We’ll never be the belle of the ball if everyone knows we’re easy.
That’s how I ended my first column about CentrePointe, soon after Dudley Webb unveiled plans for his $250 million luxury hotel, condo and retail complex.
I was likening Lexington to a debutante who fancies herself as someone special, yet rushes into the arms of any real estate developer with a hot proposition.
So here we are, nearly four months later. Where does the belle find herself?
She’s considering a shotgun marriage to the CentrePointe developer. Why? Because it could be an easy way to get some downtown goodies. Or maybe not.
When Webb announced CentrePointe in early March after two years of behind-the-scenes work, he said the financial plan included as much as $70 million in tax increment financing to pay for related “public” improvements. Those were described as such things as a parking garage under Phoenix Park and public art.
Kentucky’s tax increment financing program — known as TIF — is a great tool that allows a city and the developer of a “signature” project to work together to rehabilitate a blighted urban area. With TIF, some of the future taxes generated by the private project are used to pay for “public” improvements near the development.
Now, Webb says he doesn’t want any more public meddling in CentrePointe and he has enough private financing to build without TIF. But no TIF, no public improvements.
Webb’s attorney, Darby Turner, said the developer would only apply for TIF financing if the Urban County Council asks him to. The council will vote Thursday on whether to do that.
Council members were told for the first time Tuesday that representatives of Webb and Mayor Jim Newberry have discussed trying to use TIF money for a long list of downtown projects, including a much-needed renovation of the old courthouse. Also, Turner said that instead of $70 million, only $35 million or $40 million might really be available for public improvements.
So how would this all work? How much money could really be available to the city and what could it buy? Nobody seems to know.
In fact, Tuesday’s meeting was the first time council members had really ever discussed CentrePointe TIF. Several council members had some very basic questions about TIF, and the only knowledgeable person there to advise them was Webb’s consultant, John Farris.
Council members are being asked to make a quick decision with little information. Some of them are angry about it, and who can blame them?
“What this motion asks us to do is … ask if we could tag along with the CentrePointe project and maybe get some public amenities out of a deal that’s already done,” Councilman Tom Blues said. “What we see here is a failure of communication, of cooperation, of public involvement, of openness, and I’m disturbed that it has come to this, because it really indicates a significant civic failure.”
Councilman Don Blevins said more study is needed to see how CentrePointe fits with potential city redevelopment projects a couple of blocks down Main Street. Blevins noted that decisions the council is about to make could shape Lexington for a century or more and shouldn’t be rushed.
And he added: “It feels a little strange hitching our TIF wagon to a project some of us don’t like. My fear is that a large four-star hotel with huge condominums on top of it is going to fail. I hope I’m wrong. I hope they’re wildly successful and the downtown is vibrant and we sell all those condos and the hotel is full from here to eternity. But what if I’m right? What we’d have is essentially a vertical Lexington Mall right in the heart of downtown.”
Vice Mayor Jim Gray also questioned CentrePointe’s economic viability. And he wondered whether a CentrePointe TIF would even be legal because developers say it’s not essential to build their project.
Gray has been among the most outspoken critics of CentrePointe because of Webb’s refusal to allow public input on the project’s design — and Webb’s insistence on demolishing the block’s historic buildings rather than trying to incorporate some elements of them into the new building.
“I’ve learned over time that this business of building and developing is a whole lot more about process than about project,” said Gray, who is president of a large construction company.
On Tuesday, Gray read to his fellow council members from a “best practices” guide to Kentucky TIF projects. It recommended thorough study, public participation and community buy-in — none of which has happened with CentrePointe.
It might be too late for anyone but Dudley Webb to influence what happens on the CentrePointe block.
But the future of downtown shouldn’t rise or fall on one project, no matter now big it is. Council members should slow down, think things through and look at all of the options.
Two other TIF projects have been proposed for Lexington — an arena to replace Rupp and a large downtown entertainment district along Manchester Street. Given the redevelopment opportunities downtown, there could be the potential for several more big projects.
The best course of action might be to tell Webb to go ahead and build CentrePointe on his own.
City officials could then do what they should have done long ago: Engage the public in a discussion about what downtown Lexington needs and what it might get from a TIF partnership. Then the city could seek out a developer who is interested in a true partnership.
Blevins said it all: The decisions we are about to make will shape Lexington for a century or more and shouldn’t be rushed.
An intentional courtship would make a lot more sense than a shotgun marriage.
July 3, 2008 at 8:17 am |
As a native Lexingtonian who remembers when Lexington had a real, functioning “downtown,” who remembers the Ben Ali, who patted the head of Smiley Pete, I’m appalled to see how the cancerous greed of “developers” such as the Webbs is once again wreaking destruction, aided by the pitiable gutlessness of those whose job it is to ensure the well-being of this place. And I say this as someone who lived away from here for many years, most recently in Chicago, where local government, whatever its flaws, at least shows more concern for the city’s architectural/ historical past than we do, we who so love to gush about our “heritage” etc., whose “Jesus” drives an SUV and sneers at the poor and the sick and the strange on his way to the bank, where our true Blue hearts reside.
July 3, 2008 at 11:27 am |
Tom, how do you write an entire article about the council’s discussion of CentrePointe without including a single quote from those Council members in favor of the project and the TIF. I understand that your goal is to paint a picture of widespread opposition to project, but really, not one quote, even though there was an 8-5 vote against Vice Mayor Gray at the meeting?
And if you do not know why a $70 million TIF would only provide $40 million in improvements, isn’t that something a reporter (or even a columnist) should make an effort to determine. I would love to know the answer. Perhaps you could ask Mr. Farris, or someone on the Herald Leader staff (say a reported from your business section), or interview an economist, or just find anyone who could explain it. I’m guessing its related to the fact that the $70 million is raised through private bonds that are then paid through the long term TIF credits, but I have not been paid to write an article on the subject. Surely the Herald Leader can offer its readers something more than “Golly gee, that’s a tough one” and the insinuation that because you have not done the research something shady must be going on.
July 3, 2008 at 2:01 pm |
Martin, there really is something shady going on, something intentionally obscure.
Here it is:
Foreign unnamed investors, of the world’s ultra wealthy elite, have decided that they feel like having some exclusive and cheap (for them) little rooms for their occasional visits to Lexington, so they are financing what for them is a remote little cottage in Kentucky.
From their viewpoint though, evidently, this can only be accomplished by clear cutting and sanitizing a defensible footprint of at least an entire city block.
In that context, you see, the idea of including renovation of a few of our historical buildings as part of their project is, well, it is entirely out of the question.
July 3, 2008 at 2:14 pm |
I mean, don’t get me wrong, I can appreciate ultra wealthy people and I don’t begrudge them their wealth.
In fact, I can certainly understand their requirements for security and privacy.
However, for them to be completely inflexible on the question of either permanently destroying all of our historic building fabric on the entire block versus conserving just some of it with investment in renovation to include a few of the buildings as part of the new project, well the former is just poor behavior really.
Amazing too, the more raucous of the demolition supporters on this blog want us to grovel and beg them to treat us this way.
We’re Third World now, baby!!! Stand aside and cheer as we untouchables (you included) get pushed aside. We need to avoid even accidental contact.
Their building touch ours? Come on, we’re not to even look at them.
July 5, 2008 at 1:05 pm |
I would only add that here is yet another example of how the Webbs are trying to shove this project down our throats!
PS: Martin, explain how comments by council members have any relevance to what Tom actually said and considering it was Webb’s attorney that said only $35 or $40 million in TIF funds be made available and apparently provided no explanation why, explain how and why Tom would be able to to know such information?
July 17, 2008 at 10:45 pm |
Just b/c the Webb attorney said $35-40M in TIF funds would be available does not mean that they are surrepititiously keeping the rest for themselves or the project. TIF funds are raised by selling bonds which means the amount “available” depends on what they get purchased for on Wall St. If $70M in tax incentives are sold on wall street at .50 on the dollar then $35M will be “available” to provide Lexington with funds for public infrastructure. This is why it is such a great thing for Lex b/c Wall Street loves buying tax incentives at such a cheap price. this is a no brainer for Lexingtonians and anyone who is against is simply oppositional for the sake of the david vs goliath fun of it or really does not have downtown lexington’s best interest at heart. i am serious- lexington should be begging for TIF money and the fact that it isn’t really shows how unsophisticated and, frankly stupid, the nay-sayers are. any council member opposed should not be re-elected. period.
July 22, 2008 at 8:07 pm |
Rob,
You lose.