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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCRC-06-14-00CARMEL REDEVELOPMENT COMMISSION Meeting, Wednesday, June 14, 2000 The meeting was called to order at 6:05 p.m. by President.Rick Roesch. Members present were Amy Boldt and John Koven. (Ron Carter arrived at 6:1'1 p.m.) Also present were Clerk-Treasurer Diana Cordray, Joe Staehler, Director of the CRC, City Engineer Kate Weese, Karl Haas, Les Olds, Loretta and Gary Babineau. Phyllis Morrissey as support staff. Approval of Minutes Two pages were missing from the minutes when they were mailed out. Ms. Boldt made a motion that the approval of the May 10, 2000, minutes be tabled until the July meeting. Following a second by John Koven the motion was approved. Corrected minutes will be mailed. Financial Report Diana Cordray noted the invoices submitted for approval totaled $72,915.39 and the balance in the 1998 City Center Bond Fund is $1,357.57. The Hazel Dell Bond Issue has $3,664,321.86. The Build Indiana fund has approximately $150,000. This is grant money and it must be kept, separately from the rest of the CRC ftmd. This should be done by ordinance. The money can still be used for the City Center project. We also recently received a check for $67,825.51 from Collier-Tucker and this was deposited in the CRC fund. It was the balance left from the property management at the Kroger Center. Mr. Staehler and C/T Cordray will work on the ordinance to transfer the grant money out of the CRC funds. Mr. Koven moved that the CRC authorize the Director and the Clerk Treasurer to move along a resolution to allow the Build Indiana grant fund money to be transferred out of the CRC funds to a separate fund and then appropriated back to the CRC. Following a second by Ms. Boldt, the motion was approved. Discussion followed about the approximate balance in the CRC fund. C/T Cordray will send that information out within the next few days. C/T Cordray distributed a spreadsheet showing rental receipts. Mr. Rincken, owner of the Village Cleaners, has overpaid his rent for the past several months by $50 each month. Discussion followed at length about the different tenants located in properties which the City owns or is planning to purchase. Question was raised whether the CRC has an obligation to treat each tenant exactly the same. Mr. Haas stated the CRC can determine the negotiations with the different tenants based on what they are doing; for example, if they are relocating in Carmel, terminating their leases early, etc: Ongoing negotiations with different tenants were discussed. Mr. Rincken's overpayments were discussed. The Shoe Heeler's situation was discussed. It was noted that the owner of The Shoe Heeler has ceased paying relit. John Koven made a motion authorizing Mr. Haas send a lease termination letter to the Shoe Heeler. Following a second by Ron Carter, the motion was approved. Mr. Staehler noted we could still try to help the Shoe Heeler if he wants to try to find another place. Mr. Staehler and Mr. Haas will bring some type of recommendation to the next meeting if Mr. Hawkins wants to negotiate. Clerk Treasurer Cordray raised the issue of the utility bills which are paid by her office when they are due. They are not brought to the CRC for approval prior to payment. Thorough records are kept. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray noted property taxes are paid one time which includes both the A and B installment. We are current at this time on all the taxes, but only for the properties we have already purchased. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray wrote to the State Board of Accounts.to get some clarification on who has the legal responsibility for approving invoices. The SBA audit position is: It can be just the CRC if that's what we choose, it can be the CRC approves and then it goes on the agenda for the next City Council meeting if that's what we choose. Discussion followed. Mr. Roesch moved that the Clerk-Treasurer be authorized to pay utility bills on CRC properties on an ongoing basis without getting prior approval from the CRC. Following a second by Mr. Koven, the motion was approved. Discussion followed again about the way Redevelopment Commissions are set up and whether they are an independent body and how the money is handled. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray will research the issue about the CRC agreement and report back to the commission. She noted up to this point the claims have been approved by the CRC, the C-T then notifies the trustee at the bank, authorizing that payment. "The money is coming from you, to me, to the bond fund. Now we are actually going to be paying claims out of a City account. That's why I have these questions. It's different than what we've been doing." Mr. Carter moved the CRC adjust the next monthly rent payment from the Village Cleaners to reflect the $600 overpayment which would make his next monthly rent payment $550 for that month. Following a second by Mr. Koven, the motion was approved. Approval of Claim Ms. Boldt expressed a concern about the attorney invoices which the City Attorney, Doug Haney,.approves for payment. Mr. Haney deletes some of the charges and the checks are then written for reduced amounts. Ms. Boldt would like to see copies of the "marked up" invoices returned to the law offices along with the invoice payments to keep the vendors' records up-to-date. Discussion followed at length. [Mr. Carter left for a Wellhead Protection Meeting in the Caucus Rooms at 7 p.m.) Mr. Roesch commented on the City Center, the center for the performing arts and the museum. Since we have not approved the surveys connected with these yet because we don't have the money, he did not feel we should keep proceeding on a bond issue or doing any work on that bond issue until the studies are done. He does not expect to see any other big bills for going ahead on this bond issue until,the CRC authorizes it from this point forward. Other members were in agreement. There is some confusion on what. the actual cash balance is in the CRC funds. Mr. Koven noted the Mayor's projections and the Clerk-Treasurer's projections are $25,000 apart. He would like to have this issue resolved by or at the next meeting. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray said she and Mr. Staehler would get together and.get this figured out and mail the information to the CRC members. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray noted there is sufficient revenue to pay the current invoices. Mr. Koven moved the current invoices be paid and that invoice items 2,3 and 4 be paid from the bond fund. Following -a second by Ms. Boldt, the motion was approved. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray then left the meeting. Old Business Recommendation from the City Engineer for bids for site improvements for Phase I of City Center. Ms. Weese distributed spreadsheets and a bid tally sheet, noting some of the bids had mathematical errors caused by bidders, adding various components of their bids incorrectly. Listed on the bid tally are the original bids and the corrected bids. Poindexter Engineering, Inc: is the low bidder at $679,199.00. Discussion followed. Ms. Weese can issue the Notice to Proceed when we have funds available. The bids are good for 90 days. The wetlands issue for Parcel #1 was discussed. We are still waiting for approval from the Army Corps of Engineers and IDEM which will probably take another 30-90 days. Until this approval is received, the funds from the AMLI sale cannot be released from escrow.. Mr. Koven: The open public hearing comment date for public input to the Corps of Engineers about the wetlands issue is concluded this coming Friday, June 16. So by next Friday, they should know whether they're going to get any public objections to our application. Then they send their recommendations to IDEM. Mr. Haas suggested the CRC not.accept any bids tonight and wait until the next meeting to see what the status of the wetlands issue is. Ms. Weese noted most of the bidders are aware of who the low bidder is. Ms. Boldt expressed a concern that the CRC not get into any more complications with wetlands mitigation on future City Center parcel sales. Mr. Koven moved the CRC accept the recommendation of the City Engineer that Poindexter Excavating, Inc., is the low bidder at $679,199.00, and that the award of the contract be tabled until the July 12 CRC meeting. Following a second by Ms. Boldt, the motion was approved. Ms. Boldt moved the CRC revise the order of the agenda to allow discussion of Resolution 12-2000 since the Babineaus are present. Following a second by Mr. Koven, the motion was approved. Resolution No. 12-2000 authorizing the execution of the Settlement Agreement with Ultimate Designs Hair Salon, Inc. and Loretta M. Babineau; the payment by CRC of the Termination Payment and the performance of (or payment for) the CRC Work in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Settlement Agreement. Mr. Haas: Loretta Babineau is one of the tenants of the Old Town project and she's found a space and wants to relocate her business. As part of the assistance for relocation we've agreed to a termination payment to her of $3,000 and assistance with upgrading the plumbing and electrical services at the new premises so they're suitable for the operation of a beauty salon. Mr. Staehler: Our estimate for the upgrades is $4,500. The plumbing is $500-600; the rest is electrical. We would do the plumbing work using utility department employees, so the plumbing expenses are for materials. The electrical will have to be contracted. I'd like to appropriate $5,000 for contingencies in case the cost goes over. Discussion followed. At the CRC's request, Mr. Staehler agreed to get three competitive bids for the electrical work. Mr. Koven recommended an electrician he knows and agreed to work with Mr. Staehler in the negotiations.. Mr. Koven made a motion that the CRC approve Resolution 12-2000 authorizing the execution of the Settlement Agreement with Ultimate Designs Hair Salon, Inc. and Loretta M. Babineau and the payment by the CRC of the Termination payment of $3,000 and the performance of (or payment for) the upgrades at the new location in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Settlement Agreement. Following a second by Ms. Boldt, the motion was unanimously approved. Ms. Babineau will call Dave Brandt to get plumbing decisions made. Her lease will be checked to see if the landlord can be asked to help with the cost of the upgrades. Mr. Koven moved the CRC allocate up to, but not to exceed, $5,000 for plumbing and electrical upgrades in conjunction with Resolution 12-2000. Discussion. Following a second by Ms. Boldt the motion was approved. 4 Resolution 10-2000 that sets out the CRC's determination to exercise the power of eminent domain with respect to the acquisition of the Leasehold Interest of Sherwin- Williams Company. Discussion followed at length. Mr. Haas: Just because you start condemnation doesn't mean you are obligated to pay. You could go all the way through the proceedings and then say, "I don't want to do it." There is the opportunity for you to pull out at any time and you would not have to pay Sherwin-Williams' costs for fighting you up to that point. Mr. Haas continued: We sent a letter to them [Sherwin Williams] offering $170,000. They have countered asking for $700,000. Discussion followed. Mr.Haas: We also need to authorize Mr. Staehler to obtain two appraisals. We need them now because if you're going to acquire their leasehold by condemnation or if you're otherwise going to acquire their leasehold then you have to file the acquisition requirements. If you're going to terminate their leasehold then there's no requirement to get an appraisal. In other words, if at the end of the day you have purchased an interest from them, you need to have it appraised.. If at the end of the day you've terminated an interest, it doesn't have to be appraised. We were hopeful when we sent the offer letter to Sherwin Williams it would result in an amicable termination of the lease. The other reason is, as you move into the litigation, if they're going to challenge the condemnation itself, they may say that the $170,000 is not a good faith offer. And at that point, you need to have expert witnesses, appraisers, that can back up the good faith offer. Even though they will bring an appraiser that says it wasn't a good faith offer. But at the moment we do need them, we need them then. It's very possible when we file this action, SW will surrender or they say we'll surrender for $200,000 and we bring it back to the next meeting, and that's approved and we do a lease termination and we never need the appraisals. But it's also possible this will go to litigation. Mr. Koven noted the CRC members have received a revision of Resolution 10-2000 [and Resolution 11-2000], revised at Mr. Koven's request. The revised resolution describes the proposed City Center more generally, eliminating the mention of the performing arts center and museum. He felt this change was important so the resolution does not refer to aperforming arts center and museum in City Center since there is no guarantee these facilities will be built. Ms. Boldt moved the. CRC approve the updated version ofResolution,l0-2000, that sets out the CRC's determination to exercise the power of eminent domain with respect to the acquisition of the Leasehold Interest of Sherwin-Williams Company. Following a second by Mr. Koven, the motion was approved. Discussion followed about demolition of the Kroger Center. Mr. Olds noted the demolition documents are completed and the buildings can be torn down all around Sherwin-Williams, leaving their portion protected from the weather. He said they also have to have a certain number of parking spaces left available. Mr. Olds said the demolition Requests for Proposals have been prepared so there is unit pricing for each section of the buildings we will want to have demolished and the adjacent parking. An incremental price for tearing it down all at the same time will also be requested. The bids would be good for ninety days. Mr. Koven moved the CRC advertise for bids to demolish the Kroger Center. Ms. Boldt seconded the motion. Discussion followed. Mr. Olds noted .the bids also include the Sitzmark building and that there is enough parking left for Goodyear. Mr. Olds will provide a roll of documents and specifications and will get with Kate Weese, City Engineer, so she can get them reviewed to see if they meet the City's criteria. The bids can be opened at the July meeting. Following discussion, the motion was approved. Discussion followed about tenants in properties the City now owns. Mr. Koven moved the CRC authorize Mr. Haas to look into the Village Cleaners' lease to see if we can get him out in 90 days. Following a second by Ms. Boldt, the motion was approved. Mr. Carter returned to the meeting at 8:32 p.m. Resolution 11-2000 about the Kestner property [revised like Resolution 10-2000] was distributed. Discussion followed. The concept is that the City would buy Mr. Kestner's existing property and he would buy a site in the City Center so he could open in a new location. Mr. Kestner is the property owner of the strip which includes his bicycle shop, Cool Beans Coffee Shop, Muldoon's, and Pizza King. Discussion followed about the finances/cash flow of the CRC funds. Mr. Staehler distributed a draft plan he had put together, with figures reflecting the CRC fund activity. He had identified relocation costs for the various tenants, and noted this estimate is grossly understated. He also said the demolition costs for Old Town are too low. Mr. Koven asked why we couldn't just sell it [Old Town parcel] as is and let someone else tear it down. Discussion followed about the value of infrastructure already in place on parcels. It was determined we need two appraisals on the Muldoon building. Discussion followed about the problems in dealing with multiple tenants. Mr. Carter called Mr. Kestner and was told Pizza King has approximately one year remaining on their lease and.Muldoon'•s/Cool Beans has 3-5 years. Mr. Carter feels we need some more clarification on this issue. 6 Mr. Haas: There are two ways to proceed with acquiring this property. One is to negotiate a deal with one of the parties at the top. The other way is to take the entire property, including all the tenants, through condemnation. Avoid trying to negotiate with each of the tenants individually because if each one is contingent upon the other, real estate moves too slowly to get everything in place atone time, get all three deals nailed down. Mr. Kestner's time frame was discussed. Mr. Olds noted the cost of Mr. Kestner's proposed building is above average because of the necessity of conforming to the Georgian Colonial design criteria. Discussion followed about the proposed building and site improvements. Mr. Olds has worked with Mr. Kestner on the design of his building and the site. Mr. Olds displayed a plan for the adjoining tunnel/trail area for the CRC to consider. Estimated cost of a walkway, steps, retaining walls, fountain, small plaza and landscaping is $186,728.33. Mr. Carter asked if this was included in the $1,700,000 for site improvements and was told it probably is not. Discussion followed about the cash flow again. Mr. Roesch noted the timing is critical with the different projects and the sale of parcels. The need for an Executive Session of the CRC was noted. Mr. Olds noted Mr. Kestner would need to start his building by September in order to be able to move in by February 2001. Mr. Olds suggested a 10,000 square foot building be constructed on Rangeline near the property the City owns by the Fire Station drive. This building would.be the first element of the.retail center and could be used to move the dislocated tenants [Muldoon's, Pizza King] into. That first building could be added onto and create the.masterdesign. But he noted it is a small project and developers didn't indicate any interest when it was proposed. Mr. Haas reminded the CRC members that the Georgian Colonial architecture requirements are going to increase the cost to any developers. Mr. Olds noted how important the first things which are built in City Center are to set the tone for the whole area. They have to reflect the government center quality and design. Following further discussion about the Kestner Resolution and the cash flow situation, Mr. Carter moved we table revised Resolution 11-2000 and adjourn the meeting because we do not have enough information to make a decision. Following a second by Mr. Koven, the motion was approved and the meeting was adjourned. Signatures were obtained for the approved resolutions. At 9:20 p.m. Mr. Koven moved the CRC reconvene. Ms. Boldt seconded the motion and it was approved. There still being a quorum present the meeting'was reconvened. 7 Mr. Koven noted we need to have the following request in our records: that the zoning for the Old Town parcel be changed from Il to C2. This is special exception zoning. Discussion followed. Mr. Koven moved we adopt a petition to change the official zoning map incorporated into the Carmel Clay zoning ordinance for the West Main Street and First Avenue property that the CRC owns, from 11 to C2. Following a second by Ms. Boldt the motion was approved. Mr. Boldt moved the meeting be adjourned. Following a second by Mr. Koven the motion was approved and the meeting adjourned. The next regularly scheduled meeting will be July 12. [June 21, 2000 There will be an Executive Session of the CRC on Wednesday, June 28, followed bya regular meeting that same evening.]