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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo _________________________ RDA Memo 8/13/09 special meeting 1 City of Oshkosh -Department of Community Development 215 Church Avenue Oshkosh, WI 54901 (920) 236-5055 (920) 236-5053 fax MEMORANDUM TO: City of Oshkosh Redevelopment Authority FROM: Jackson Kinney Director of Community Development/RDA Executive Director DATE: August 5, 2009 RE: August 13th Special Meeting There will be two primary items on the RDA’s August 13th Special Meeting agenda. These include: Initial Resolutions in Support of Bond Financing for Oshkosh River Development Project The RDA is asked to approve three Resolutions to enable Oshkosh River Development to seek tax-exempt Redevelopment Revenue Bonds in support of the following projects in the Marion Road/Pearl Avenue Redevelopment Area: • The Rivers Apartment Project • Morton Pharmacy Project • Mixed Commercial/Residential Project The Redevelopment Revenue Bonds are similar to Industrial Revenue Bonds, in that the local governmental entity (in this case the Redevelopment Authority) serves as a conduit for issuance of the bonds. The RDA’s action does not, however, bind the RDA to stand behind the bonds in the case of any future default. The bonds, if issued, would fall under the Midwestern Disaster Area Bond program authorized by Congress in October of 2008. Congress created the bond program to assist states and designated counties within the states that sustained economic losses resulting from flooding that occurred in June 2008. The program was modeled after a similar program put in place to address losses sustained from Hurricane Katrina. The program does not allocate actual federal dollars, or state dollars, but it provides parties with the ability to secure tax exempt financing/bonds in support of a wide variety of project activities, including commercial and residential developments. _________________________ RDA Memo 8/13/09 special meeting 2 It’s also important to note that parties who participate in the program would not have had to actually sustained flood damage themselves to participate in the program. Essentially, the Midwestern Disaster Area Bond program recognizes that designated areas suffered some level of economic loss from the June 2008 flood event, and projects that can be stimulated/enhanced and supported by the program in designated areas will add new economic value to the area, which helps address economic losses that occurred from the flood event. As noted, the Resolutions are “Initial Resolutions.” By having the Initial Resolutions approved by the RDA, Oshkosh River Development is able to put in place their eligibility for participation in the program. If they decide to proceed with securing actual bonding through the program, final resolutions will be brought before the RDA for additional action. It should be noted that while the Initial Resolutions include The Rivers apartment project, it is still likely they will be proceeding under the previously approved WHEDA funding format for that project. Having the Initial Resolution included for that project would again just put in place their eligibility for that program, if for whatever reason they felt that was the preferred approach for financing of that project. The three Resolutions before the RDA will be: • Resolution 09-12, 475 Marion Road (The Rivers Project) • Resolution 09-13, 135 Jackson Street (Morton Pharmacy Project) • Resolution 09-14, 155 Jackson Street (Mixed Commercial/Residential Project Resolution 09-15 – Authorize Submittal of Wisconsin Ready to Reuse Grant Application The RDA is asked to authorize submittal of an application to the State of Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for a $200,000 Ready to Reuse grant that, if funded, would be used to assist with environmental remediation work in the general area of the mixed commercial/residential project on the southwest corner of Jackson Street and Pearl Avenue, and in the general area of the Accu-Com office building on the southeast corner of Pearl and Riverway Drive. If the grant application is approved, the RDA would use these dollars in concert with the Brownfields Grant monies that were awarded to the RDA (see attached Memo on the Brownfields Grant). Attached to the Resolution is a Memorandum from Andrew Mott with AECOM which discusses the Ready to Reuse grant request.