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South Tampa Condo Project Moving Toward Foreclosure

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By SHANNON BEHNKEN

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 21, 2008

TAMPA - In early 2006, Tampa developer Ed Oelschlaeger was at the height of his career.

He held a huge South Tampa party with cirque performances to celebrate his largest project yet. New Port Tampa Bay was to be the first of its kind in the Bay area. The 52-acre site at the southwest corner of West Shore and Gandy boulevards was slated for a marina, 1,200 condominium units and shops.

It called for green space along the bay, and Oelschlaeger proclaimed to the crowd gathered under a tent for dinner and dancing that he was giving the waterfront back to the public.

But now, more than two years later, the land is bare and the project's future looks bleak.
Bank of America has started foreclosure proceedings, according to documents filed in May in Hillsborough County Circuit Court.

"The bank was patient with us for the better part of a year," said Oelschlaeger, president of Tampa-based EchoGroup. "We just couldn't get it together."

In November, EchoGroup returned deposits to buyers who had contracts to purchase condominium units. Oelschlaeger said then that the project was on hold until the real estate market improved.

He told The Tampa Tribune on Friday that he is hopeful he can eventually build New Port Tampa Bay - even if it means scaling the project back. In the meantime, he's working to find a development partner who could help finance the project. If that doesn't work, he said, the company may sell the land.

"Foreclosures usually take six to eight months," he said. "So we have a little time to pull the chips out of the fire."

New Port joins other Tampa development projects in trouble. Developers of four downtown condominium complexes have filed for bankruptcy protection in recent months. One other developer, to avoid bankruptcy, handed the keys over to the bank and walked away.

Reporter Shannon Behnken can be reached at (813) 259-7804 or sbehnken@tampatrib.com.

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