Irondequoit reaches preliminary settlement resolving I-Square lawsuit

The town of Irondequoit has reached a preliminary settlement agreement with developers of I-Square.

The agreement would resolve a lawsuit claiming parts of the development strayed from approved plans and violate town code . Supervisor Andrae Evans announced the resolution Monday calling it “great news for Irondequoit and a massive step forward.”

Under the agreement, the town will drop its lawsuit if I-Square obtains certain town and planning board approvals pertaining to a cottage-style residential development by mid-June, gets a special use permit and makes other accommodation specific to emergency vehicle access. As part of the settlement the two sides also would release one another from all future claims or actions.

Town board members unanimously approved the measure last week.

The lawsuit got filed in the waning days of former town Supervisor Rory Fitzpatrick's administration, escalating a months-long back-and-forth over the project. Evans inherited it. And while confident the town would prevail in court, he said, "then the question was, 'Prevail for what?'"

Evans knew Nolan when he took office in January, and said Monday that the whole matter could have been dealt with "civilly" through better communication.

Nolan framed the agreement less as a resolution and "more me giving up." But he said when the two sides got into a room, it took less than an hour to hammer out the details.

"It took both of us to lift our feet off the ground a little bit and talk," he said.

All this comes just a few weeks after the Nolans sold the centerpiece of I-Square in The Market building — home to The Market Grill, The Reserve, and I-Scream. New owners Aaron and Kelly Metras already were operating those businesses, and Nolan said they have brought new energy to the property.

"It's fun to watch," Nolan said. "There's no ego to it. ... It's been inspiring to me."

And while he is focused on resolving the legal matters first, that also has him starting to look ahead.

There are three I-Square parcels yet undeveloped, plots once envisioned for a hotel, an apartment building and more senior housing. It's the hotel parcel that most interests Nolan.

"I'd love to see it through," he said of the overall development. "I've got 14 years into building I-Square. I don't want to walk away and see a CVS built out front."