Durham slows up a bit on big deal

Downtown plan has some uneasy

DURHAM -- Greenfire Development needs to allay concerns about parking, its financial strength and other matters before the council enters into negotiations on a $284 million downtown redevelopment project.

The City Council on Monday agreed to delay a decision on the nonbinding "deal points" that would have launched the final negotiations.

It was a nod to a swelling tide of worry among other developers and downtown property owners that the deal was being rammed through City Hall.

"We are disappointed," Greenfire partner Carl Webb said. "But if the council feels that it needs more time ... we're comfortable waiting."

Just publicized about two weeks ago, the deal calls on the city to pay Greenfire $20 million over 17 years in exchange for 1 million square feet of new development.

A city-owned parking deck and two parking lots would be redeveloped as a mix of residential and retail. The deal also includes turning the Hill Building, now home to SunTrust bank, into a hotel and the former Woolworth's department store site into an office tower.

City officials said Monday they're generally supportive of the concept, noting that Greenfire would receive city money only after each project was completed. They've also been privy to the closed-door discussions that have been ongoing for 18 months, allowing them a deeper knowledge of the complex proposal than most.

But the hue and cry from the community, which has included testy public meetings and sharply worded letters to city leaders, was enough for the council to put on the brakes. The matter will come up again at a council work session at 1 p.m. Thursday in City Hall.

"I think the questioning is the due diligence anybody would do," said John Warasila of Alliance Architecture, one of several downtown property owners to sign the pointed letter.

"I've struggled really hard to not come across in opposition to this. But before you just sort of ramrod it through, let's make sure it's set up to be successful."

One of the main concerns is parking, particularly during the seven-year construction period.

Trinity United Methodist Church relies on the parking lot at Parrish Street and the Chapel Hill Street deck to accommodate its members on Sundays.

City officials have noted that those two parcels wouldn't be developed at the same time. Staggering the development should lessen the impact of lost parking in the short term.

In all, there would be 1,700 parking spaces tied to the project once it's completed, though some of the spaces would just be for tenants.

Mayor Bill Bell and council member Mike Woodard both said Monday they also want to get assurances that Greenfire won't leave the project half-finished.

That means Greenfire needs to disclose where it's getting its money.

"At some point in time people want to know who are the investors and what are the investors' capabilities," Bell said. "If they can give some kind of public response to that, that gives people better comfort level."

Webb said the company has acquired $60 million worth of property downtown -- a sign of its financial health.

He said he thinks the economy will rebound after the election. Even during today's shaky economic picture, Webb notes that one of the company's mixed-use developments, the yet-to-be-finished Rogers Alley, is 74 percent leased.

Asked whether he thought some of the criticism was sour grapes from competitors, Webb said, "I really can't say where it's coming from. ... We're hopeful that a group of hometown folks, hometown developers can participate in all of the exciting development that's going on in Durham."