BCAR director presents ramp finances; council to send appointments to new authority without recommendation

At the Sept. 23 Committee on Community Development meeting, Sam Maracci, executive director of the Buffalo Civic Auto Resources (BCAR), detailed the finances of four city‑owned parking ramps and answered council questions about valuation, maintenance needs and the proposed authority that would oversee ramp transfers.

Maracci told the committee BCAR manages four city ramps totaling 5,203 spaces and said recent audited records show decades of payments to the city. He provided high‑level figures including insurance and replacement estimates, audited revenues and debt service details, and described how an authority would use bond proceeds to purchase and manage ramps.

"Taking the last 10 fiscal years, excluding the three COVID years, net income is $5,157,796," Maracci said, and he estimated, using a 9–10% capitalization rate, a present value range of roughly $51 million to $57 million for the ramps under an income approach. He also cited an insured replacement value of about $133,000,000 and a rough full replacement cost across the city ramps of approximately $152,000,000 using comparable per‑space costs from a recent campus garage.

Key figures and points Maracci gave to the committee:
- Ramps managed by BCAR: 4 city ramps, 5,203 spaces; insured replacement value approximately $133,000,000.
- Recent comparable construction cost: about $30,000 per space (example: 1,815‑space ramp at Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus with combined hard/soft costs ~ $53,000,000).
- Capitalization/income estimate: average audited net income (pre‑COVID exclusion) ~$5,157,796; capitalized at 9–10% gives a valuation range of about $51–57 million.
- Existing indebtedness tied to ramps: $3,504,000, with debt service of about $891,577 per month and a projected retirement in roughly 4½ years if unchanged.
- Operating revenue (previous audited year): total operating revenue ~$10,217,700; operating expenses ~$4,337,000; net income ~$4,868,723.

Maracci said an acquiring authority would issue bonds after financial due diligence, underwriting and bond counsel review; bond proceeds would be used to pay the city for the ramps, and bond debt service would be covered by ramp revenues, with investors demanding typical debt coverage and reserve ratios.

Council members raised several concerns: whether deferred maintenance could materially affect valuation; how bond proceeds and debt service would be structured; who would manage the ramps after a transfer; and whether the city comptroller or other city offices would retain oversight of debt and operating performance. Maracci said the authority would likely contract with a manager (he suggested BCAR could play that role) and that independent engineering inspections had already been performed as required under state law to identify structural needs and estimate routine maintenance costs.

Maracci cited engineers’ routine maintenance benchmarks of about $0.31–$0.39 per square foot and preventive maintenance of $0.17–$0.22 per square foot (combined 48–59¢ per sq. ft.). He said BCAR budgets roughly $700,000 for repairs plus $500,000 a year contributed to a city parking reserve (totaling $1.2 million planned this year), and noted recent and planned capital contracts to repair individual ramps.

On appointments to the proposed Buffalo parking and mobility authority, the committee debated timing and transparency. Council members said the authority will move significant city assets and that some appointments were for multi‑year terms; several members argued a transition team or incoming administration should be involved. The committee ultimately moved to "send without recommendation" the personnel appointments to the full council, with the understanding members would follow up and request additional documentation.

Other procedural items recorded by the committee: a motion to open discussion on appointments and a motion — carried by voice during the meeting — to send the nominations to the full council without recommendation. The transcript records no roll‑call vote for that motion at the committee level.

Maracci said many of the numbers he presented will be subject to the usual appraisal, underwriting and bond counsel processes if a transaction proceeds and that investors will demand detailed due diligence before any bond sale. The committee asked Maracci to share his presentation materials and supporting figures through the administration so members could review them ahead of full‑council consideration.

Ending: The committee forwarded the appointments without recommendation and requested additional documentation from BCAR and the administration, including the financial schedules and engineering reports that underlie the valuations and maintenance costs Maracci summarized. No final sale or bond authorization occurred at the Sept. 23 meeting; members emphasized oversight, transparency and more precise cost estimates as prerequisites for any transaction.