Touted Catskills development still on hold

A Catskills development that the region needs to boost tourism, according to its developer, is still on hold after five years of delays, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The $400 million project, which encompasses two resorts — called Wildacres and Highmount — is facing environmental reviews and renewed opposition due to the scale of the project, the Journal said.

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The 1,960-acre proposal will span 739 acres in the towns of Shandaken and Middletown, N.Y.

But Dean Gitter, the atypical real estate entrepreneur behind the project, tells the Journal the new resorts are exactly what the Catskills area needs. “This project has the capacity to revitalize an enormous part of New York real estate which has been depressed for the better part of 75 years.” [WSJ]