling the entire marina asset once income stabilization and EB-5 program requirements have been met. Current appraisals show a 39 Million ($39,000,000) Dollar value for the marina when completed.
The second component of this Project is the construction and operation of a hotel, located on a 1.26 acre site, adjacent to the Marina and the City of Wilmington’s new Convention Center. The 105,000 square foot Convention Center is fully funded and under construction, with opening scheduled for spring 2010. Our Project’s hotel, the closest to the City’s Convention Center, will be located diagonally across the intersection from the Convention Center, allowing it to capture a majority of convention business. The hotel will include a minimum of 136 rooms, hotel amenities, and an additional 35,000 square feet of retail space, (to include dining and family entertainment components) and parking. The hotel will host a well-known and respected brand-name flag and provide quality service and hospitality at competitive rates.
Hotel construction is expected to take approximately 17-20 months. The anticipated schedule is 5 months to complete final engineering, approval, and permitting. Actual construction is anticipated to take an additional 12-15 months.
The Project will be positioned to sell in 3-5 years when income stabilization is achieved & EB-5 program requirements have been met. Based on historic market valuation models, at full stabilization, anticipated hotel value should be between Sixteen Million ($16,000,000) and Twenty Million ($20,000,000) Dollars.
The General Partner estimates the total cost of the Project to be Forty-One Million Five Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars ($41,550,000), consisting of Nine Million Dollars ($9,000,000) from direct developer investment, and Five Million Fifty Thousand Dollars ($5,050,000) reimbursements from the City of Wilmington. The remaining Twenty Seven and Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($27,500,000) is being raised in accordance with terms of the Offering Circular and Subscription Agreement..
Animation of Riverfront Project (Please Install FlashPlayer to view)
Animation of Riverfront Project (Please Install FlashPlayer to view)
WWAY News - Wilmington Riverfront Baseball Stadium - Bill Saffo, Chuck Schoninger (Please Install FlashPlayer to view)