By EILEEN STILLWELL
Courier-Post Staff
CAMDEN

Construction racket - dirt and all - at the New Jersey State Aquarium is making Thomas Corcoran smile.

"It's the ultimate high to see this bustle of activity after so many delays, knowing that everything remains miraculously on schedule," said Corcoran, as he watched the first phase of construction begin on the $57 million expansion of the New Jersey State Aquarium.

Corcoran, president of Cooper's Ferry Development Association, which oversees development of the Camden Waterfront, has been pushing and dragging the aquarium expansion project through a gantlet of public agencies and three governors for the past four years.

That's why the completion of a concrete pad Wednesday, marking the future site of the aquarium's new walk-through shark tank, was a milestone of sorts.

When complete, the addition will nearly double the size of the 11-year-old Aquarium and introduce restaurants and ultimately retail to the city's hottest real estate.

Meanwhile, the aquarium will remain open to the public until Labor Day. Then it will close until May 2005 when it will reopen in time for next year's busy tourist season.

The new entrance to the aquarium will face the Delaware River instead of Delaware Avenue. Nearby will be a new ferry terminal building where one can board the RiverLink Ferry to Philadelphia, dine at ground-floor restaurants and go to work in second- and third-floor offices. Equity Bank is the first to announce its intention to move its headquarters from Marlton to the new multi-use terminal building.

Managing the transformation is Steiner + Associates, a Columbus, Ohio, developer that's responsible for similar projects in Tampa, Fla., Dayton, Ohio, and Milwaukee.

Steiner will bring $9 million to the project. Bill Management of Baltimore, which will build an IMAX theater, will bring $5 million. The rest, or $43 million, will come from a variety of public sources. This investment is expected to trigger an additional $135 million in future retail and restaurants. And, while the state will own the land, Steiner will manage the aquarium and own the new construction.

"Weather permitting, we're going to keep on working through the winter," said David Wechsler, vice president of Steiner + Associates. "Despite a lot of setbacks, we're still on schedule and we want to keep it that way."

While much is riding on the reincarnation of the Camden aquarium, John Morley, vice president of an eponymous consulting firm in Charleston, S.C., that studies attendance at aquariums and zoos, said he has concerns about the growing number of fancy fish tanks.

"If we become too saturated with aquariums, they will lose their uniqueness. Typically, they are the most expensive cultural attraction and the least flexible. Museums change their exhibits easily. For aquariums, it much more challenging," Morley said.

"How often are families going to spend $14 to $20 to see more jellyfish?"

However, on the positive side, aquariums are year-round destinations that appeal equally to adults and children, Morley said.

The Rev. Floyd L. White III, president of Woodland Community Development Corp. in Camden, is eyeing waterfront development as a job bank.

"Steiner seems receptive to our goal of including Camden residents. We'll keep standing on the battlefield. This is an exciting time to be in this city, but we have to make sure people in the neighborhoods are not left out."