This $9 million development was touted as a game changer for 14th Street West. Now it's a ghost town

At the tail end of the Great Recession in 2013, BSV Holdings LLC, paid $1 million for six acres of property at 3503 14th St. W., considerably more than the property was worth at the time.

The project was considered to be a "game changer" for an area of 14th Street West dubbed Midtown Manatee prior to the recession in order to brand it for redevelopment. It was the first major redevelopment project taking place in the area in years, but it was never completed.

Comfort Cove Senior Care was also deemed to be iconic in the way it was constructed with 40 55,000-pound modular units swung together like a giant puzzle that saw the entire facility go from foundation to two-story completion in a week. It was thought to be the model for Florida senior care housing construction to meet the rising demand quickly.

Almost three years after it was expected to open, the empty Comfort Care facility is showing signs of neglect with green algae spreading across the siding, some of which is beginning to fall off the exterior. Flooring inside the building appears to be buckling, and there are other signs of minor damage inside and out.

It's almost hard to spot as you drive by it because of its odd layout and pastel colors. A single, long and narrow building sits well off of 14th Street in the middle of an unused parking lot, the white striped lines still gleaming in the sunlight.

The landscaping appears to still be maintained and according to the Manatee County Property Appraiser's Office website, property taxes in excess of $14,000 a year are being paid.

The water is off, but the power remains on. Many of the bedrooms are furnished with the original tags still on the furniture. The original sign with contact information for potential residents remains on the front glass door, but the phone number has been disconnected, and it looks like a ghost town.

If it were a real ghost story, the mystery would be worthy of Scooby Doo and the Gang, but no one but the developer knows why the project was vacated so close to completion, whether it will ever be finished or sold off to a new investor. But he isn't talking.

Brent Crego, chairman of Weston Real Estate Investment Company, which is the parent company of BSV Holdings, boasted of the project in 2015 as he announced a grand opening. In June of 2015, a Comfort Cove Assisted Living Facebook page was started. There are a minimal number of posts, including one in July announcing they were getting ready to open.

By August of 2015, they were given tours to potential residents, though the certificate of occupation had not been issued. In November of that same year, Aspire Magazine, published by the Florida Assisted Living Facility, put Comfort Cove on their cover, though it had yet to open.

Their last posting is dated Nov. 19, 2015, and the page went as silent as Comfort Cove's hallways. Crego didn't return a call for comment Friday, but he also has never spoke to Manatee County about the project's status.

"From what I understand, the permits are not done, and we did not issue a certificate occupancy," said John Barnott, "But they never called for the final inspection to get one. We're not sure why, but that's all we know."

The modular construction design was the first of its kind in the country, so whether it actually worked may be the clue to the overall mystery.

"At one point, we heard there were leaks in the new type of building that they did, but we have not heard a word since then," said Commissioner Carol Whitmore.

In all, Crego's company invested $9 million into the project that would have opened 52 beds to seniors in need of memory care or overall general help with everyday tasks. Crego was confident he could open the facility at market rates, which average about $4,500 a month for senior assisted care in Florida.

The project was touted as redevelopment because it was built on the location of a dilapidated mobile home park that was torn down a few years prior. Now it's just an empty 44,000-square-foot building on more than 6 acres of unused land and falling into disrepair. Barnott said code enforcement has not received any complaints so there are no issues at this time, but said it's only a matter of time.

This story was originally published April 20, 2018 at 1:17 PM with the headline "This $9 million development was touted as a game changer for 14th Street West. Now it's a ghost town."