RFP issued for $66m Staten Island project.

The City's Economic Development Corporation (EDC) issued two Request for Proposals (RFPs) for engineering and landscape design services required to implement the plans for the $66 million redevelopment of Homeport, a former naval base that will be transformed into a mixed-use development with a thriving residential, commercial and retail district.

Plans include the creation of a community sports complex, banquet hall, and restaurant and farmers market.

In addition, the Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced that the Department of Parks & Recreation is initiating a comprehensive plan to restore Stapleton's historic Tappen Park.

Bloomberg traveled to Homeport in Staten Island to unveil a comprehensive redevelopment strategy for the Stapleton neighborhood and North Shore waterfront. "Redeveloping the North Shore of Staten Island's waterfront is just another tremendous example of our administration's successful five-borough economic development strategy at work," said Mayor Bloomberg.

The City has allocated $66 million for infrastructure improvements over five years for the Homeport redevelopment plan.

During the course of a year-long planning effort, the consultant team led by Hamilton, Rabinovitz & Alschuler (HR&A) reached out to more than 100 community residents and local business owners for input and held many public meeting and working sessions.

The final plan combines mid-density development with significant open space, a waterfront esplanade and streetscape improvements. Open space will make up almost half of the 36-acre site.

Development will be comprised of 350 residential units in three buildings, a restaurant and banquet facility, a sports complex, ground-floor retail and other uses totaling about 600,000 square feet. In addition, a part of the site will be reserved for future commercial development uses.

The esplanade will offer public access along the Homeport waterfront and connect to work already underway to create continuous waterfront access from St. George to Stapleton. Parking will also be provided to meet the demand associated with these new uses.

In the past two months, EDC issued two RFPs for infrastructure work; the first is for a consultant team to provide engineering design services focusing on roadway, esplanade and bulkhead engineering, and the second is for landscape design services to improve the streetscape along Front Street and the creation of the esplanade. The consultant teams for both services are expected to be selected this month and the overall design process is expected to take about one year.

Construction of the improvements is anticipated to begin in 2006, and actual development is expected to start in two to three years. Meanwhile, City Planning has initiated a rezoning to allow for site redevelopment in accordance with the waterfront plan.