Posted by Councilman Brent Bolin, Ward 2

Hello friends and neighbors of Ward 2,

I just wanted to send you a quick update on what's going with the proposed redevelopment of the 3200 block of Rhode Island Ave - AKA the (now painted) former funeral and the empty lot that used to be Bass Liquors.

As you know, the city bought the two properties several years ago with the goal of moving redevelopment along - thereby removing blight from our town center and increasing our tax base. The bad economy and the size of the property (too small for a big developer, too big for a small developer) led to a wait of several years to move this along. But getting a developer in place is within reach!

This spring the city reissued an RFP (request for proposals) for development of the city-owned land. We received three high quality proposals. Fellow Ward 2 Councilmember Ivy Thompson and myself were previously designated by our colleagues to serve as the development committee of the council, and as part of that role we reviewed the three proposals and met with each group that was bidding. At these meetings we asked for clarifications of items in the proposals, and also discussed the specific financial needs of the city. (The city purchased the land with tax-exempt bonds, complicating transfer of land to prospective developers. We also want very badly to get the land off our books given our tough budget times and the $180,000 yearly mortgage payments on the properties.)

After meeting with each of the developers, we went home for the weekend to think about the three rather different proposals and what vision they presented the city. The process was for each individual to score the proposals, then come together on Monday for a discussion. What we all discovered is that when we scored the proposals against the criteria given by the city in the RFP, one of the proposals had the highest score by a wide margin. This proposal also had the most solid financials, a major factor given the financial position of the city itself.

CM Thompson and I then advanced the high scoring proposal to the rest of the council for their input. Our colleagues were generally in agreement with our assessment and authorized the development committee to conduct more detailed conversations with the high scoring developer, with the goal of determining a financing framework in advance of the public hearing and vote. In this course of this additional discussion the high scoring developer significantly improved their already superior financing offer - they plan to make a large downpayment to the city in fall 2012 and buy the land outright by 1st quarter 2013 after certain pre-development activities are conducted. This would take the land off the city's books by next year's budget cycle. The proposed land disposition agreement that would transfer the property to the developer contains several provisions that allow the city to make certain the developer moves forward in a timely fashion, and allows us to purchase back the land on favorable terms if the project should fall through.

As an aside, we also asked both of the other developers for additional specific financing info so that we could really get a sense of who offered the city the best deal. One of the developers provided a two sentence email reply that did provide any new information. The other developer declined to supply additional info and withdrew their bid. However that developer just changed their mind and indicated they would submit new financials after all, but I have not received this information as of yet. Needless to say, this additional financial conversation has created the impression that one developer is serious about doing business with the city and the other two are not.

So what's next? We already extended the RFP once so we are moving ahead in hopes of avoiding another extension.

On Wednesday, August 8, 7pm at City Hall, the high scoring developer will present their proposal at a special hearing of the city council. I encourage you to come out to the meeting and hear for yourself why this proposal was head and shoulders above the others. If selected, this developer plans to have a public process to seek input into the design of the building so Wednesday's presentation will be focused on the overall concept moreso than specific design details. They have however committed to building to at least the LEED Gold standard, and they think Platinum is in reach for the property. A brand new building of such high standard, at the entryway to the city, would be a game changer for moving forward the revitalization of our commercial corridor. It is also very much in character with our community's environmental ethic.

On Thursday, August 9, 7pm at City Hall, the city council will vote to award the contract for redevelopment of the 3200 block of Rhode Island Ave. This is a second opportunity to voice any concerns you might have. Again I encourage you to come out and be heard.

It has been difficult to communicate with you about progress on this project for several reasons: 1) we are dealing with confidential financial info from the developers, 2) there has to be some confidentiality to the evaluation process so the developers feel like they are being treated fairly, and 3) a previous city council has made a policy of not communicating via the community listserve. (Needless to say this is awkward at times like now, when the listserve is buzzing about an issue but we are not able to engage and correct any misconceptions.) I wish we had been more communicative about the RFP process so that some of the concerns expressed on the listserve could have been avoided. I do hope you will share this information with your friends and neighbors whose contact info I may not have.

I am more than glad to entertain questions you might have so please do get in touch. Perhaps if many people want to talk about it we could meet at Urban Eats one night.

Perry Streeters and those near 33rd/Perry corner - your concerns have been at the forefront of my mind as we looked at project proposals. I am confident that the high scoring proposal will tick all the boxes you are concerned about - traffic on our street and in the alley, overflow parking on our street, and how the new building will look out your back windows. This project will fit in with the character of our neighborhood and not have negative spillover effects, including shading anyone's back yards.

Thanks everyone and I look forward to the conversation!
Brent

Brent Bolin
Council member, Ward 2
Mount Rainier, MD
(301) 744-9465
brentcbolin.blogspot.com
twitter.com/bcbolin