May 16, 2006
CANALSIDE CONSTRUCTION STARTS NOW

Construction of CanalSide officially began today, with a groundbreaking ceremony and reception held on-site along the Columbia Canal in Columbia’s Vista district. During the event, The Beach Company outlined the project’s construction timeline, with sitework to begin immediately, and announced that pre-sales will officially begin during the initial Property Release event, to be held in July of this year.

Charles S. Way, Jr., chairman of the board for The Beach Company, led company representatives including John C. L. Darby, president and CEO, and Dan Doyle, vice president of development, along with the Honorable Bob Coble, mayor of Columbia, in turning shovels at the groundbreaking.

"CanalSide is great news for Columbia," said Mayor Coble. "This project and others in the downtown area are important steps in positioning Columbia as a growing, vital city, and in building our reputation as a center of growth and knowledge. With our attractive urban areas and the wide range of residential choices that will soon be available, we will be capable of retaining the city’s best talent and recruiting others who will help improve and build the city’s future."

During the ceremony, representatives from The Beach Company also explained site plans, and discussed the product that will be released in the initial offering.

"The first release will include the townhomes on Taylor Street, which will be extended and become the primary drive in the neighborhood," said Charles S. Way, Jr., chairman of the board of The Beach Company. "We also know there is a need for downtown rental units, so a portion of our overall rental inventory is part of this release in order to address that market demand as quickly as possible."

Explained Dan Doyle, vice president of development for The Beach Company, "The residences that will be built in this phase have been strategically selected to begin to create the streetscape of CanalSide’s main drive, and will help to form the overall identity of the community. We will build on the community’s overall feel as we move towards the next property release area which will provide connectivity with the river, the Esplanade and Three Rivers Greenway."

The Beach Company closed the purchase of approximately 23 acres of land from the city of Columbia for the CanalSide project on April 19. The new development will offer a wide range of residential choices in the downtown Vista area. A waterfront Esplanade and public open space will integrate CanalSide into the Three Rivers Greenway system and Vista neighborhood.

The first units, including 40 townhomes, 100 condominiums and 160 apartments, are currently scheduled for a summer 2007 occupancy. Specifics regarding the release program and pricing will be announced at a public release event in July.