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Council hears OVO redevelopment pitch: 191 apartments, transit improvements and $500,000 public benefit under proposed GPLET
Summary
Staff previewed the OVO mixed‑use project at Dobson and Main and a proposed GPLET (8‑year abatement) that includes $500,000 in‑lieu payment, transit center improvements and landscaping; staff said the project will return for council action August 17 after meeting statutory GPLET tests.
City redevelopment staff presented the OVO mixed‑use project and the proposed government property lease excise tax (GPLET) for council review at the July 16 study session.
Jeff McVay, manager of urban transformation, and redevelopment program administrator Jeff Robbins described OVO as a five‑story, podium‑style building with 191 market‑rate apartments and about 5,700 square feet of ground‑floor commercial space at the northeast corner of Dobson Road and Main Street, adjacent to the Sycamore light‑rail station. Staff said the project sits on the former Tri‑City Mall site and will enhance pedestrian connections to the transit center.
Robbins outlined the public benefits tied to the GPLET: an eight‑year tax abatement, a guaranteed minimum construction‑sales‑tax payment that helps secure $920,000 of estimated municipal revenue over the project term, and a one‑time $500,000 payment to the city that staff suggested could go toward the restaurant incubator basement activation. The developer will also make transit center repairs, demolish a rundown restroom facility, repair sidewalks and provide perpetual maintenance for certain street trees and easements. Staff said the developer must complete required private and public improvements by July 1, 2027.
Councilmembers expressed support for the redevelopment, noting the site’s transit adjacency and the potential to activate retail and support the Asian District. Staff said an independent economic analysis shows the project meets statutory tests for a GPLET — it is in the redevelopment area, more than doubles property value and generates more revenue than is abated — and that the city’s negotiating position is to make school districts whole for the abated tax amounts during the abatement period.
No final action was taken; staff said the redevelopment and GPLET agreements will return to the council agenda for action on August 17.
