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TRITEC recaps: Revitalization of downtowns brings property, prosperity, and people

Jimmy Coughlan speaking at the HIA-LI Trade Show

For more than three decades, TRITEC has been a leader in strengthening local communities.

During HIA-LI’s 35th Annual Trade Show, Vice President of Development Jimmy Coughlan spoke at the Executive Luncheon Program, where he was joined by three other business leaders, to discuss transformative projects that will shape the future of Long Island.

Consisting of three sectors, TRITEC Real Estate Company includes the firms’ Development Group, Building Company, and Asset Management, which employs over 70 real estate and construction professionals with offices on Long Island and Virginia.

Coughlan said that since the company’s inception, they have completed more than 15,000,000 square feet of commercial space, constructed more than 2,000 multi-family units, and are continuing that trend adding an additional 800+ multi-family units currently under construction.

And while their earlier projects were successful and impressive, the most transformative build was New Village in downtown Patchogue. After assessing the population changes on Long Island, or the “brain drain,” the TRITEC team realized that young people between the ages of 25 and 34 were dropping, while a surplus of seniors was evident.

“From 2000 to 2009, as a country, our population of young professionals grew by 5 percent,” Coughlan said. “At the same time on Long Island, the numbers of young professionals decreased by 15 percent and our senior population grew by 20 percent.”

So, that’s how the idea of New Village at Patchogue was born. The Long Island Regional Planning Council conducted a study that looked at the revitalization of downtown Patchogue – which had 50% vacancy in Main Street retail space. After consulting with local leadership, and a $112 million investment, the Main Street apartments were finalized in 2015.

Since that short time, Coughlan said there has been nothing but continuous growth. Thanks to the fully occupied New Village apartments, there is a 95% retail occupancy rate with 42 new businesses on Main Street., $693 million in total economic output and nearly 6,000 new jobs. In 2019, just four years after the build’s completion, the Village of Patchogue was added to the American Planning Association’s Great Places in America.

New Village proved what was possible and TRITEC began work in multiple downtowns including Port Jefferson, Lindenhurst, and the soon-to-be-completed Bay Shore’s Shoregate.

Shoregate

Shoregate is located a block from Main Street in downtown Bay Shore. The hamlet has been in the midst of revitalization for a long time and Shoregate is a highly amenitized true luxury option.

“We wanted to keep the character of the community,” Coughlan said, adding that the buildings will have the same architectural style as local historic buildings have, or once had, in the past.

Shoregate is currently constructing its 418 units and 1,640 square feet of retail space. It will help house local healthcare workers affiliated with South Shore University Hospital (which is 1,500 feet away) and Good Samaritan University Hospital (just three miles from the complex).

It will also feature 20,000 square feet of interior amenity space including fitness rooms, club rooms, dog wash stations, a game room, a pool, ping-pong tables, and a golf simulator.

Outside, there is 47,650 square feet of amenity space that will feature a swimming pool, BBQ stations, fire pits, pickle ball courts, bocce pits, a hammock farm, and a rooftop space.

“People will choose to live in certain communities based on the economic activity, the vibrancy of the downtown, and whether or not the construction is best for their lifestyles,” Coughlan said. “And these locations will be ready for them.”

Station Yards

Located just feet away from the Ronkonkoma Long Island Railroad, which serves approximately 17,000 riders per day, Station Yards will bring shopping, housing, and community to a formerly blighted, but busy, area.

“This was a community-led project that we wanted to be a part of,” Coughlan said, noting that the discussions began back in 2010. Now, 13 years later, “We’re moving our headquarters there and we’re really excited to be there.”

While Phase 1, Alston, consisting of 489 apartments, was welcoming its new residents in 2019, Phase 2A began in 2021 and, according to Coughlan, pictures are not doing the build justice as it is constantly evolving as it gets close to the finish line.

“Every time you drive past it, it looks different than the day before,” he said.

Station Yards will bring 1,450 residential units, 360,000 square feet of office space, and 195,000 square feet of retail, some of which are already being leased.

But along with the space it will soon provide to young people looking to be closer to their Manhattan commutes or empty nesters hoping to downsize, TRITEC has already attracted $435 million of investment with 11,000 construction jobs, 2,700 permanent jobs, and an anticipation of its soon-to-be residents to generate over $40 million annually in discretionary income.