CRA (Community Redevelopment Agency) approved buying 5432 Acorn Street for $380,000 to extend a Rivergate-Palm District riverwalk and link Boat Ramp Park.
5 items on the agenda · 4 decisions recorded
On the agenda
- 1Call to Order - Roll Call▶ 0:00
- 2
Nomination of Chair for the Purpose of Meeting
approvedThe CRA Board nominated and appointed Peter Altman as Chair for the purpose of this meeting. The motion passed unanimously 3-0.
- motion:Motion to appoint Peter Altman as Chair for the purpose of this meeting. (passed)3–0
▶ Jump to 0:28 in the videoShow transcriptHide transcript
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[00:00:28] Okay, so I took the liberty of banging the gavel, but we don't have a chair, so is there [00:00:34] a motion for that? [00:00:35] I'll make a motion to that effect to make Peter Altman the chair for this meeting. [00:00:41] I'll second it. [00:00:42] Woo-hoo. [00:00:43] Wow. [00:00:44] That was quick. [00:00:45] I'm honored. [00:00:46] Only for today. [00:00:47] Those in favor? [00:00:48] Aye. [00:00:49] Those in favor? [00:00:50] Aye. [00:00:51] Aye. [00:00:52] Aye. [00:00:53] Aye. [00:00:54] Aye. [00:00:55] Aye. [00:00:56] Aye. [00:00:57] Okay, we have a three zip to keep the trend going. The first order of business for us
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- 3
Approval of March 28, 2024 CRA Meeting Minutes
approvedThe CRA Board approved the minutes from the March 28, 2024 CRA meeting without discussion.
- motion:Motion to approve the March 28, 2024 CRA meeting minutes. (passed)
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[00:01:05] is to look at the CRA meeting minutes of March the 28th, and I don't know if there are any [00:01:12] questions or corrections. Otherwise, we'd look for a motion to approve. [00:01:15] I move to approve. [00:01:16] I'll second. [00:01:17] Motion made and seconded without discussion. Those in favor? [00:01:22] Aye. [00:01:23] Aye. [00:01:24] Opposed?
This text was generated automatically from the meeting video. It is not a verbatim or official record. For exact wording, consult the video or the city clerk.
- 4
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Proposed Purchase and Sale Agreement for 5432 Acorn Street
approvedThe CRA Board approved the purchase of 5432 Acorn Street for $380,000 pursuant to a Purchase and Sale Agreement to implement the Community Redevelopment Plan in the Rivergate-Palm District. Staff presented that the property would help connect Boat Ramp Park, enable a riverwalk under the Main Street Bridge, support stormwater/resiliency planning, and unlock redevelopment of the SunTrust/Gateway parcels. The motion carried unanimously by voice vote.
- motion:Motion to approve the purchase of 5432 Acorn Street for $380,000 pursuant to the Purchase and Sale Agreement. (passed)
- vote:Voice vote on the motion to approve the purchase. (passed)
5432 Acorn StreetAcorn Street right-of-wayBoat Ramp ParkMain Street BridgeMonson Mayor propertyPotter propertyComfort Inn and SuitesFormer Gateway ChurchStonehavenStroud EngineerSunTrustTampa Bay Regional Planning CouncilKellyMr. OrabeckMs. MannsAdopted Community Redevelopment PlanClosing target end of MayCody RiverCody RiverwalkDeposit of $11,400Property assemblage budget ($1 million / $875,000 available)Rivergate-Palm District Conceptual Master PlanRivertown Revival branding▶ Jump to 1:25 in the videoShow transcriptHide transcript
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[00:01:25] And now we can turn the next item, which is the Proposed Purchase and Sale Agreement [00:01:30] for 5432 Acorn Street, over to our Executive Director, Ms. Manns. [00:01:37] In turn, we'll be turning it over to Mr. Orabeck, who has put together a PowerPoint presentation [00:01:46] to you related to the Proposed Purchase and Sale Agreement for the property, which we [00:01:53] are recommending you consider favorably in the amount of $380,000. And Mr. Orabeck, if [00:02:06] you'd take it from there. [00:02:07] Yes, ma'am. Gladly. Good evening, Mr. Acting Chair and members of the Board. As the Executive [00:02:14] Director pointed out, this is a request to approve the purchase of 5432 Acorn Street [00:02:19] for $380,000 pursuant to a Purchase and Sale Agreement substantially in the form of Attachment [00:02:25] 1 for the purposes of implementing the Adoptive Community Redevelopment Plan. [00:02:30] So as the Board knows, the plan and associated planning efforts, such as the Rivergate-Palm [00:02:35] District Conceptual Master Plan that was carried out by you and the community and the Tampa [00:02:41] Bay Regional Planning Council, they identified the Rivergate-Palm District as one of the [00:02:47] city's most important opportunities for redevelopment. Accordingly, our team has been working to [00:02:53] assemble a critical mass of properties within the district for catalytic redevelopment pursuant [00:02:58] to the plan. [00:03:01] And just to put the picture out there for everyone, I know you guys have this burned [00:03:05] into your mind's eye, but here is our U.S. Highway 19. Here is the Cody River, the heart [00:03:14] of the community flowing through it. Here is our Main Street Bridge. The orange lines [00:03:19] that you see are assembled properties, even that little corner clip over there by the [00:03:26] corner where the Main Street Gateway sign is going in. Of course, you have the SunTrust [00:03:32] building, you have the former Gateway Church, you have our parking garage, and then you [00:03:38] have the little, I believe it was a cigar warehouse type building over there. So there's [00:03:43] been, oh, and come on, this is the Monson Mayor property, don't want to jinx it, it's [00:03:47] under contract, right? It's under contract, but the Potter property is down, and of course [00:03:52] this is one boat ramp park that's been part of the community forever. [00:03:58] So orange is what has been assembled or is in public ownership, and red is the subject [00:04:04] property. That is 5432 Acorn Street. And as you know, and as I discussed, the plan [00:04:14] has talked about this area, it's highlighted the importance, both the adopted community [00:04:20] redevelopment plan, and here you can see what we call the Rivergate District and a conceptual [00:04:26] rooftop plan. Of course, Main Street Landings, today known as Stonehaven, has been a critical [00:04:32] piece of that, and various planning efforts, this one being the community redevelopment [00:04:36] plan, they specifically identify the Acorn right away. So Acorn has been part of these [00:04:41] plans the whole way. And specific things are called out, additional waterfront uses, actually [00:04:51] connecting Boat Ramp Park to the south under the Main Street Bridge. These are all concepts [00:04:56] that you and the community as a whole have been talking about for years. [00:05:03] And here's one of those other planning efforts. The Tampa Bay RPC working with the community [00:05:08] came up with the Rivergate Palm District, and here we've just exerted a couple of the [00:05:12] master plan graphics, which again provide another conceptual rooftop plan for what this [00:05:19] area could be when it grows up, what it would be in the future. And interestingly, this [00:05:26] subject property and the Acorn Street right away were specifically planned as part of [00:05:31] this effort. In fact, there was even a concept developed for it, which included a kayak launch [00:05:43] and facility there. There it is zoomed in. And the highlighted attributes of the property [00:05:53] include that it's about .27 acres, approximately 67 running feet. The asking price for the [00:06:00] property, it was listed in the market to the public at $421,000. It's on the tax roll [00:06:07] for $211,000 and change. It was appraised at $380,000. So as mentioned, it was in the [00:06:17] marketplace. Staff knows and our team knows that we've been working to acquire property [00:06:24] in this area. We thought it was worthy of your consideration because in combination [00:06:28] with the Acorn Street public right away, it would create adequate space for a riverfront [00:06:33] amenity as conceived in the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council planning effort or an access [00:06:40] point to build around in accordance with the plan. This property, it's a little piece of [00:06:46] property, but it gives us big opportunity because in addition to being specifically [00:06:50] planned in that RPC master planning effort, it gives the ability if the board and the [00:06:57] community would see fit, if you wanted to connect Boat Ramp Park and you wanted to see [00:07:02] a Cody Riverwalk and you wanted to see that go under the Main Street Bridge and wrap around [00:07:06] Stonehaven, it could tie right into this property, which would unlock the value of the [00:07:12] whole Rivergate District, brings it to the waterfront, it brings SunTrust, it brings [00:07:17] the redevelopment of Gateway, that greater master parcel you've been working hard on [00:07:23] so long, it lets it connect to the riverfront. It's opportunities of all sizes because it [00:07:30] also could help with stormwater and so many other things. So it's an example of how [00:07:35] something seemingly small is not small. It's actually quite big. So we ordered the [00:07:42] appraisal on the property. It came in at $380,000. We were able to come to a meeting [00:07:48] of the minds with the seller at a purchase price of $380,000 to be paid via deposit of [00:07:55] $11,400 and the balance of time of closing of a short contingency. One of the terms was [00:08:02] they really wanted to move on that. And so we have proposed to accommodate that request. [00:08:08] And so the anticipated closing date would be by the end of May. And the closing cost [00:08:14] would be split pursuant to Section 17. If this is approved, obviously we're going to move [00:08:20] forward with our due diligence. We're going to take it down. And then we're going to be [00:08:26] working very hard on that SunTrust Gateway redevelopment proposal. And we'll be bringing [00:08:35] back to the board for your consideration a disposition and offering plan for that. [00:08:41] We would, as part of that planning effort, obviously we'll be deciding what specifically [00:08:48] you want to do with this property. And then we're going to work to carry it out. [00:08:57] As far as budget fiscal impact goes, it's important to point out that the contract amounts [00:09:03] to $380,000. There would additionally be some recurring maintenance costs and costs [00:09:07] associated with the next steps. The adopted agency budget includes $1 million for property [00:09:13] assemblage, of which $875,000 is currently available for this purchase. So the funds are available [00:09:19] to make this happen. I like to bring it into the big picture and talk about how everything [00:09:25] is connected. I wanted to bring up one of these concepts that you had developed when you went [00:09:31] through the branding of Rivertown Revival. Whether you're an elected official or you're a city [00:09:37] member or you're a member of the public, these transformative projects, these big capital [00:09:43] projects that really move communities forward, transform a community, it can never be done [00:09:49] fast enough. It can never happen fast enough. You will never be satisfied. But if we work [00:09:55] hard, smart, and together, it can happen. In my experience, it does happen. And in my [00:10:01] observation over the last four months here, and then comparing it to the city that I remember [00:10:07] leaving in 1992, I would suggest it is happening. Thanks to you guys working hard, smart, and [00:10:15] together. So I'd encourage you to make it happen because even though it can never be fast [00:10:21] enough, your team, our team, has done so many great things in this area where we can't wait to do [00:10:30] the next thing. Like staff, we can't wait for you to buy this. We can't wait to bring you a plan to [00:10:36] redevelop this. But just think, there is a gateway sign that welcomes you and hopefully 60,000 [00:10:45] more visitors off of 19 a day into downtown. There is a Kaiser that was never there before. [00:10:52] There is a modern hotel, Comfort Inn and Suites, that wasn't there before. There was a parking [00:10:59] garage there before. I mean, this was a labor of love. This was trials and tribulations. But you [00:11:07] made it happen and it's fully occupied. You've taken the Potter property down. The Montemayor [00:11:13] property is under contract. And now you can imagine something really special here. And if you [00:11:20] take this action tonight, you could potentially connect it physically, creating a destination in its [00:11:27] own right and having a river walk on your river. And that river walk would connect to the rest of [00:11:33] this district and this property that you can't wait to redevelop. So it's never fast enough, but [00:11:39] working hard, smart, and together it can happen and it is happening. So we encourage you to approve [00:11:46] the request before you and we'd be happy to take any questions or comments you have. [00:11:53] Kelly, you were in on this discussion earlier. Do you want to respond or reply to your feelings? [00:12:01] Yes. So, I mean, I love this idea. I think that's what we need, something to tie. We're two [00:12:07] separate sections right now. We need something to kind of tie us all together. And I think boardwalks [00:12:13] on the water. We're not using our waterways. The boardwalks on the waterways are going to be [00:12:19] amazing. And that's the perfect property that's right in between of everything else we're doing to make [00:12:25] this happen. I was concerned about the initial price. So, of course, being a realtor, I looked up the [00:12:31] price and what I thought it should be valued at. And I'm glad we're only paying 384 because that's [00:12:37] what we're doing. And I think it's the time to make the move. [00:12:43] The newbie on the corner, I'll just start by saying that I agree with the linkage argument. I mean, there is [00:12:49] those four corners right there on Main Street. And I know there are some businesses over there that are [00:12:55] desperate for some walkability and some riverfront access on that side. And I think this very well [00:13:01] my two things that popped up were the cost and affordability. And so I appreciate you making those [00:13:07] comments on that. Is there any way we can get a walkthrough timeline on? I know back in March, [00:13:13] probably during COVID, there was a significant reduction in price. And I'm assuming just with the market, [00:13:19] we didn't get what we wanted originally. And that's the cost of doing business. It was originally [00:13:25] what was it at $250,000 originally? [00:13:31] I think they'd asked more for it, which is why it didn't go through. There was a purchase and then they [00:13:37] with the intention to sell and then that just didn't break. But I believe that it was in the 300s that they were [00:13:43] asking for back two years ago. So we're basically getting it, I think, about the same price that it was [00:13:49] You can talk about what's happened to the real estate prices. [00:13:55] Anything along the water is going to be valued at that. That's a value. I mean, I have houses valued [00:14:01] at that that are nowhere near what this property is valued at. And like I said, when I looked at the 421, [00:14:07] I thought that was a little high. When I looked at it, I thought it probably should be under 400. And getting it at 380 [00:14:13] I think that it's a good value for us because they probably could get 424. [00:14:19] Can we get a motion and then we can discuss further on that? [00:14:25] I'll move to approve. [00:14:31] We have one member of the public here present other than staff members, but would you like to weigh in [00:14:37] at all? If you do, you'd have to come up to the microphone and speak. [00:14:43] You can't force them to speak. You cannot let them speak. [00:14:49] She could force me to speak. [00:15:00] I move to approve. [00:15:01] I'll make a second. [00:15:02] All right. [00:15:03] More discussion. [00:15:05] Can I just get on the record? [00:15:07] I know you have something to say too. [00:15:09] You mentioned before about resiliency [00:15:11] and I've seen a lot in the plans [00:15:12] about the walkability, the riverfront accents, [00:15:15] but what's this stormwater vision? [00:15:18] Is there a possibility to tie this into flood mitigation? [00:15:22] Yeah, I think the possibility is really [00:15:24] in talking to the owners of the, [00:15:27] I'll still call it Main Street Landing, [00:15:29] but the Stonehaven property. [00:15:31] The unusual situation is that Acorn Street, [00:15:35] which is a city-owned land, [00:15:37] goes all the way to the water. [00:15:39] And somehow in the development agreement [00:15:42] of the Main Street Landing, [00:15:45] because they had to put some fill in [00:15:47] just to get it to the level of the parking garage, [00:15:49] which still gets a little water, [00:15:51] the swift mud had a requirement [00:15:53] not only to put retention, [00:15:57] but also to retain, [00:16:00] but also attenuation of getting the water [00:16:04] that was coming over onto that property [00:16:06] so as not to affect the neighbors. [00:16:08] So they had to do, that's pond. [00:16:11] And so when you see the seawall out there, [00:16:13] that big vault between the parking garage [00:16:17] and the seawall is actually to retain water [00:16:22] coming off over the river [00:16:24] to avoid the effect of putting the fill on the property. [00:16:28] So they had two kinds of drainage and retaining. [00:16:35] To that effect, because of that [00:16:37] and the amount of footprint on that property, [00:16:41] the stormwater pond in the middle [00:16:45] was calculated not to be quite enough. [00:16:47] And so they had to put this other secondary pond in [00:16:51] to which they have an easement over our Acorn Street Road. [00:16:57] But to answer your question, [00:17:01] the plan that was sent in [00:17:03] for the 800 and some thousand dollar attenuation pond [00:17:07] for the bigger project, [00:17:09] which also was supposed to allow [00:17:11] for sort of a reverse use of that pond, [00:17:15] like we do with Orange Lake, [00:17:17] where we can lower it and kind of help [00:17:19] to absorb some of the impact of the storm surge. [00:17:25] That plan calls, as it was drawn out by Stroud Engineer, [00:17:28] for that connection to occur at Acorn Street, I think. [00:17:34] So I think it's gonna take, you're absolutely right, [00:17:38] I think it's gonna be part of the ultimate overall, [00:17:42] give us more room and more space [00:17:44] to design the overall strategy. [00:17:47] The other possibility, [00:17:48] there is already a boat slip on the property. [00:17:53] Not a boat slip, but an inlet that's cut in. [00:17:56] And so I think it'll be interesting to find out [00:17:58] what kind of creative ideas that can occur, [00:18:01] whether it's a weir and the ability [00:18:04] to bring water in a little more [00:18:06] and then do those kind of things. [00:18:07] But I think you're absolutely right, [00:18:09] it's completely, [00:18:12] could be a part of the overall stormwater [00:18:16] and perhaps some of the improvements that could be done [00:18:18] could be attributed to that grant. [00:18:21] Because there's already a calculation [00:18:24] to do work on that area. [00:18:26] So I think that the CRA would be smart [00:18:30] to try to draw in whatever we could from the pond. [00:18:37] But also from an economic standpoint, [00:18:40] when I was initially helping to lease that property up, [00:18:44] not as a realtor, but as an employee of sorts there, [00:18:50] I got the opportunity to show all of those units. [00:18:54] And so if you could bring that drawing up [00:18:57] that just shows the overhead, [00:18:59] the first ones to go were on the third floor on that turn. [00:19:03] And if you could, as you look at the property, [00:19:06] you can see the reason right under the two, [00:19:09] that angled arrow. [00:19:11] This right here. [00:19:12] All of those units on the third and second floor [00:19:15] were highly prized [00:19:16] because you could see all the way down the river. [00:19:19] And if you look at the lot that we would be acquiring, [00:19:22] you see that it really is placed in the middle of the river. [00:19:25] So for the purpose of the public being there [00:19:28] and walking through there, [00:19:30] they'll see that whole river corridor. [00:19:32] It's almost like you're in the river. [00:19:35] And it's really an exciting, [00:19:37] it's a great view to see from there. [00:19:42] And again, with the parking garage [00:19:44] and the ability for people to walk [00:19:45] from the parking garage to that, [00:19:48] if we could make it happen. [00:19:51] There were also just historically, [00:19:53] the McGurns had acquired boat slip [00:19:58] for I think 13 or 15 boat slips, which they never used. [00:20:02] And that I believe perhaps that that permit has expired, [00:20:07] but it's an opportunity to sort of redesign [00:20:10] and maybe work a public-private partnership [00:20:13] to work off of that seawall somehow. [00:20:17] But yeah, it is very exciting. [00:20:20] And there's no doubt in my mind, [00:20:22] the number of people who wanted a boat slip [00:20:24] and there was talk, well, maybe it would come, [00:20:26] the number of people went there [00:20:28] with the hopes that they could have a boat slip. [00:20:31] But if nothing else, there isn't even a dock [00:20:34] where you could pull up and get in [00:20:36] and drop off somebody that was there. [00:20:40] And so folks would park in the parking garage [00:20:42] with their boats and they would have the boat come there. [00:20:45] And I would have to chase them off [00:20:47] because they'd go right to the corner [00:20:48] and try to jump on from there. [00:20:50] So I think from a practical standpoint, [00:20:53] there's a desire for that functionality [00:20:56] that you're talking about that was just experienced there. [00:20:59] But- [00:21:00] You're getting me real fired up. [00:21:01] Is it right if I just share one idea? [00:21:04] So for a long time in your planning documents, [00:21:07] you've talked about the desirability [00:21:09] of remote parking from your boat ramp. [00:21:12] But the reality is no one wants to do that. [00:21:14] You can't get someone to walk a half a mile [00:21:16] through downtown to get to their boat. [00:21:18] But in my experience, [00:21:20] you can get them to walk on the river. [00:21:22] So imagine where we're going out [00:21:25] and we drop the boat and you start it [00:21:28] and be like, Greg, I'll pick you up over there. [00:21:30] And I go over here and I park, if not in the garage, [00:21:34] maybe there's a public-private partnership with the church [00:21:37] because except on Sundays at 10 o'clock, [00:21:40] maybe there's an opportunity where you have a sea [00:21:43] of asphalt that can finally now really serve the community. [00:21:47] And I just hop on the boardwalk and I hop in the boat. [00:21:50] This is a totally different experience [00:21:52] than trying to get someone to drop their boat, [00:21:55] leave it tied up, park a mile away. [00:22:00] And you're experiencing the river the whole time. [00:22:02] And in fact, you might've motored downriver to pick me up [00:22:06] rather than making me walk all the way. [00:22:08] But if I did walk, I was looking to see [00:22:09] if there were any snook out there today [00:22:11] or did I see any sheep's head? [00:22:13] It's not like you made me trudge through [00:22:15] a weird urban scenario to get there. [00:22:18] Lots of sheep hid under that bridge just once in a while. [00:22:20] That was my recollection. [00:22:23] No, it's exciting. [00:22:24] And somehow or another, [00:22:28] things sometimes fall into place [00:22:30] that I've learned over my life. [00:22:33] To look back and say, well, I could have been patient. [00:22:35] I wasn't, but it still worked out. [00:22:38] And it's finally happening. [00:22:40] So I'm very excited. [00:22:41] And I'm hopeful that the ownership will be open [00:22:45] to some kind of a mutual benefit. [00:22:48] And I think if we look at our easement, [00:22:50] we might find that looking at the design [00:22:54] of that retention pond and working it into our project [00:23:00] because it's on our land could be another negotiating part [00:23:05] to utilizing what it would be a much larger space [00:23:10] if it weren't for that retention pond [00:23:12] being right on the river, [00:23:13] where it probably wouldn't want to be otherwise [00:23:17] if there was another way to take that volume [00:23:21] and put it in a less valuable place. [00:23:26] Anyway, that's great. [00:23:28] We got a motion on the floor in a second. [00:23:30] I could go on all night, [00:23:31] but I'm very excited and I'm grateful [00:23:35] that it's in the plan and we can do it [00:23:38] and we have the funds in our budget. [00:23:41] Any other comments? [00:23:43] If not, those in favor of the motion? [00:23:45] Aye. Aye. [00:23:46] Aye. Opposed? [00:23:47] Motion carries. [00:23:49] And before we go, could I get a picture of me
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- 5Adjournment▶ 23:50