Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Developers urge council to halt repurchase; say delays cost $11M project
Summary
Developers of the proposed Auburn Town Center told council they spent hundreds of thousands on studies and permitting and said a city notice to exercise a repurchase option threatens an $11,000,000 project; they asked for negotiation and an extension.
At the first open session, developer representative Matt Leonard and investor Daniel Stees told council they have invested substantial time and money in the Auburn Town Center proposal and asked the council to reconsider a letter stating the city intended to repurchase the property.
"This is an $11,000,000 project," Leonard said, describing hundreds of thousands in soft costs and a single outstanding signature on easement paperwork. He told council that planning-board processing delays, staff turnover and additional city requests prolonged the entitlement process and that the developer believes the contract deadlines were set without sufficient flexibility for those delays.
Daniel Stees said the project team had relied on city approvals and finance contingencies and asked the council to act in good faith and extend the developer's timeline rather than move to repurchase. City Manager Phil Kroll told council staff has been working closely with the property owner and that staff will provide a legal timeline and work with the state as needed; no change to the repurchase notice was recorded at the meeting.
