A major setback for a development in Port Dalhousie:
On Friday First Ontario Credit Union filed the paperwork to put Union Waterfront into receivership.
Regional Chair Alan Caslin described the latest news as 'Groundhog Day all over again.'
"How many false starts have we had there, and how many have we got to go through before we finally get something going."
He says there is "a mountain of debt and they aren't even in the ground."
Mayor Walter Sendzik says going into receivership is not the outcome they were hoping for but it didn't come as a shock since there were issues with the company managing the project.
He says a company has been appointed to oversee the receivership and it's unfortunate since the property has been awaiting some type of development for 10 years now.
He says Fortress has been working with the city for 3 years now and the final 14-storey proposal has yet to be voted on by council.
Meanwhile a St. Catharines Councillor seems to see the setback as a fresh start.
"Certainly it gives us, I hope, an opportunity to reset and to have a development that is a lot more compatible with our Port Dalhousie, our summer beach place," Councillor Bruce Williamson says.
Fortress Real Developments, the company behind Union Waterfront, previously said the project would play a role in the "revitalization of Port Dalhousie."
In a statement, officials for the company say, "On August 3rd 2018, a receiver was appointed for the Union Waterfront project in Port Dalhousie to manage the interests of the first mortgagee, FirstOntario Credit Union. The project is not in bankruptcy and Fortress will be working alongside the receiver to guide the project through the approvals process. All parties strongly believe in the proposed project and are committed to seeing it through to a successful conclusion."
The project called for 220 condo units.