Has the whole world gone crazy?

Sometimes, the aristocracy could benefit from a taste of Walter Sobchack’s brutish logic. Perhaps the region’s uber-elite might gain a moment of clarity from one of the shell-shocked Vietnam veteran’s trademark rants. The kind of mental clarity gleaned while an off-kilter manically vociferating man-beast is waving around a loaded semi-automatic pistol. Perhaps then they would understand the pitfalls created by building eight, three-story multi-million dollar penthouses in downtown Saratoga Springs during a time precipitous economic decline

The housing bubble has officially burst. The nation’s financial markets are reeling from the cavalcade of bogus mortgages dished out by unscrupulous lenders. The economy is clearly headed toward a recession or even worse. Fiscal analysts are suggesting that even the stalwart upscale real estate economy in New York City, the brazen beacon of economic hope, could markedly suffer as the lending institutions cope with the ongoing sub-prime debacle.

Yet the developers of the so-called “Pavilion Grand” on Lake Avenue remain strangely undeterred. Despite the apparent bold-faced writing etched on Wall Street, Dean DeVito and Ken Raymond are moving forward with a bizarrely financed deal that would jump start the estimated $20 million project, according to a real estate ad report published in the Saratogian Tuesday.

The downtown development power-tandem from Coldwell Banker Prime Realties in Cohoes is hoping to get state Attorney General approval for the project, which proposes to sell the resulting commercial and real estate space to recoup their building costs. The condominiums will retail for between $1.7 million and $2.4 million, easily making them the most expensive luxury pads in the Capital Region. And by the sound of it, their real estate agent clearly doesn’t believe the latest economic woes will deter folks from tossing several million dollars worth of loose change at a “second vacation-style homes” for a “weekend getaway” in the Spa City.

“Everybody wants to come here,” she told the paper. “They love Saratoga.”

Maybe so, but there’s no denying the mood swings of the American economy. Lately, the glum financial news has become tantamount to the fictional Sobchack’s outbursts during The Big Lebowski: frequent, increasingly volatile and knowing no boundaries of reason. Eventually, the manic market trends sweeping through the city of lights will creep up the Northway and camp out in downtown Saratoga Springs. In fact, there’s already evidence of this happening in the local market, although the market for upscale condominiums doesn’t seem to be phased quite yet.

Still, the prospect of building a 66,000-square-foot behemoth seems kind of strange considering the number of condominiums set to hit the soon-to-be flooded market of Saratoga Springs. Absent an abrupt about-face by the national economy, there’s a good chance many of these empty-nester nooks could remain empty, especially when they cost more than some of the palatial mansions along North Broadway.

The question remains, what happens to Pavilion Grand if the recession continues after its ground breaking? In May, DeVito said the project wouldn’t begin until they “pre-sell” several of the units, thus giving them enough capital to barter for the overall construction cost. But the deal seems oddly reminiscent of scheme that recently backfired for another builder whose name might ring a bell with the pair from Coldwell.

Some might remember James McGlagan, the unfortunate builder that overextended his stay on the real estate market’s easy street. DeVito and Raymond were apparently among the developers that stand to “take a bath” on deals where he was the builder. The two ultimately bought back two of McLagan’s four properties that went into foreclosure from the debacle. Regrettably, a similar demise is being experienced by other custom builders in the region, including one who helped now-Republican state Assemblyman George Amedore construct a dream house in Colonie during the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition craze last year.

Perhaps this is all trite thinking for this pair of real estate speculators, as they try to erect yet another palace for Saratoga’s burgeoning bedroom community. Or maybe they’re aware of some market trend suggesting the richer-than-thou crowd will remain isolated from storm clouds gathering around the corrupt lending and building industry. But there seems to be enough questions arising from today’s markets to give Andrew Cuomo reason to take a hard look at this development before giving it his blessing.