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Re: Item *4-a on the agenda for Mon 08.31.2020 (see below)
PLEASE DO YOUR HOMEWORK FIRST - PREPARE AHEAD OF TIME
THERE ARE 10 ATTACHMENTS
For the average Joe/Jane member of the public the issues involved here are probably way to complicated even at first glance. Considering the tight and rushed timeline imposed by certain city officials, the best thing to do is to ask for an independent third-party review
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Blogger Notes + Inserts: Documents are referenced from the Arizona Corporate Commission on some of the history of the entities not mentioned in the streaming video. Gaps in context for good reason.
who's going to ask the right quesstions and blow-the-whistle?
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NERVOUS? There's an entire cast of characters called on to appear last Thursday at 07:30 a.m. They all thought it would "business-as-usual"to slide another con-job through the city council where hardly anyone knows what's going on!
Let's flash-back to actions in front of the Mesa City Council from 2018
Readers of this blog can understand that reference-point in time: it marks the public appearance of former Arizona State Senator Bob Worsley who admitted taking a speculative gamble on real estate at the same time holding the trust of public office.
> Back in September 2017 city officials were in the process of seeking approval for the use of GPLETS.
> To explain the risk of investing in real estate speculation, readers need to know and understand the intricacies of Opportunity Zones in neglected distressed areas. . . that's no easy task even for land use and tax law attorneys!
> Readers also need to know all about QOFs - Qualified OZ Funds and their guidelines, requirements and time restrictions
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The inserted upload of the 40-minute Study Session can be viewed farther down - as well as a presentation made back in July by Downtown Transformation Manager Jeff McVay and Downtown Transformation Project Manager Jeff Robbins, refrerred to by Mayor Giles as "our two Jeffs?
Please pay attention at the opening seconds. . . Hizzoner turns the remote control over to City Manager Chris Brady after a rushed fast-forward to get Downtown Transformation Manager Jeff McVay seated fast with Ass't City Manager Natalie Lewis dropping something on the desk
Council Study Session - 8/27/2020
•Aug 27, 2020
File #: | 20-0842 |
Type: | Resolution | Status: | Agenda Ready |
In control: | City Council |
On agenda: | 8/31/2020 |
Title: | Approving the sale of land, and authorizing the City Manager to enter into a Purchase and Sale Agreement, Development Agreement and Parking Easement with EV Development, LLC, for the development of approximately 0.9± acres of property generally located at the southeast corner of Pepper Place and Robson. The Agreements facilitate the redevelopment of the property into mixed-use project consisting of a seven-story building with ground floor commercial, market-rate residential units and a parking garage that will generate significant economic benefits to the City of Mesa. (District 4) |
27 August 2020
TRICKY TRANSFORMATION DOWNTOWN Resolution Re: "Eco Mesa" + INACTIVE EV Development LLC
DETAILS
DETAILS
DETAILS
DETAILS
See uploaded presentation by 'The 2 Jeffs' from last July - and the rushed timeline...Do they say WHO the developer is?
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4 Take action on the following resolution:
20-0842
Approving the sale of land, and authorizing the City Manager to enter into a
> Purchase and Sale Agreement,
> Development Agreement and
> Parking Easement
DETAILS
DETAILS
DETAILS
See uploaded presentation by 'The 2 Jeffs' from last July - and the rushed timeline...Do they say WHO the developer is?
Item 4-a
ENTITY INFORMATION
DOMICILE STATE: DELAWARE
ECO MESA, LLC (FN)
23121423
Foreign LLC
Active
8/20/2020
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Title | Name | Attention | Address | Date of Taking Office | Last Updated |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Member | RN QOF, LLC | 4455 E Camelback Rd, Ste D-145, PHOENIX, AZ, 85018, Maricopa County, USA | 8/20/2020 | 8/21/2020 | |
Member | Marshall QOF, LLC | 844 N 4th Avenue, PHOENIX, AZ, 85003, Maricopa County, USA | 8/20/2020 | 8/21/2020 | |
Member | Habitat Fenix, LLC | 844 N 4th Avenue, PHOENIX, AZ, 85003, Maricopa County, USA | 8/20/2020 | 8/21/2020 | |
Member | Charles Carey | 4455 E Camelback Rd, Ste D-145, PHOENIX, AZ, 85018, Maricopa County, USA | 8/20/2020 | 8/21/2020 | |
Member | Jerel Campbell | 4455 E Camelback Rd, Ste D-145, PHOENIX, AZ, 85018, Maricopa County, USA | 8/20/2020 | 8/21/2020 |
|
4 Take action on the following resolution:
20-0842
Approving the sale of land, and authorizing the City Manager to enter into a
> Purchase and Sale Agreement,
> Development Agreement and
> Parking Easement
EV Development, LLC,
for the development of approximately 0.9± acres of property generally located at the southeast corner of Pepper Place and Robson.
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Some history on this Project (according to the city of Mesa and Jeffrey Robbins, usually refered to as 'JR'.)
for the development of approximately 0.9± acres of property generally located at the southeast corner of Pepper Place and Robson.
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Some history on this Project (according to the city of Mesa and Jeffrey Robbins, usually refered to as 'JR'.)
The developers were named Habitat Metro - now it is EV Development, LLC
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5-PAGE COUNCIL REPORT
City Council
Date: August 31, 2020
To: City Council
Through: Christopher J. Brady, City Manager
From: Jeff McVay, Manager of Downtown Transformation
Subject
Consider the proposed Purchase Agreement, Development Agreement, and parking
easement, between City and EV Development, LLC.
The agreements would facilitate
the development of ECO Mesa, a mixed-use, multi-family redevelopment of a cityowned
surface parking lot generally located at the southeast corner of Pepper Place
and Robson. (District 4)
Purpose and Recommendation
Consider the proposed Purchase Agreement, Development Agreement, and Parking
Easement between the City of Mesa and EV Development, LLC.
The proposed
agreements would convey approximately .89 acres of City-owned real property currently
used as the Purple Parking Lot.
The proposed agreements will facilitate the construction
of a new seven story mixed-use development, consisting of approximately 85,000 SF of
residential (102 units) and 4,000 SF of ground floor commercial (Exhibit A).
The
proposed development also includes construction of a 206 space structured parking
garage with 130 spaces dedicated to project parking and 76 spaces dedicated to the
City through a perpetual easement for public parking.
The proposed development will
create high-end housing, create jobs, increase revenues to the City, and reduce slum
and blight conditions within the Town Center Redevelopment Area.
Staff recommends
approval of the proposed
Purchase Agreement, Development Agreement, and Parking
Easement.
Background
The City of Mesa and developer originally entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) in February 2018 for the proposed development.
While the MOU
expired on December 31, 2018, the developer and City staff have continued to
negotiate the terms of the agreements consistent with the MOU.
I
In July 2020, City staff presented an overview of the business terms of the agreements
to City Council and received direction to complete agreement negotiations for Council
action.
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Concurrently, the project is actively pursuing planning and zoning approvals,
which are anticipated to be completed prior to September 15, 2020.
BLOGGER NOTES:
Please note a recent significant number of new members to various city boards and commitees that are required stages to push this approval process
fast
Setting the rushed deadline of September 15th is done for reasons and requirements for Qualified OZone Funds and how they quality.for investment tax credits to avoid or defer Capital Gains Taxes
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Public Engagement
The developer presented the ECO Mesa project to the Downtown Mesa Association on
2
July 15, 2020.
Subsequently, the DMA board voted to support the ECO Mesa project on
August 19, 2020.
The developer also presented the project at a RAIL CDC public
meeting on July 22, 2020 and held an online public meeting on August 19, 2020.
In
addition to public meetings, the developer has conducted numerous one-on-one
meetings with neighboring businesses to understand and address their unique
concerns.
To date, the most significant concern expressed has been related to the loss
of public parking during construction of the project.
To address this concern, the
developer worked with the City to relocate the 76 existing Purple Parking spaces and
associated permit parking to signed on-street spaces and the Orange public parking lot
(Exhibit C).
The developer will also collaborate with local stakeholders to create
wayfinding signage.
City of Mesa staff and Habitat Metro will monitor parking capacity
throughout project construction and will adjust parking as the situation dictates.
To date, City staff has received 30 letters of support and one letter from four adjacent
business/property owners conveying concerns related to parking, business disruption,
access, and security, among other issues (Exhibit D).
The developer and City staff have
met, and continue to work with, these business/property owners to reasonably address
their concerns.
Discussion
The following provides a summary of the primary deal points for the Development
Agreement, Purchase Agreement, and Parking Easement:
Minimum Project Requirements:
1. Developer will construct the following minimum private improvements, in a
seven-story building:
a. Residential
i. 85,564 SF of rentable residential floor area
ii. Developer intends to build 102 units
iii. Minimum of 90 units with 30 being 2-bedroom
b. Commercial
i. Developer intends to build 4,323 square feet of commercial and
administrative space
ii. Minimum of 2,750 sf of commercial space (retail/restaurant/office
space and 950 sf of administration and rental office space)
c. Parking
i. Developer currently intends to build 206 parking spaces total
1. 130 private structured parking spaces and 76 public
structured parking spaces
2. Developer will grant the City a perpetual easement for the 76
public parking spaces.
ii. Minimum number of private parking spaces is as allowable by
zoning.
In no instance will the number of public parking spaces be
reduced below 76 spaces.
3
2. Developer will comply with project and unit amenity quality standards and
exterior quality standards, i.e., attached neon or neon like identification sign,
fitness center, pool, unit energy monitoring, CAT7 or CAT8 internet cabling in
each unit, hard natural countertop materials.
3. Enhanced sustainability features such as, featuring rooftop solar, grey water
capture for on-site irrigation, energy monitor for each unit, a car share program
and electric charging stations for both public and private spaces
a. Project is required to build to a green building standard, LEED Gold or
equivalent, but is not required to complete third-party certification
b.
The project will include electrical infrastructure to support nine public
electric car charging parking spaces
Terms of Development Agreement:
Developer Obligations:
1. Replacement of all 76 surface public parking spaces with 76 structured public
parking spaces
2. Design and construction of new solid waste enclosures on the Historic Post
Office property and electric conduit to serve future conversion to compactors
(Exhibit B)
a. New solid waste enclosures will be operational prior to current facilities
being taken out of service
3. Use of City sewer, water, energy, and solid waste services
City Obligations:
1. City will design and construct and new 12kV electric duct bank to replace the
existing 12kV electric duct bank bifurcating the project site
a. Total cost is estimated to be $620,000 and will be offset by revenues from
the sale of real property and construction sales tax
i. The electric line within the existing duct bank is near the end of life
and would need replacement in the future.
ii. Any development of the site would require the existing duct bank to
be relocated
2. Provide a customized permit review schedule
3. Provide impact fee offsets for past development, as allowed by City Code
4. Allow encroachments into the right-of-way to support cantilevered solar, canopies
and other architectural elements
5. Relocation of solid waste bins to new solid waste enclosures constructed by the
developer on Historic Post Office property
Terms of Purchase Agreement:
Developer Obligations
Prior to Closing:
1. Consolidation of parcels into a single and unitary parcel on or before closing
2. New solid waste enclosures to be built on or before closing to ensure continuity
of service to existing downtown businesses
3. Obtain all necessary Planning and Zoning approvals
4
4. Provide City with reverter clause in Special Warranty Deed requiring land to
return to City control if developer fails to begin construction of the project
City
Obligations:
1. Sale of six City-owned parcels totaling .89 acres for $325,000 located on the
Pepper Surface Parking Lot
a. $325,000 is the full appraised value
2. Design of new 12 kV duct bank prior to closing
3. Complete electric construction that would interfere with commencement of
project construction by June 1, 2021
Terms of the Parking Easement:
Developer Obligations:
1. Replacement of all 76 surface public parking spaces with 76 structured parking
spaces
a. Routine maintenance of garage for 8 years
b. Structural maintenance in perpetuity
c. Construct public spaces to standard specifications unless otherwise
agreed on a case-by-case basis
2. Perpetual parking and access easements for City spaces
3. In partnership with City, relocation of all 76 spaces during construction period
4. Replacement of existing public parking signage
5. Installation of pedestrian and vehicular wayfinding signage during construction
period
6. Installation of infrastructure serving electric vehicle charging stations after the
meter
City Obligations:
1. Assume routine maintenance for City spaces after term of the GPLET (8 years)
2. Maintenance of public parking signage
3. Procure electric vehicle charging stations
a. Maintenance of charging stations
Future Council Action:
1. City staff and developer are finalizing a government property excise lease tax
(GPLET) lease agreement with an 8-year tax abatement.
a. The approval of the GPLET is a condition precedent to the developer’s
obligation to close on the property, and is necessary for the developer to
move forward with the project.
b. To be brought for City Council action in late October or early November,
2020.
Key Compliance Dates
Zoning Clearance on or before September 15, 2020
City Council action on GPLET on or after October 22, 2020
Construction permits on or before March 1, 2021
5
Closing on or before June 1, 2021
Commence construction on or before June 1, 2021
City complete relocation of 12kv duct bank on or before June 1, 2021
Complete construction on or before January 31, 2023
Fiscal Impact:
???????????
At closing, the City will receive $325,000 for the sale of real property.
The estimated
construction sales tax is $320,000.
The parking lot currently generates approximately
$16,900 a year in parking permit revenue, but generates no tax revenue for the site.
At
year nine, the estimated secondary property tax revenue is $32,000 a year. No parking
permit revenue will be lost during project construction.
Upon completion of construction,
parking permit revenue will increase by approximately $4,752/year.
In addition, upon
completion of construction, City utilities will gain 102 new residential accounts and four
new commercial accounts.
Coordinated With
The agreement terms were coordinated with the
City Manager’s Office,
City Attorney’s
Office,
Energy Resources Department,
Development Services Department,
Engineering
Department, and
Environmental Management and Sustainability Department.
Alternatives
Modify terms to the proposed Purchase and Development Agreements.
Denial of the proposed agreements.
Attachments
Exhibit A: Project Site Plan
Exhibit B: Solid Waste Relocation Plan
Exhibit C: Public Parking Relocation Plan and Walking Times Map
Exhibit D: Letters from the Community Map