As Long Island Press reported, architect Harry Nicolaitis told the North Hempstead Town Board on the night it approved a new future for Inspiration Wharf, "This promenade has been part of the design for almost 20 years." His office was once located at the wharf. He described a plan that keeps retail along Main Street and moves the residential buildings back onto the peninsula, with a wide walkway running all the way around them.
Since the vote, that walkway and the pavilion at its tip are the least certain parts of the project. The condominiums, parking counts and restaurant square footage are written into approved resolutions. What the public would actually walk on is the subject of a pending lawsuit, a developer redesign that hasn't been released yet, and a state environmental cleanup that has to happen before anything is built.
What the Vote Settled
The Town Board voted 7–0 on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, to adopt a special use permit and a site plan approval for the project. The resolutions describe the premises as 403–415 Main Street, spread across six tax lots. The hearing lasted more than five hours before a standing-room-only crowd. The applicant is Manhasset Bay Real Estate, an affiliate of Sbarro. It bought the wharf from Ventura Marina Management Corp. in December 2025 for $8.7 million, according to Long Island Business News. The owners bought the former La Parma property just to the south in 2022, and that parcel is part of the plan.
Nearly every approved element is either private or commercial.
| Element | Status after July 14 |
|---|---|
| 38 condominium units in three buildings | Approved; zoning allowed up to 42 |
| 4,000 sq ft waterfront restaurant | Approved |
| About 3,800 sq ft of commercial space | Approved |
| 136 parking spaces, 76 of them for residents | Approved |
| 30-foot height limit | Applicant says the design complies |
| Public promenade, gazebo and pavilion | Approved on the plan set; public status disputed in court |
| Waterfront design details | Developer says revisions are still coming |
| Construction start | Town estimates building plans won't be reviewed until 2028 |
As Long Island Press reported, Kathleen Deegan Dickson of Forchelli Deegan Terrana, the applicant's attorney, explained why the plan is built this way: "Residential is the economic engine that will actually allow the rest of the project to fall into place," she told the board. In her account, the housing pays for the cleanup, the new bulkhead and the public access. That is why the public pieces carry so much weight in the approval.
The Waterfront as It Was Promised
The version presented at the hearing includes these public elements:
- A promenade about 20 feet wide running around the peninsula, with benches and landscaping.
- A pavilion at the water's end. As Long Island Press reported, Nicolaitis said about 70 feet from the water's edge at the end of the property would have no residences, "a pavilion where everyone can enjoy the sunset."
- Transient boat docking. About 30 slips were described at the hearing, most of them meant for visiting boaters.
- A permanent recorded easement that Long Island Press described as allowing public access "365 days a year, from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m.," with the applicant and future owners required to maintain those areas.
- Environmental work at the shoreline, including replacing the deteriorated bulkhead, restoring wetlands and building a living shoreline.
Newsday reported that the town's access terms also call for wayfinding signs. Under those terms, access can be restricted only for safety, maintenance or repairs. Dickson also submitted 153 letters of support, including letters from several village officials.
None of the approval materials give a date for the promenade or boardwalk to open. They set access hours and an easement. They do not set a timeline.
Where the Lawsuit Aims
As Long Island Press reported, the Mitchell Farms Neighborhood Association and five residents living roughly 500 to 1,200 feet from the site filed an Article 78 petition in State Supreme Court in Nassau County on August 13. They are asking the court to annul both resolutions and to block site work while the case proceeds. The petition lists 13 causes of action.
Several of its central claims concern the public waterfront. The petition says a revised set of drawings submitted July 10, two business days before the vote, removed the word "public" from the labels for the gazebo and promenade on multiple sheets and dropped three named public amenities from the written scope. It also quotes the applicant's attorney telling the board that the gazebo "is not a public amenity, it's a private amenity," available only to condominium residents, while the plan before the board read "Proposed Public Gazebo." These are allegations in a filing. No court has ruled on them.
The petition makes other claims as well:
- The negative declaration assumed the entire site was already in the state's Brownfield Cleanup Program when it was not.
- The drainage plan meets the town's stormwater requirement by 152 cubic feet.
- The town amended its waterfront zoning in February 2025 to ease the project's path.
A town spokesperson told Long Island Press that the town "performed a lengthy and exhaustive review of the project."
On Tuesday, September 8, the board voted 6–0 to hire the Uniondale firm Sahn Ward Braff Coschignano at $265 an hour to defend the approval. According to Newsday's September 9 update, the town had not yet filed its response to the suit. Residents had raised more than $36,000 toward a $75,000 legal fund as of mid-August.
The Cleanup Comes First
Even without the lawsuit, nothing would be built soon. News 12 reported that the site must be cleaned up before development can move forward, and that the town expects building plans won't be reviewed until 2028.
The contamination goes back more than a century. The state cleanup application describes the site's past uses as a coal yard, a laundry and a boat-repair yard. Contaminants reported in soil, groundwater and soil vapor include coal-tar compounds, lead and other metals, petroleum and chlorinated solvents.
The state's own file shows how much of the site is formally in the program so far. The executed Brownfield Cleanup Agreement, dated June 30, 2026, covers about 0.98 acres on a single tax lot. The lawsuit describes the whole site at 403–415 Main Street as 2.75 acres. The DEC document repository also lists a May 28 application to add property. It does not show an amended agreement. That gap between the covered lot and the full project is the same question the petition raises about the town's environmental review.
The Sequence So Far
- 2022. The owners buy the former La Parma property.
- December 2025. Manhasset Bay Real Estate buys the wharf for $8.7 million.
- June 30, 2026. The DEC Brownfield Cleanup Agreement is executed for the 0.98-acre lot.
- July 2, 2026. A final Remedial Investigation Work Plan appears in the DEC file.
- July 14, 2026. The Town Board approves the special use permit and site plan, 7–0.
- August 7, 2026. A Community Participation Plan is added to the DEC file.
- August 13, 2026. The Article 78 petition is filed.
- September 8, 2026. The town hires outside counsel.
- 2028. The town's estimate for when building plans will be reviewed.
The DEC listings show planning and investigation documents. They don't show that physical cleanup or demolition has started.
What Stays on Main Street Meanwhile
For now, Inspiration Wharf still looks like what Newsday calls a mini business district with cobblestone walkways next to Town Dock. Most of the tenants have left, including a fishing and kayak-rental shop, a chiropractor, a salt cave and a gym. LIBN reported that only Sweet Treats on the Wharf remains listed on the project's page. At the hearing, Nicolaitis named the ice cream business as Douglas & James Homemade Ice Cream and said it would stay as part of the Main Street frontage.
The most recent public word on the waterfront design comes from the developer. The project's website says the design team is still refining "the publicly accessible waterfront," with a focus on views and accessibility, and that revised materials will be posted once they are formally submitted. Those drawings, the town's response to the petition and any court ruling on site work will together show whether the 20-foot promenade and sunset pavilion look the way they were described on July 14.
If you own a home near the harbor and want to talk through how a pending waterfront project like this one could come up in a future sale, Beth Catrone is glad to go over the public record with you. Let's Connect.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
