Council to Consider Ground Lease and Purchase Option for The Grid on Main After Bankruptcy Sale Approval

City staff briefed the Mesa City Council on May 29 on proposed ground-lease and purchase documents that would follow the bankruptcy-court-approved sale of The Grid on Main to developer SoulTrust and would be presented for council action at the June 2 meeting. Jeff McVeigh, manager of urban transformation, said the bankruptcy court approved the sale last week but the sale is contingent on council action on Monday.

The matter matters because the developer proposes to finish a partially completed mixed-use building downtown, triggering deed restrictions, parking licenses and city-funded electric work. If the council approves the lease and option to purchase, city staff said, SoulTrust would complete phase 1 under a construction schedule and then have a limited window to close on purchase of that parcel; phases 2 and 3 remain subject to amendment based on future feasibility and density studies.

McVeigh outlined the city’s role and what the proposed agreements would require. The lease would cover three project parcels labeled phases 1 through 3. Phase 1 is the existing building; phase 2 is the dirt lot between phase 1 and the garage; and phase 3 is a narrow strip wrapping the Palmer Garage. Under…