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Originally in the Sunday paper: Byram's shore thing?
Published 4:22 pm, Monday, May 17, 2010
This article originally appeared in the Sunday print edition of the Greenwich Time. To subscribe, click here.
Sidebar: Portchester's has riverfront plans of its own
It seemed to have all the makings of the centerpiece of a new era in a Greenwich riverfront neighborhood.
In 2002, two young brothers first pushed an ambitious plan to construct nearly 50 multimillion-dollar luxury condominiums on their family-owned property on the Byram riverfront south of Mill Street. It was part of a larger goal of revitalizing the waterfront and reconnecting Byram residents to the river that forms the neighborhood's western border.
Byram residents John Wahba and James Wahba, ages 22 and 25, respectively, when they first proposed the project eight years ago, spent 30 months getting planning and zoning approvals. Finally, in 2005, they received the go-ahead to construct three condominium buildings on South Water St. Work began on the first structure, one that would contain six units.
Five years later, those first six condominiums sit empty, their large windows casting a blank stare at an adjacent unused marina and the vacant lot where the other two buildings were supposed to have been erected. The property is in foreclosure, according to records in state Superior Court in Stamford.
The stalled development saddens a Greenwich woman who lives almost directly across the street from the condominiums.
"I feel sorry for the boys," said Irene Ferenc, who said she knew the brothers. "But who was going to live there? I couldn't."
Ferenc, 83, said the condos' $2 million price tag was too pricey for her. She also doubted many others would be able to afford them. The 2 1/2-story units also presented potential difficulties for people who have trouble getting up and down stairs, she said.
"I was in there and there were 16 steps to go up to do your laundry and then 16 steps to go up to your room," Ferenc said.
The failed development is emblematic of the challenges facing waterfront projects in Byram, even as there have been positive signs, including the dedication of the new waterfront access park this past week, the first step in a master plan to develop the community.
what could have been
The condo development had the backing of the Byram Neighborhood Association, said the group's chairman, Michael Bocchino, adding that it would have been a vibrant asset to the community.
The brothers, who both served on Representative Town Meeting, for District 4/Byram, were actively involved in the community, Bocchino said.
But even as hopes for a brighter riverfront future rose, the development ran smack into the worst economic decline since the Great Depression, Bocchino said.
"I think it was just an unfortunate issue of timing," he said. "The Wahbas did an incredible job. Unfortunately no one could control the market.
"It's one of the many stories of the recession and economic downturn. They fell victim to some bad banking practices in the country."
In documents filed in state Superior Court in Stamford last month, Greenwich Landing -- the name for the development given by the Wahbas' company, Champion Development -- and Mahmoud Wahba, the brothers' father, are listed as owing about $15 million for the project to a Hackensack, N.J.-based lender.
The Wahbas could not be reached for comment. Champion Development's listed Greenwich telephone number is disconnected.
Attempts to contact them at their home telephone number in Byram were also unsuccessful.
In 2006, the proposed 3,600-square-foot, three-bedroom condo units were priced at $2 million each.
Today, not a nickel has been spent on any of the condos, as they sit unoccupied with weeds growing up between the bricks in a walkway to the waterfront.
The six units need only minor work to be complete, according to the court documents.
Although the development is only a third finished, Town Planner Diane Fox said another developer could use the brothers' plans to complete the same project or come back with an altered one.
"(A new developer) would have to resubmit plans to the commission, but there is nothing preventing anyone from doing that," Fox said.
`landmark office building'
Next door to the Wahbas' unfinished condo project on South Water Street stands what was supposed to be another key piece of a revitalized Byram riverfront.
George Mertz and Sons created custom millwork at the Hasco Electric Corp. building from the early 1900s to the early '60s. Until recent years, the building at 84 S. Water St. saw production of lighting fixtures and other materials.
In 2008, Greenwich-based 83-84 South Water Street Associates LLC announced a plan to restore most of the 1904 building at the nearly one-acre site, but demolish a later 24,000-square-foot addition. The proposal included a new elevated building that would be connected to the older building by an atrium.
The applicants' attorney, John Tesei, said at the time that the proposed building reflected the overall revitalization of Byram's waterfront district, noting its status as a "landmark office building."
Later that year, however, the Planning and Zoning Commission turned down the application, as officials said the development would be detrimental to the neighborhood because of the increased traffic and parking impacts.
Today, the grim stone building looms over the street, its windows boarded up and dashes of graffiti on its exterior.
wahbas' grand southern project
The Wahba brothers' real estate development company, Champion Development, is "focused on developing the eastern coastline of the United States," with a goal of creating "fully functioning upscale neighborhoods with a strong sense of community, shared access to the waterfront, and a heightened standard of living for each resident," according to its website.
But a little more than 400 miles south of Byram is Newport News, Va., a coastal city of about 180,000 and location of another failed Wahbas' waterfront project.
In 2004, the brothers unveiled an even larger plan here to develop a 27-acre site that once had been home to a boat factory, said Florence Kingston, Newport News director of development.
They planned to build 40 houses and more than 200 condos on the site occupied by Chase Packaging Inc., a Wahba family-run packaging company.
Newport News rezoned the site in 2004 to aid the development.
The most expensive waterfront houses would sell for about $600,000, and the least expensive condo would go for about $250,000.
City officials and many residents supported the plan, Kingston said.
"The community got behind the project, but it never got past the conceptual stage," she said.
The Chase Packaging building that sat on the site was razed, but no new homes replaced it, she said.
the Master Plan
While the foreclosure of the Wahbas' Byram development and the rejection of the Hasco development have left two riverfront sites dormant, neighborhood association head Bocchino believes they are only temporary setbacks. He's pinning his hopes on a master plan to help develop the district.
Crafted over the last decade, it provides a blueprint for the community to develop the waterfront area in a way that officials hope will make it attractive to residents.
Three waterfront access parks -- all to be linked by a combination pedestrian walkway on the river's edge and a boardwalk over sections of the riverfront stretching from Mill Street at the north to close where South Water Street meets River Avenue at the south -- are part of the plan. One at 34 S. Water St., at the intersection with Church Street West, was officially dedicated on Wednesday. A second larger park to the south at 142 S. Water St. -- currently home to a staging area for Public Works vehicles -- is on the drawing board.
A third park, a tiny parcel at the south end of South Water Street just past Interstate Lumber's offices at 184 S. Water St., will also be an entry point to the walkway.
It's part of the plan to bring more residents to the river.
Creating the first waterfront access park, dubbed by some the "pocket park," was an important first step, Bocchino said.
He said it will draw people to the waterfront who never thought of going there before.
"There are people going down for lunch and we do expect people to go down there more frequently," Bocchino said.
The town supported the plan's development, said Fox, who in her role as town planner has been involved with the plan for the last decade. But it's the Byram community that has taken the lead, she said.
"This is coming from the community and the residents have been involved in this every step of the way," she said.
Phil Catalano, part owner and sales manager of J. Catalano and Sons marina at 34 S. Water St., supports efforts to beautify the area but worries such efforts might adversely affect existing businesses such as his. The creation of the pocket park cost his business nine parking spots used by the marina's employees and customers.
"We want to work with the neighborhood, but we need the residents to understand that we have been here over 50 years," he said.
Jo Conboy, a town resident who has been active in waterfront issues in her role as president of nonprofit environmental group Save Our Shores, is optimistic about the community's future.
"We are on our way," she said. "The whole key is that the waterfront is very important to Byram. If we could get that revitalized, eventually people do get interested and the whole waterfront changes."
Staff Writer Frank MacEachern can be reached at email@example.com or 203-625-4434.


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You get a phone call first thing in the morning, it's one of your customers. They left a short but sobering message that went something like this…
"You didn't clean my office last night". Call me right away!" At this point you are in a bit of shock, you have no idea that your employee did not go to the job.
No phone call from them, no text message, nothing at all. What do you do? How you handle this with the customer is naturally very important. The very first thing you need to do is apologize. Then I would offer to go out immediately to correct the problem.
The customer may or may not allow that depending on what type of operation they run. If correcting it right away is ok then take care of it as soon as you hang up the phone if at all possible. If not, then you'll have to make sure you follow through on whatever arrangement you agreed to with the customer.
I would also credit the customer for the missed cleaning then put a plan in place to make sure it didn't happen again (more about that later). Remember to go way beyond the call of duty when you do fix the mistake, as that will separate you from your competitors. For those of you who claim you offer "knock your socks off service", that's the price you'll have to pay to make it right!
After all that is done I would call your employee to find out what happened. If it was a true emergency, then so be it. Sometimes a goofy situation happens or perhaps it was just an honest mistake of some kind. We are all human, never forget that!
If the answer is "I just couldn't make it" or what amounts to a lame excuse, then you have a problem. In an instance like this, where there was gross negligence, or an otherwise total lack of caring on their part, I would probably let them go.
I would simply tell them "Thanks for the work you've done, but I'm going to have to terminate your employment. You last pay check will be mailed to you". Of course you'll want to make sure you have some kind of policy in place that explains what will happen in that given situation (or a similar one).
Anyway… an employee not showing up for duty has happened to me more than once in the years I've owned my cleaning business. I've even had people not show up for work for several days in a row then MAGICALLY appear out of the blue as if nothing has happened.
Generally no two situations are identical, and you'll have to adjust based on the circumstances as they occur. Sometimes people quit without warning. Sadly this used to happen quite often to me. Over time I got much better at hiring, and this has become a non-issue for me.
At other times a medical issue may arise that requires hospitalization for someone. I've had this happen at least three or four times over the years. Nothing you can do about this one, as that's life. Most customers will understand when this type of situation happens. Remember they have employees as well.
To help prevent this from happening you will want to carefully explain the importance of calling out as early as possible. Waiting until the last-minute is not acceptable (except in a true emergency). Drive in the "teamwork" manta! All for one and one for all.
What I used to do is require new employees (on the commercial side of the business) to call in AND out for each evening they worked. If I was dropping in on them to supervise then there would be no need for the call of course. I used to require this for roughly 30 days. If they did not call out or otherwise have a problem in that time frame, odds are they were a low risk to stiff me.
Anyway… an employee not showing up for work may occur from time to time. Although your customer is upset, and you are no doubt as well, the situation can be remedied with good results. You just need to fix the problem promptly, giving the customer a little extra cleaning along the way.
Not charging them for the missed cleaning will also promote some good will and helps make amends for the mistake (just make sure to make mention of this on the invoice somehow as you'll want to get "credit" for it). This tells them you run a first class operation and deliver on your promises.
If you liked this post, you can subscribe to our RSS feed. If you are looking for a blueprint that will show you how to start a cleaning business, then check out my Cleaning Business Start Up Guides. If you are badly in need of a first class website then take a look at my Cleaning Business Websites.
Have any questions or suggestions? Post them in the comments below!

subset: commoncrawl


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So you decided to dress up for Halloween. You are trying to get into the spirit of the season with the crisp Fall air, the fiery Fall foliage, and shorter, darker nights.
Here are some suggestions to help you find the perfect costume for your Halloween night.
First place that comes to mind: Bellevue Goodwill and Kirkland's Value Village.
You can get good deals on "pre owned" costume items and accessories.
In Bellevue, there is A Masquerade which has costumes and special effects for all occasions.
The discount party superstore Party City
has everything you need for your Halloween party including costumes.
For one stop costume shopping go to Redmond's Pacific NW Costume shop
For vintage clothing and costumes look no further than Doubletake Consignment in Issaquah.
1175 NW Gilman Blvd # B6
Issaquah, WA 98027
No website, but great inspirations for a cool and unique costume at reasonable prices…one of a kind, you can bet no one will have a costume like yours.
Use your imagination or ask the owner to help you put something together.
Get a pumpkin to decorate at the Bellevue Nursery out of their "pumpkin patch"
Trick or treat: Ladies, if you want to apply sexy witch makeup click for secret tips.
Here are 2008 top sexy costumes for Halloween:
1. Sexy French maid
2. Sexy cat
3. Sexy witch
4. Sexy hobo
5. Sexy ketchup bottle
6. Sexy prostitute
7. Sexy Mother Teresa
8. Sexy bus driver
Whatever happened to Elvira?


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Boston-based startup Rethink Robotics is revolutionizing the workplace with your new co-worker, Baxter, America's first adaptive manufacturing robot, "designed to use common sense and work safely alongside people," according to the company's website.
In the above YouTube video from the RethinkRobotics YouTube channel, viewers can watch the affordably priced ($22,000), interactive robot in action. Equipped with cameras, sensors, grippers, interchangeable parts, a mobile pedestal, and a touch screen and smiling face, Baxter has the ability to "see" objects, "feel" forces and "understand" tasks.
Rethink Robotics encourages Baxter's future employers to "Train it like you would any other worker – through demonstration. No software engineering or teaching pendant required."
See you at the water cooler, Baxter.


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Primary voting, campaigns need changes
May 10, 2012 at 12:10 a.m.
Editor, the Advocate:
Mr. Benoit's letter to the editor was correct in every aspect. Americans have always been proud of the fact they had the right to vote for the candidate or their choice. This is not true in Texas when you vote in the primaries. I have always wondered if this is only in Texas or true in all states. I have always tried to vote for the candidate I thought was the most qualified or best for the office they were running for. This is not possible in the primaries as you have to decide whether you want to vote for the Democrats or Republicans. We need to contact our representatives and demand this policy be changed so we can vote for the person we think is best for the position/office, regardless of their party. All state primaries should be held the same day throughout the U.S. Another item I would like to comment on is voter picture I.D. You cannot do business without a picture I.D., so why the objection to using it for voting. The only reason I can think of is some people want to vote using someone else's voter registration. No campaigning until three months before any election, including the presidential election.
Nell Lanfear, Port Lavaca