CC Minutes - 05/26/09 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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Roll call vote; the motion to amend the resolution passed, 7:1; Councilor Taylor voting in opposition. Roll call vote; the motion passed, as amended, 7:1; Councilor Taylor voting in opposition. Mayor Piercy adjourned the meeting of the Eugene City Council and convened a meeting of the Eugene Urban Renewal Agency at 8:52 p.m. 5. ACTION: Beam Development Extension Request Councilor Zelenka, seconded by Councilor Clark, moved to direct the Agency Director to 1) amend the Purchase and Sale Agreement to extend the required start of construction date by six months to December 1, 2009; 2) negotiate with Beam to provide flexibility in the Purchase and Sale Agreement, if possible, regarding the City’s commitment for leased space, and if negotiations are successful to amend the Purchase and Sale Agreement regarding leased space without approval from the Urban Renewal Agency, and 3) continue discussions with Beam and Lane Community College regarding the possibility of locating a new Lane Community College Downtown Center on the Beam property. Mayor Piercy said the City had been trying to get the project going and the City and the developer had worked hard to move forward with filling one hole and renovating the adjacent building. She stressed that the financial underpinnings were difficult for everyone at present. Senior Development Analyst for the Community Development Division Denny Braud said the problems the project faced were two-fold. He stated that, primarily, the economy was presenting problems for project financing. He noted that the City of Portland currently had about 40 urban renewal projects that were on hold because of it. He related that Beam Development was facing the same challenges as many developers in trying to attract financing, tenants, and investors. He said the delay would provide the opportunity for Beam to extend the project and to “hopefully make some headway” on it. He noted that the other advantage of providing some additional time had to do with the emerging interest of Lane Community College (LCC) to locate there. He shared staff’s belief that having LCC at that location would make the building a landmark for many years. He averred that the additional six months would give Beam Development, the City, and LCC an opportunity to forge a partnership. Mayor Piercy stated that she was a big supporter of LCC. She understood that the college had to wait until it heard from the Legislature regarding funding in order to see the potential of this partnership. She believed that it would be a “great thing” to do. Councilor Poling indicated that he would support the motion. He recalled that when the original discussion had occurred, some councilors had averred that Beam had the ability to move in and start the project “tomorrow.” He said it was obvious how bad the current economy was when a company that could have supposedly come in and started the next day was coming back and asking for an extension. He pointed out that Beam Development had made all of the payments required of it. He liked the idea of LCC moving into that building. He noted that the council had granted KWG Development Partners an extension and he felt it would be fair and consistent to do the same for Beam Development. He added that he did now know if the City could support another extension. He did not want to experience another situation like the one the City had faced with the Oregon Research Institute. MINUTES—Eugene City Council May 26, 2009 Page 10 Regular Meeting