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Council approves 20‑year parking lease with The Foundry on Third; supporters call it partnership, critics cite fairness
Summary
The Common Council approved a long-term lease giving The Foundry on Third discounted use of the former Sears ramp; the 20-year agreement (discount reported at 20%) drew a 7-3 vote after debate on fairness and prior TIF subsidies.
The Common Council voted 7-3 on May 27 to approve a parking stall lease agreement with The Foundry on Third Phase 1 LLC for the former Sears parking ramp (file 190921). Supporters described the lease as a partnership incentive to support a major downtown redevelopment; opponents said the city should not extend further incentives to a project that already received tax-increment financing (TIF) subsidies.
Council discussion said the ramp currently has low utilization and that the agreement would reserve stalls for the Foundry while providing the city with predictable revenue. City staff said the lease is structured to account for the expected life of the ramp — the agreement term is capped at 20 years or the useful life of the structure, whichever is shorter — and that Foundry initially asked for fewer stalls but offered to pay for a larger block of stalls for a long term.
Alder Larson and others said partnering with developers on downtown parking is consistent with past practice and can help attract residents downtown. Alder Killian and Alder McElhaney opposed the deal, citing existing TIF commitments to the project and concerns about preferential discounts that might not be offered to other downtown businesses. City parking staff noted an existing annual-payment discount (one free month for paying 11 of 12 months) is available to other users who commit long term.
The motion passed 7-3. Council members who opposed the measure said they were concerned about fairness and additional incentives; supporters said the agreement would increase ramp revenue and support a larger downtown housing project that requires an on‑street parking solution.
