Memorandum
City of Lawrence
City Manager’s Office
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TO: |
Tom Markus, City Manager |
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CC: |
Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager Casey Toomay, Assistant City Manager |
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FROM: |
Britt Crum-Cano, Economic Development Coordinator |
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DATE: |
October 11, 2016 |
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RE: |
826 Pennsylvania Street IRB and NRA Request |
Please place on CC 10-18-16, Consent Agenda:
Receive request from Williams Management LLC to establish a 10-year, 85% Neighborhood Revitalization Area (NRA) for the property located at 826 Pennsylvania Street and for Industrial Revenue Bond (IRB) financing for the purpose of accessing a sales tax exemption on project construction materials and remodeling labor, refer the request to the Public Incentives Review Committee for a meeting on October 19, 2016 and set November 1, 2016 as the date for a public hearing on the proposed NRA and Revitalization Plan.
Please see List of Attachments at the end of this memo.
Project & Request Overview
Williams Management LLC is requesting a 10-year, 85% Neighborhood Revitalization Area (NRA) rebate and an Industrial Revenue Bond (IRB) sales tax exemption on construction materials and remodeling labor to support the redevelopment of the existing historical building, located at approximately 826 Pennsylvania Street in the East Lawrence Historic Warehouse District, into a mixed-use, commercial and residential project.
The project is anticipated to add:
· Over 28,000 square feet of finished commercial and residential space (3 floors + basement)
· 14 residential rental units, two of which will be set aside for affordable housing over a 30-year period
· 33 new on-street angled parking spaces in front of the building
· 11 full-time, permanent positions at an annual average salary of just under $32,500 to support commercial and residential operations
Williams Management LLC is requesting the City, Douglas County and USD 497 participate in the NRA program. The City, County, and School District individually decide their participation in the NRA and each will conduct a public meeting to consider the request. The IRB sales tax exemption is considered only by the City. (Scheduled meetings are shown on the attached request process calendar.)
Actions to Date
At their July 5, 2016 meeting, the City Commission referred the request to staff for analysis, and referred the request to the Affordable Housing Advisory Board and Public Incentives Review Committee for review and recommendation.
Analysis
City Staff has completed a cost-benefit analysis in accordance with the City’s NRA policy issue. Additionally, as was discussed in July, the City retained the services of National Development Council (NDC) to perform a gap analysis (“but for”) of the proposal in order to ascertain whether the project required a subsidy and if so, what is the identified gap to make the project viable. The technical report is included as an attachment at the end of this memo.
Staff believes the request and analysis is ready for PIRC review and recommendation.
October 10, 2016: Affordable Housing Advisory Board (AHAB) Review
At their October 10, 2016 meeting, AHAB reviewed the project’s affordable housing component and voted to recommend the project to the City Commission. Motion passed unanimously, 7 to 0.
Staff believes the request and analysis is ready for PIRC review and recommendation.
Request Processing Calendar
A draft request processing calendar is included as an attachment at the end of this memo. The below meetings are tentatively scheduled for consideration of this request:
October 18, 2016: City Commission to receive revised request, refer to PIRC for review and recommendation, and set public hearing date
October 19, 2016: Public Incentives Review Committee to review request and provide recommendation to City, County, and USD 497 School Board
November 1 2016: City Commission public hearing to receive PIRC recommendation and consider request
November 2, 2016: County Commission to receive PIRC recommendation and consider request
November 14, 2016: School Board to receive PIRC recommendation and consider request
November 15, 2016 City Commission final action on request
List of Attachments: 826 Pennsylvania Street NRA