May 25, 2012

SunCal to restart Harbor Station

By Daniel J. Sernovitz
Washington Business Journal

SunCal Cos. plans to break ground this summer on a $250 million-plus development in southern Prince William County that was sidelined by the recession and would be the largest mixed-use project in the county.

SunCal spokesman David Soyka said his company is still refining plans for the project, but that the first phase will include construction of a new clubhouse and the site development of the first 386 residential lots. The completion of the clubhouse will coincide with the long-awaited opening of an already-built Jack Nicklaus golf course at the site. Soyka was unable to provide a more precise time line for the project, which had been known on paper as Harbor Station but will be rebranded as Potomac Shores.

“It’s basically two miles on the Potomac River and it’s a place that really takes you back to the historical part of Virginia,” Soyka said. “We think that this is really going to be serving the D.C. market and providing a great opportunity.”

SunCal plans to pick up on the concept first laid out by McLean-based Kettler Inc., which spent more than $200 million planning the massive project. It was slated to include nearly 4,000 residential units and 3 million square feet of commercial space. Kettler developed the golf course and got approvals for other parts of the project before the recession set in and brought the development to a standstill.

SunCal acquired the property for about $55 million from the successor to Wachovia Bank, which was owed about $121.5 million and sought approval from Prince William County Circuit Court to appoint a receiver to sell the property.

Based in Irvine, Calif., SunCal has nearly two-dozen mixed-use communities across the county but would be making its biggest push into the East Coast with its development of Potomac Shores.

Soyka said he believes the development could become one of the premier resort destinations for Washingtonians. It is slated to include nearly two-dozen public athletic fields, a town center with new shops and restaurants, and a resort hotel and conference center. There are also two schools planned to be part of the project and an eight-mile network of recreational trails.

The town center is slated to include more than 230,000 square feet of retail space, to be leased by restaurants and entertainment-themed venues, but Soyka said no companies have signed on yet to prelease space in the development.

The project would also be tied into the Virginia Railway Express with a new passenger station to be built with funding from the federal government. SunCal is working with state and federal transportation officials on that part of the project.

Soyka said SunCal has lined up an equity partner to finance the project, but he declined to identify that firm by name. The firm has retained Hart Howerton Ltd. as its project architect and Engineering Groupe and Urban Ltd. as its engineering firms.

SunCal has set up a field office at the site and is selecting a general contractor.

The project would be developed in several phases and SunCal has applied to the county for a zoning amendment that would allow it to shift some of the proposed buildings around to be more oriented toward a town center concept. SunCal is also hoping to be able to draw major employers to the project, and the zoning change will allow it to build bigger and more densely packed buildings.

That request is currently being reviewed, but Soyka said it will not affect the company’s plans to break ground this summer on the first phase. SunCal has the approvals it needs for that part of the project already.

Privacy & Disclaimer

Not an Offer to Sell

This website and the information and material provided at this website are not intended to nor do they constitute an offer or solicitation for sale and should not be construed as such. Offers to buy or sell property may be made only at our Information/Sales Center. Some jurisdictions require prior registration or other advance qualification of real property in order to solicit in that jurisdiction. Responses to inquiries in such jurisdictions may be prohibited or limited. Void where prohibited by law.

SunCal reserves the right to change ANY specifications, materials, terms, features, prices, availability and sales procedures without notice. Please note that variations in floorplans and elevations may exist, and square footages are approximate. Brokers/agents must register their clients in person upon their client's first visit in order to qualify for a Broker Referral Program, if offered. If a Priority Purchase Program has been established, SunCal reserves the right to change the Priority Program at any time without notice and reserves the right to sell homes to individuals not specified on the Priority List. No one may assign, sell or trade their priority position to any other person.

While we endeavor to display current and accurate information, we make no representations or warranties regarding the information set forth in the Website and, without limiting the foregoing, information may be estimated or approximate, out of date or inaccurate, and there may be typographical errors. We may at any time revise this website. We are not responsible for any technical failures or problems that are beyond our control, or any results of any such failures or problems. USE OF THE WEBSITE IS PROVIDED "AS IS WHERE IS," AS AN ACCOMMODATION, AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY WARRANTY OF TITLE, MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL WE BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION DIRECT, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES WITH REGARD TO THE USE OF THE WEBSITE, FOR ANY DEFICIENCY, ERROR OR INTERRUPTION IN THE OPERATION OF THE WEBSITE, OR SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION OF THE OPERATION OF THE WEBSITE OR THE ABILITY OF YOU TO ACCESS AND USE THE WEBSITE, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF THE DAMAGES. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT YOU ACCESS AND USE THE WEBSITE AT YOUR SOLE RISK. BECAUSE SOME STATES OR JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, ONE OR MORE OF THE EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS SET FORTH ABOVE MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

The term "SunCal" as used in this website is in reference to the SunCal trademark and does not refer to any individual, corporation, partnership, limited liability company or any other entity. Each separate real estate project described, displayed and otherwise referenced herein is owned, operated and managed by one or more distinct, separate entities with unique and distinct ownership, which entities may not be separately identified herein.

Privacy

SunCal will not sell, rent or share your personal information with any third party not associated with SunCal. To ensure our e-mail updates reach your inbox, please enter info@suncal.com into your e-mail address book.

SunCal in the news