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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/26/1996 MINUTES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION BOARD MEETING NOVEMBER 26, 1996 7:30 p.m. CITY HALL CONFERENCE ROOM Present: Board Gary McClure, President Mary Watts, Council Member Ronnie Fischer Tommy Thompson Rick Manser Craig Sloan Consultant Worth Blake, Worth Blake & Associates Staff Dennis Watson, Staff Liaison Others Richard Camen Absent John Dillard, Council Member 1. CALL TO ORDER Mr. McClure called the meeting to order at 7:40 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL 3. UPDATE ON MEETING WITH THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS REGARDING LEASE EXTENSION ON WYNNEWOOD PENINSULA Mr. McClure introduced two Board members who were in attendance: Dave Kovatch and Craig Sloan. Mr. McClure informed the Board that last week representatives from the City, the Corps, the EDC, Matthews Southwest, representatives from Representative Dick Armey's office, and a representative from Judge Moseley's office all met to discuss the ground lease agreement on Wynnewood Peninsula. Mr. McClure stated that David Leininger from ERA gave an extended presentation on why a 99-year lease was required to get the proper financing for the golf course. Mr. McClure stated that the Corps felt that Mr. Leininger did not have proper justification for a 99-year lease. That they had the authority to grant a 25 year lease with a possible 25 year extension. The Corps representatives wanted to see the specifics on the financial reasons as to why a 99-year lease was required. The Corps felt that if a 99-year lease was granted they could not enforce compliance issues. The Corps stated that anything above a 25-year plus a 25-year lease would have to be approved through the Washington Office. Mr. McClure stated that the City and Matthews Southwest were both disappointed with this aspect of the negotiation process but David Leininger offered to give a presentation to the Corps on the following Monday at the Fort Worth office that would address the economic issues. Mr. McClure then turned the discussion over to Mr. Watson to brief the Board on the occurrences of this latest meeting with the Corps. Mr. Watson stated that from his perspective the meeting that took place on Monday was much more productive than last week's meeting. All parties came away from the meeting with clear avenues to pursue in order to make the lease agreement happen. The compromise that was reached is as follows: The Corps would grant Matthews a 25 year lease plus an additional 25 years for the initial 18 holes with the stipulation that every time an additional 9 or 18 holes is added then they would go back and renew the lease for another 25 and 25. The Corps was agreeable to this because this is a policy that they currently enforce on marinas. Matthews Southwest was agreeable to this because Mr. Leininger felt that as long as there was a continuous lease renewal that operators/investors would be satisfied. Both parties wanted to ensure that they were on the same track, so each side asked the other to complete certain items before their next meeting. The Corps requested from the City a letter of intent to include the City's intention of securing a long lease agreement for Wynnewood Peninsula, a history of the golf course, the benefits the City sees the golf course bringing, and Matthews Southwest role in the process. The Corps agreed to provide Matthews Southwest with a correspondence stating what provisions the Corps looks for when renewing ground leases and basically this would serve as an assurance to potential investor groups that the Corps regularly renewed leases as-long as the compliance issues along with.certain others were addressed. The Corps also agreed to address the assignment issue in that correspondence. Mr. Watson informed the Board that there would be a follow-up meeting on December 11. Discussion on the meeting with the Corps followed. 4. DISCUSSION ON DRAFT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN Worth Blake was present to discuss any comment the Board had regarding the draft of the Economic Development Plan that he had distributed the previous week. Some of the suggestions that the Board members had were as follows: • page 7 change ombudsman to specific i.e. economic development professional • page 13 check LISD employment relative to the golf course • page 26 do not specify a place for entertainment district • page 49 define economic development purposes for sales tax proposal (reference 3rd paragraph on page 42 & 43 Mr. Blake stated that he would incorporate the changes and attempt to return them to the Board before the meeting with Council on December 16. So that the Board would have a chance to see the final document. Mr. Blake reviewed with the Board a scenario that he envisioned for the Council meeting. He distributed an outline that he wanted Mr. McClure to follow when delivering the presentation to Council. Mr. Blake informed the Board that his portion of the plan would be completed after it is accepted by Council. The Board agreed to meet on December 12 to review Mr. McClure's presentation and to receive an update from Matthews Southwest. 5. OTHER BUSINESS None. There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 9:20 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Dennis Watson, Staff Liaison