RFP basics elude RDA foursome
From the Woodland Record:
It's elementary: The perplexing paradigm favors Petrovich
One, two, three, four, five - once I caught a fish alive
An accounting took place during the October 5 Woodland City Council meeting and it was evident that three of the five council members want the downtown multiplex decision to be made sooner rather than later. And clearly the great number of State Theatre Renovation and Expansion supporters who showed up that evening influenced that majority of council to turn the tide against the delays that favor the competing Third and Main multiplex proposal.
That evening, the two developers who responded to the May 5 Request for Proposals for a downtown multiplex - Woodlander Ron Caceres for the State Theatre project and Sacramentan Paul Petrovich for the Third and Main project - made their pitches for their respective proposals. Three council members gave city staff the direction to get the selection process done - Martie Dote, Bill Marble and Jeff Monroe. Two council members made it clear that they would rather the redevelopment agency take their time in making a decision - Art Pimentel and Skip Davies. Davies acquiesced and suggested a timeline.
But what about that shift in momentum? City manager Mark Deven remains selective in his understanding of the majority directive as a Davies-only request for another 60-day delay. And so the puzzle begins.
Read much more at WoodlandRecord.com.
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23 comments:
good post, Dino.
herlystsYou must be in outer space. The 60 days will help Caceres nail down the different properties, specially the one adjecent to the Theater on the west side. My understabding is that the he does not have such an agreement and the bank is not cooperating with him. This is a key piece of propertty, without it will make the process more difficult for Caceres and may even doom his project.
Understab,
I don't know who "herlysts" is, but as stated in the article - that you obviously did not read - the 60 day delay will allow Chase to proceed further with their building plans. Without the exclusive agreement between Caceres and the city (that should have been done in July) there is no reason for Chase to change their plans, or agree to possibly change their plans. Why would Chase agree to something while waiting for the city to make a decision? If the city had made a decision according to the time presribed in the RFP, Caceres and Chase would be swapping parcels by now.
And that lot is a key piece for Alternatives One and Two of the State plan. There are many other alternatives (meaning lot configurations) that will meet the goal of renovating and expanding the State.
The delays only help Petrovich. The foursome can't see the forest for the trees. Choosing a desired project will not legally bind them to anything, but exclusivity will ensure that the desired project can have a chance to succeed. I know the city settles for mediocrity, so that could be another motivation to continue their delays.
My bet is that Chase will happen, it is a good location for them and the theater will not at either location because of the economy.
The theater operators and the developers all seem to think the economy is good enough to build a multiplex in downtown Woodland.
The Tovar lot is a good location and so are a number of other lots right across the street.
There are lots of configurations that can work to produce the best land use planning. There are lots of creative ways to satisfy most stakeholders. For example... and outside of Chase locating across the street which is the most simple solution... Chase can be the retail component in front of the State expansion (Chase on Main, theaters in back) or the expansion can be built on top of the Chase branch.
Oh wait... best land use planning and creativity? That's right, this is the City of Woodland. You may be right Brenda, but it's not because of the economy.. a downtown multiplex won't be built because the city has no vision or constructive leadership.
Dino, you are wrong. Chase has no interest in changing properties and has made it very clear to Caceres about it. It is a deal killer. If Caceres can not make the deal he is spinnig empty wheels and waiting his time. dio not bl;me the city for Chase;s interest in building a bank branch adjecent to the theater. As much as you want to spin it, Chase never consider moving its proposed brach nor gave any hope to Caceres.
You know, ANON 9:45 AM, Just by saying Dino is wrong does not make it so. How in the world do you think YOU know more than the folks who have been involved with this for a number of years?
And, do you honestly believe that us readers are going to agree with you? You are certainly NOT involved with Chase or you would have been instructed NOT to discuss these types of details. No, in fact, I believe you work in the city, possibly a staff member. Am I getting close???
Wrong, wrong , wrong. I do not work for any of the agencies mentioned. Just a member of the local Tea Party that is well informed. I do have informants at all levels of government and local business. I predict that chase will not cooperate with Caceres and his proposal will not be supported by the committee. They might even reject Petro's. By the way i support the historical value of the State Theater
Tea Party,
Well here I am putting my name on my posts and there you are posing anonymously like you know something.
The city/RDA has put Chase in a position to pursue building on the Tovar lot (that is in escrow) because they did not abide by their own RFP and have not made a decision that would allow proper planning - including negotiations for land swaps that would accomplish the goals of the DSP.
Early on members of Caceres' team spoke with Chase and they indicated they would consider a land swap. Of course this was after Chase went behind their back and made the offer to Tovar (through Neal Peart at Sheffield Real Estate).
As recently as September 23 a member of Caceres' team spoke directly with a director of Chase Bank during a real estate conference in San Diego. The director said Chase would be willing to work with them. The letter they promised never materialized.
Yesterday the RDA received an email from Mark Deven stating Chase was pursuing their project... which is not news since they were already on the November 18 planning commission docket.
The delays in the multiplex process are only making matters worse for the city, the RDA, for Chase and for Caceres... as I stated in the article.
Now... which part do I have wrong again?
Chase is going to creat alot of ill will toward its bank. I will stop doing business with them and I am sure alot of other people will follow suit. It is obvious they care little for our community.
Question when did Caceres team approached Chase with request for exchange of properties? Let Caceres provide the documentation. I seem to recall Caceres saying that Chase was willing to cooperate, but now based on the post above it seems they are too far into the process. We the supporters of State Theater need to know when Caceres approached Chase and when thy first told him they would consider the swap of properties. Threats are not going to scare Chase Bank. If there was a chance they would reconsider, language like the one by 12:36 will only make matters worse.
12:36 - Seriously? Give me a break. I would love to have Chase ywhere here in the Downtown rather then out on Gibson. It would be way more convenient.
Question,
Answer: Caceres' team began contact with Chase soon after it was discovered they secretly made the offer on the Tovar property. Chase was interested in (and made an offer on) the properties across the street and were working with the brokers who have the listings. What documentation are you looking for? Phone logs? Get real. Why would Caceres even pursue the project if Chase hadn't given him some sort of indication that they would consider a swap? And as I said before, the team made contact with Chase on September 23 with a VP named Gregg Vogel. There is a low-level guy named Greg Aguirre who has stone-walled the communication and has refused to sign a letter that would indicate an intent to consider alternative sites if the State project was selected. And still, therein lies the problem... the city. If there were no delays thanks to Pimentel, Davies, Deven and Shallit there could have been productive negotiations happening as planned in July.
It’s my understanding Chase has been working on putting together a site at this intersection for over a year and a half. I’m sure there are several other reasons why they decided to pursue this particular location, but there seems to be one obvious one, which is environmental. Notice the location of the monitoring wells?? (Review the Sate Water Quality Control Board Records).
http://www.geotracker.swrcb.ca.gov/profile_report.asp?global_id=T0611300168
I'm a local resident of Woodland and think its great that Chase is willing to invest several million dollars to build a beautiful new building on a blighted corner of downtown rather than a standard stucco box out on the east side of town, which they could probably build a whole lot cheaper...
Just something to think about...
Hey Dino your "Mr. Question" is a mole that runs a frame shop. He probably got hold of the email Deven has been spreading around City Hall, He's no supporter of the state. There's some sneaky stuff still going on with Petrovich.
Brenda,
12:36 wasn't addressing the location of Chase, he/she was addressing Chase's change in tune. It would be great to have Chase downtown... but there are a variety of places the branch can go just in the vicinity of the Tovar piece. Chase is not tied to any historic building. There would be no harm done if they located across the street on Walnut - where they originally wanted to be - or even across Main in the vacnat parking lot of the car dealership.
Just something to think about,
Okay, I thought about it and looked at your link which is about 208 Main - the Union 76 site. If there's a gas station, there's going to be environmental concerns. No big deal, scoop up any contaminated dirt and remove it. Caceres has already offered to clean up any parts of any of the sites at no cost to Chase.
Chase has been looking at that immediate area, but the environmental issue is NOT the reason they are hesitant about that piece. It's cost. The Tovar lot is cheaper. Chase wanted that spot - or the Knaggs lot - because they face Nugget Market. Althought the 76 station would be more, Caceres has offerd to swap the Tovar lot with Chase at NO EXTRA COST to Chase.
And the Union site is not the only site on that block, the Knaggs lot (the old car lot to the east) is availabe NOW. Chase was also offered the Farm Credit building across Main which is already built and ready to be occupied. There is also part of the City Lofts parcel, in the parking lot... again, vacant and ready to go.
This is now about the city delaying the project so no genuine negotiations can take place and it's about Chase not needing to change their plans because the city can't make a damn decision.
A Chase branch is not connected to any historicial building. The State project obvsiously has to include the State. The Tovar site is the best lot for the expansion, but there are several other alternatives that are not the most desirable.
As to the beauty of the propsed Chase building, that will be left to the community to judge. I can make an educated guess, however, that if the city planning dept. is involved in the design it will be mediocre, much like the Wiseman Building that the city donated land for. Just because the building will be new won't make it beautiful.
Just Something,
PS: Cost was the main reason for making an offer on the Tovar piece, not the environmental issue. But as it stands right now, 10 months later, the main reason Chase does not want to change plans is because too much time has elapse because of the city. This would be a different story if the city stuck with the plan and ranked the proposal in July and made a selection. It was an easy enough of a task but they couldn't - or wouldn't - do it.
It was sent an email about a comment on this post. This Anon post here
"Anonymous said...
Hey Dino your "Mr. Question" is a mole that runs a frame shop. He probably got hold of the email Deven has been spreading around City Hall, He's no supporter of the state. There's some sneaky stuff still going on with Petrovich.
10/22/10 6:50 AM
Since there is only one frame shop in Woodland It was clearly directed towards me. I have no position in this fight over The State or the Petrovich project. Period to say that I am not a friend of the State is an outright lie. I have been supporting the state theater when Mike and his Dad took over the theater operations. Mike and I have had many discussions on what he could do with the theater prior to closing it. Unfortunately he had to close it and it truly is a lost for this community.
If you want to accuse me go ahead. I will sleep just fine.
I have a successful business to run rather then to worry about what you "Anonymous Troll 10/22/10 6:50 AM" feels compelled to post a lie in order to attack me on an issue that I am not even involved in.
Al E.
Blue Wing Gallery
Hey Dino
Chase never gave Caceres a positive resonse to his plan to swap prperties. it waswishful thinking by Caceres. This a deal killer.
Sure they did, even as late as September 23. Learn to read, anonymous.
Dino, publish the documents that shows when Chase was willing to exchange properties. Where is the beef?
I published it in my article... again... you need to read anonymous. Your insinuations have no merit. I have confidential evidence (emails) that show communication when the State Theatre project was initiated and including September 23. If readers would rather believe your baseless and anonymous comments, that is their problem.
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