Pictured is the former Hideaway Bay Restaurant & Lounge . Chautauqua County Land Bank Corp. officials have been working for five years to redevelop the former restaurant site. P-J file photo

SILVER CREEK — The redevelopment of a former lakeside restaurant continues to move forward during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gina Paradis, Chautauqua County Land Bank Corp. executive director, said the Hideaway Bay redevelopers — Adventure Sports Development & Tundo Construction — are meeting with the state Department of Environmental Conservation and Silver Creek Village officials to sort out the logistics and to do site preparations.

“It’s moving along. Hopefully we will see groundbreaking before winter,” Paradis said. “It will depend how quickly everything comes together, but it certainly feels good to see it moving forward, especially with this group of developers. They are really moving forward with environmental stewardship and it’s a plan the community can get their arms around.”

The land bank’s role in the redevelopment of the former Hideaway Bay site has been ongoing for five years, and it hasn’t been easy. In 2016, the land bank agreed to acquire the rundown property where the former Hideaway Bay Restaurant & Lounge was located after it was originally set for the Chautauqua County Tax Foreclosure Auction. After acquiring the property, Paradis said it took land bank officials a year to sort out development restrictions, have it surveyed and to understand what the DEC would allow for redevelopment.

“We had to look at what the site could accommodate and what it couldn’t,” she said. “We had to look at zoning and compliance issues.”

When the land bank was finally ready to have proposals submitted for possible redevelopment projects, nothing seemed to be a fit for the property.

“We want through two rounds of (request for proposals) without an acceptable proposal,” she said.

Then in January 2020, the former restaurant was destroyed by fire after a juvenile set it a blaze. Following the fire, the land bank continued moving forward with redevelopment efforts. In February 2020, Paradis told the land bank board that they had three serious redevelopment proposals. However, a month later the COVID-19 pandemic started in the state, which led to perspective developers being hesitant because of the unknown financial ramifications at the time.

But land bank officials continued to move forward during the pandemic to redevelop the property, ultimately leading to the announcement in November that the property had been sold for $225,000 to Adventure Sports Development & Tundo Construction. The Silver Creek company purchased the property to redevelop the site into lux cabin rentals and a year-round recreation hub with adventure sport guide services.

The project proposal includes public access to the beach and lake that will be encouraged with the development of a walking trail with connections to the public beach across Walnut Creek and a kayak launch. A restaurant and events venue will be developed in the second phase. The development is estimated at a $ 1.35 million and will create up to 50 jobs.

“At times, it’s been a struggle, but I think it was a good thing we waited. There is a good team in place and a good project in place. (Adventure Sports Development & Tundo Construction is) from the local area and they are committed to do the right thing by the community and the site. I think it was worth the wait.”