Harbor Villas project completed in Alex Bay

ALEXANDRIA BAY — The final piece of the village development called Harbor Villas is expected to rumble up Interstate 81 this week.

Richard A. Merola, whose development features 30 townhouses over boathouses, said he was waiting for carpet to arrive so he could finish the last unit, which he will keep as his own.

Mr. Merola purchased the Anthony Street property, formerly Alexandria Bay Boat Works, in 1995. The townhouses, sized at either 16 by 40 feet or 20 by 40 feet, are part of Mr. Merola's larger Inlet Harbor Club project at the site.

The complex permitting process for Harbor Villas began in 2003. Among other agencies, Mr. Merola's project had to be approved by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of Health and Department of State's Division of Coastal Services.

The various agencies required the developer to add a sprinkler system, use more steel to make the foundations earthquake-proof and extend a municipal water line by 150 feet.

The layers of regulations delayed the project a year longer than Mr. Merola had anticipated, he said, and helped push prices for each townhouse up by $30,000. The purchase price for the smaller structures increased to $289,000 and the larger ones to $349,000.

Construction on the villas began in the spring of 2007 and took 14 months in what Mr. Merola described as "a pretty aggressive schedule."

Even with the price bump, the majority of the two-story villas were sold before construction was complete. The five units that remain were listed last week with Hefferon Real Estate. Michael L. Gravelle, the real estate agent handling the remaining villas, described them as "unique."

"Anyone would be lucky to have one," he said.

Mr. Merola, who also owns Aqua-Mania Inc. on Route 12, said his project largely had been insulated from the housing crisis that has gripped the rest of the country because of its distinctive nature.

"The project is niche; it's much less affected than the ordinary housing market would be," he said. "It's a specialty property and a specialty investment."

Mr. Merola said that, compared to housing in other attractive destinations, such as Phoenix, Colorado or Florida, his townhouses were fairly conservatively priced.

Through Inlet Harbor Club, Mr. Merola also provides the new villa owners with the option of renting out the townhouses for short periods when they are not using the space.

Even with all the attractions of the finished villas, Mr. Merola said the stars had to align for his project to meet all of the requirements necessary to see it all through to completion.

"I feel fortunate that, in such a difficult market, we've been successful," he said. "We're pretty happy to say this was a success.