WASHINGTON: A last-minute question over flood insurance has postponed the $38 million sale of the State Ports Authority’s headquarters on Concord Street to Los Angeles-based hotel developer Lowe Enterprises. The sale was scheduled to close on Wednesday, but details about flood insurance for a utility building in the headquarters parking lot has pushed the closing date to Thursday. Jim Newsome, the SPA’s president and CEO, said the flood insurance issue was resolved Wednesday but not in time for the closing to take place.
Lowe is buying the SPA’s building at 176 Concord Street and an adjoining parcel where the Fleet Landing Restaurant now operates. Lowe plans to tear down the existing office structure and build a 225-room luxury resort on the property, which has unobstructed views of Charleston Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean.
Fleet Landing will continue to operate until its lease expires in 2024. The SPA, meanwhile, is moving ahead with plans to build a new headquarters at its Wando Welch Termianl in Mount Pleasant. The authority has filed a permit application with the Army Corps of Engineers showing a four-story building with room for 424 parking spaces on a 19.4-acre parcel at the container terminal.
