Sea Cliff residents protest Glen Cove’s waterfront project

About 200 people carrying signs and wearing T-shirts decrying “overdevelopment” marched from downtown Sea Cliff to the beach Sunday to protest waterfront development in neighboring Glen Cove.

Shouting “No density! No traffic,” protesters said Uniondale-based RXR Realty’s Garvies Point project would hurt their quality of life.

“I’d like to see the city respect its history, this is a complete betrayal,” said Joan Harrison, 65, a retired college professor and Glen Cove resident who has authored three books on the city’s history.

The proposed 56-acre waterfront development would include 1,110 apartments and condominiums, parks, marinas and commercial space.

Glen Cove Mayor Reginald Spinello said in a statement Sunday that he was confident the project would move forward.

“The revitalization of our waterfront that so many of our residents have waited so long for, will begin shortly,” he said.

Protesters said they were concerned about the impact of additional traffic, pollution, the safety of building on former industrial sites and losing their view.

RXR spokesman Robert Leonard said in a statement Sunday that the plan has received strong support from public officials, business owners and residents.

“The proposed vision for Garvies Point is not only an opportunity to reclaim Glen Cove’s waterfront for productive use, but also the product of 20 years of careful coordination and needed scrutiny among numerous agencies that worked diligently to ensure the needs of the community come first,” Leonard said.

Amy Marion, a Sea Cliff resident and attorney for the protest’s organizer, Committee for a Sustainable Waterfront, said Glen Cove officials have ignored area residents’ concerns. “We are not against a Mystic Seaport, we are not against competent development, but we do not want . . . what this going to do to our neighborhood,” Marion said.

Maria Stieglitz, 70, of Sea Cliff, said the project was wrong for the community.

“They’re building luxury housing that will destroy this beautiful, historic shoreline,” Stieglitz said. “People don’t come here for high-rise buildings.”

Sustainable Waterfront and the Village of Sea Cliff have filed lawsuits to try to stop the project.

Sea Cliff Mayor Bruce Kennedy, who marched with the protesters, said he wants the project to adhere to a 2000 agreement that would limit the size and height of the buildings.

“That will minimize the impact of the light and air pollution, and traffic,” Kennedy said. “It will maintain the beauty of the North Shore.”