03/16/10 Special Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

Commissioner Look stated the issue was the $120,000. He stated if Landform brings a deal in the door where the HRA pays out $200,000 on a fee and $120,000 goes towards that deal. He believed what was at risk was the development manager's reputation. He believed the HRA should give Landform one year to perform. Commissioner Look stated a new master plan would take time and that had to be set in motion so developments knew the City had a plan in place, Commissioner McGlone noted if the HRA had to hire a realtor to sell the property, he would get a realtor's fee and would do very little marketing. He did not believe a former developer hired as a staff person for the City would work and the quality would not be there. He was not necessarily disappointed in the work that had been done so far by Landform. He believed one of the advantages with the current team was their understanding of this project. City Attorney Goodrich believed if the City could cancel the contract "not for cause" was something that had to be put in the contract and would be a big advantage. He stated the hot list was also an important item. City Administrator Ulrich did not believe the contract could be approved this evening due to changes that Landform had agreed to be made and the recommended changes made by the City Attorney. He asked if staff should proceed with the contract. Chairperson Dehen stated he would not be in favor of the contract as he wanted to market the property and get rid of it. He indicated he was concerned about the hot list and the VA and Sands being on it when those proposals had been brought forward before Landform was involved. He expressed concern that the HRA would pay a fee on a possible community center. He did not like the idea of a development manager at this time when there were no developments and he believed staff could handle the developments that came to the City. Commissioner Elvig stated master planning is an extremely difficult concept with a lot of facets and work involved. He believed this needed a master developer. He wanted a portion of the land to be held and developed by the HRA. He expressed concern if they went forward on this, the HRA could not get "weak in the knees ". He noted if the HRA went down this path, this would not be the end of the money that would be spent. He believed there was an opportunity for the City to put in a good development. He believed Mr. Lazan had good contacts, a good reputation, and was a hard worker, but he did not like it when Mr. Lazan "bashed" the staff and that needed to be worked on. He stated he was not concerned about the contract dollars as he believed Mr. Lazan would work hard for those dollars. Chairperson Dehen expressed concern about exclusivity. He inquired about commissioner percentages. Deputy City Administrator Nelson responded she had researched the commission issue and the contract was in the ballpark. She noted though that she could not find an exact apples to apples comparison. Housing and Redevelopment Authority / March 16, 2010 Page 6 8