Group Plans $300M Beach Project

Galveston County Daily News, October 19, 2006,
by Laura Elder

GALVESTON — A South Carolina development group known for luxurious East Coast residential resorts announced Wednesday plans to build a $300 million, 38-story residential tower on East Beach.

Developers W. Russell “Bucky” Drake and Hugh G. Bell Jr. say they’ll begin construction of East Beach Resort & Spa, planned for just east of Stewart Beach, in the spring.

Their desire to build on the Gulf Coast goes to show that developer interest in Galveston hasn’t waned. More than 4,000 condominium units, including Drake’s project, were either planned, under construction or built in the past six months on the island, economic development officials say.

The first phase of East Beach Resort & Spa includes 183 condominiums priced from $700,000 to more than $1.6 million. The development also will include a full-service spa.

Drake and partners have been in talks with the city for more than two years, he said. Drake’s group must pay to install sewer and water lines at the property. But it must do so to the city’s specifications.

Legal issues about the land postponed the project by about seven months, Drake said.

Earlier this year, Drake said he couldn’t move forward with plans to build the tower until his venture received a clear title to the tract.

Drake wasn’t involved in the legal dispute about the title, which has been resolved, he said.

The development will front 1,500 feet of beach and also offer a resort pool, a winding “Lazy Lagoon,” water slides, a poolside restaurant and other amenities.

Though thousands of homes and condominium units are planned or under construction in Galveston, Drake predicts that demand for luxury high-rise living would exceed the supply.

All the high-rise development on the island has some island residents worried that towering buildings will block Gulf of Mexico views and breezes.

City officials are considering height restrictions. City Council today will consider recommendations by the Galveston Planning Commission to require specific use permits for mid-and-high rises east of 103rd Street. Exceptions include Pelican Island or structures on land east of Stewart Beach. That means East Beach Resort & Spa won’t be affected.

The city council today also will consider how tall structures should fit into the island’s comprehensive plan.

In 1979, Drake began developing and selling resort condominiums on the South Carolina coast, the Outer Banks, North Carolina and northern Florida.

East Beach Resort & Spa will include three levels of covered parking and a commercial plaza on the fourth level. The Plaza Level will house a spa and fitness center with an indoor recreational lap pool, upscale retail shops, restaurants, cappuccino bars, an Internet café, a business center and meeting facilities, Drake said.

Drake expects the first phase to be complete in spring of 2009.