City Council Minutes 2019 11 04 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Meeting Minutes November 4, 2019 Page 6 of 20 third party review, and the community benefits. The applicant and LRC members are present. Applicant — David Sinkey, Boulder Creek Homes 712 Main Street, thanked the outgoing Councilmembers for their service. He asked for consideration of three points 1) this is not a City subsidy, but a rebate; 2) approval is no financial risk to the City, and 3) adding complexity to the TIF proposal hurts the project. He stated many people feel the free market should dictate this without City help, however this is not a free market building as there are requirements based beyond the market forces. The Code and PUD requirements mandate higher design. He stated these financial tools are at work in other cities. If approved and the building is never built there is no risk to the City. If approved and built the likelihood of increased sales tax is enhanced and there will be increased property taxes. If complexity is added to the agreement it is unnecessary and distracting. The purpose of these tools is to encourage private investors to invest in the area. He noted he and his partners are long term stakeholders in the City. Mayor Muckle asked if members of the LRC had anything to add. Steve Fisher, chairperson LRC, noted the Commission had mixed feelings about this. He encouraged approval of the request. Boulder Creek is a good company and neighbor. Having the third party analysis was a good addition to the process. Lexi Adler, LRC vice chair, stated she supports the application and encourages approval. The third party review was important. Both EPS and staff provided the proof of the need for this request. She noted other cities are using these tools. She would like Council to support the application and this local employer. If they left it would negatively impact our community. The potential sales tax generation and a retail/office mix should be supported. This will stimulate growth and reinvestment in the area. Debra Baskett, LRC member, spoke in favor and urged Council to approve the 90% rebate. There is a real gap in the costs. The resulting revenues would be good for Louisville. She stated Council should not be discussing a required retail use as it hampers the applicant with their lender. Public Comments Mark Oberholzer, 224 Hoover Avenue, stated he owns Tilt and is chair of the Business Retention and Development Committee (BRaD). He stated BRaD supports this type of a tool and Council should use it when appropriate. As a neighboring business owner he personally supports the project to help downtown and the City should do what it can to help the project move forward. He stated he feels the numbers in the analysis are conservative.