Who thinks this is a good idea?
The Fort Wayne Redevelopment Commission on Thursday agreed to pay more than $1 million for less than 2 acres of land downtown, across Ewing Street from Parkview Field.
Greg Leatherman, the city's director of redevelopment, said there's no specific plan for development of the site, which lies at the southwest corner of Ewing and Jefferson Boulevard. But consolidating several individual lots into a single purchase allows the city to have it available for the right project downtown sometime. Leatherman said the purchase would help protect the “assets of the community” by eliminating some blighted dwellings
Comments
Who owned the two acres?
I'm ambivalent about things like this.
It will make it easier to get Harrison Square redeveloped if they've wiped out blighted area around the project.
As a general rule, a large block of land in a highly-desirable area is worth more than multiple lesser blocks of land. This should, in theory, be a good investment. And government has money all the time that it needs to invest. This is probably a better bet than depositing in the bank - as the various government entities who put cash in the Oakwood bank will tell you.
The Murphy's store in downtown Fort Wayne stayed open for more than a decade of unprofitable operation, because there were five different landlords. The leases said they had to restore the property to original condition to terminate, and GCM couldn't afford that. When Ames bought them out, they ended up strongarming the various landlords - some of which were estates of people long dead - into selling. It cost them far more than they imagined it would.
On the other hand, my first wife used to buy high-priced foodstuffs when they were on sale. Great idea, if they are treated that way - a little bit added to a mundane meal can lift it out of mediocrity. However, once purchased, they were "already paid for" and got used in preference to less expensive ingredients that had to be purchased. If you add five gourmet items to a stew, they each lose their individual identity and become no better than generic ingredients.
Will future stewards of this property recall that it was purchased with the idea of selling it when property values had recovered, at a substantial profit? If they do so, good move. If they decide, a few years down the road, to donate it to a charity "because we have it, and have no particular plans for it" and the money goes down a rathole, bad idea.
"Who owned the two acres?"
Part was owned by National Oil & Gas, of Bluffton. They operate nearly a hundred convenience stores/gas stations.
I can't find who owns the residential properties, but they're only paying $67K for the two of them.
Purchase price is less than appraised value, which isn't necessarily a great deal. Maybe the sellers are two steps away from foreclosure. On the other hand, it doesn't look like the city is being overcharged a whole lot.
Harl:
Purchase price was almost $300K more than appraised value that the city obtained and $800K more than the value assigned for tax purposes.
Now the real estate tax income goes to zero. For whatever reason the Redevelopment Commission had for using taxpayer money to buy property for which we have no foreseeable use -- blows my mind. We need private development and ownership, not forever vacant public land.
I still do no comprehend the mindset that drives our politicians into actions to redevelop a downtown that functionally serves us well as the government center of the city and county, especially since commerce left the downtown decades ago. In my mind, it can only be explained as political payback.
I'm happy for you Ft Wayne taxpayers, it must be a nice being so "flush" in a recession your government has an extra $1.3 mil to drop on a lot, using the excuse "it's the cheapest it will ever be" therefore we gotta buy it now. Good thing your fair city has no other use for the dough, or the $146k a year in tax revenue either. Seems like a brilliant idea for the city to be in real estate speculation business.
/sarc
You may want to bookmark this post for an inevitable "I told you so" when the city gives this land away to the next developer. About 3 years from now, the city will deed it to someone as part of another adjacent project, they will have an instant million bucks equity to help secure financing.
In short, you just gave away another million bucks...
Does anyone else see the disconnect for a city that cannot open the pool at Swinney Park due to lack of funds, but then spend over a million on "unneeded" land? Yes, I am aware that funds for these two items come from different "pots", but you should be aware that redevelopment commissions can extend TIF districts into whatever they darn please - forever - dispite the fact that, per Indiana Code, "when the redevelopment of an area as planned is completed, the TIF revenue will revert to the normal property tax fund".
And Harl, if you think that this land will ever be sold for a "profit", you are a dreamer- first class!!! For example, the unnecessary new downtown hotel owner was "sold" the land for it by this same redevelopment group for less than $20.00!!!! - and that after paying about $3 million for the property (via eminent domain for the liquor store and with a very high price for "Bill's Palace")
John B, I can tell you've never owned a business, nor operated one for someone else.
The money for this land is capital. When you put money into capital, you still have the wealth. The money to operate swimming pools is operating funds. When you put money into operating funds, all you have left is fading smiles and the echoes of happy laughter.
IndianaNewsCenter reports that the land was purchased for LESS than the appraised value, gadfly.
As I said, I'm ambivalent. I've lived a lot of different places, and sometimes, local officials are surprisingly responsible and intelligent.
Harl - Having owned and operated my own business, successfully, - for over 30 years, I fully understand the difference between Capital and Operating!
But, my comment was related to "giving" land away instead of "investing" in it! I'm sorry, but I don't see ANY governmental entity "investing" in anything! They just tax and spend - some for the public benefit and the rest to insure reelection.
John, when a school district builds a classroom instead of leasing temporary classrooms, that's an investment. When they put their cash assets in CDs instead of buying chewing gum and passing it out immediately, that's an investment.
And it ain't necessarily a safe investment. Wayne Trace local schools, the Village of Oakwood, the Paulding County Hospital and Oakwood United Methodist Church all lost substantial sums by putting their money in FDIC-insured bank accounts at the Oakwood Deposit Bank.
And yeah, the Oakwood UMC isn't a governmental entity like the others, but it's an institution, and governments act the way they do because they are institutions.