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Tuesday, 27 March 2007 14:29 |
By DAVID FORBES
Facing concerns about limits on the cityís ability to annex, Asheville City Council voted 6-1 on March 20 to give back $2.5 million in tax revenues over the next five years to an upscale South Asheville development that is in the process of rapid expansion.
In return, the owners of the Biltmore Park Town Center, a $123 million project that will include a movie theater and a hotel as well as office, retail and residential space, will voluntarily come into the city.
The
deal, the first of its kind in Ashevilleís history, is aimed at
encouraging a development to come into the city ó instead of annexing
it years later. It comes along as state laws prohibiting Asheville from
using cheaper water rates to encourage annexation have raised worries
about the cityís growth.
In addition, the
city is facing organized opposition ó and a possible lawsuit ó to some
of its attempts to involuntarily annex neighborhoods near South
Asheville.
This new
agreement represents an attempt to begin bringing areas into Asheville
before they are developed, Mayor Terry Bellamy said.
ìI think this is
pretty important. Weíre talking with a developer before they come into
the city,î Bellamy said. ìThis is what we need to be doing. This will
help us keep an eye on the detail as this project is being built.î
Earlier, Sam
Powers, the cityís director of economic development, noted that he
believes the development meets all of the cityís standards ìand will
act as an economic anchor in this area.î
The developers,
Biltmore Farms and Crosland Inc. of Charlotte, estimate that around 300
construction jobs and 1,300 retail jobs will be created by the
development.
However,
Councilman Carl Mumpower, who cast the lone dissenting vote, said that
he had concerns about the nature of the deal. He later supported a
separate motion to annex the area.
ìWhat weíre
saying is that because we have this problem with forced annexation,
weíre offering these incentives,î Mumpower said. ìI personally donít
want to support this unless itís a wash.î
Itís estimated
that the development will bring approximately $640,000 in tax revenue
in per year. For the first five years, the developer will receive a
grant equal to those taxes back from the city.
The development will also receive a full-time inspector while the development is being built.
That measure, in particular, attracted Mumpowerís ire.
ìI just think
thatís too much here,î Mumpower said. ìOn a deal this big, we need to
be as clean and above board as possible. If we want to have an
inspector dedicated to this project thatís fine. But to use taxpayer
dollars to pay for an inspector? Somehow that ó to me, I would offer ó
is inappropriate.î
He added that the move was unprecedented on the cityís part.
ìWe have never,
ever done this before and we need to be very, very careful when we use
taxpayersí money like this,î Mumpower said.
In response,
City Manager Gary Jackson said that because of the size of the project,
having an inspector on site will save money for the city.
Councilwoman Robin Cape also noted that she feels the deal is justified by the extraordinary nature of the development.
ìI think you
have some valid concerns there about cities going into these
relationships with developers,î Cape said. ìThis is a different kind of
project we have here. Itís dense. Weíre keeping it compact. Weíre
getting a lot of the elements of smart growth in here. I think we have
to encourage this.î
Meanwhile,
Councilman Brownie Newman, who made the motion to accept the deal, said
that Asheville also stands to get a larger share of sales tax revenue.
ìWeíre posed to
get a much larger share back from the state because of how they
calculate the revenue,î Newman said. ìThat, in itself, is a pretty
significant savings for the taxpayers in Asheville,
compared to if we
just let them develop the property and did an involuntary annexation
five years later.î
Likewise, Councilman Jan Davis said the city has ìa great opportunityî for economic growth.
ìFor a long time
weíve had people asking what we can do about economic development,î
Davis said. ìI think itís time for us to put our money where our mouth
is. Weíve talked about doing partnerships with private enterprise. Itís
one of our city goals. Now weíre doing it. Weíll be creating a level of
service in the area thatís far better than what we could do if we
annexed it later.î
In other action,
council unanimously approved spending $575,000 to help fund the
Beaucatcher Overlook Park by acquiring 30 acres of land on Beaucatcher
Mountain.
The park, located on the largest undeveloped tract of land left in the city, will overlook downtown Asheville.
Earlier the same
day, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners agreed to do the same,
provided council approved its own donation.
The Trust for
Public Land, a nonprofit focused on setting up parks, has agreed to
contribute $375,000 and $600,000 more has been raised from private
donors.
While the motion
passed unanimously, Mumpower did note that he had concerns ìabout
taking on more property when we have serious problems policing what we
have.î
However, he still supported the project.
ìI think when you look at what weíre getting for what weíre spending here, itís too good a deal to pass up,î Mumpower said.
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