RALEIGH - Developer John Kane continued his public relations blitz Tuesday, holding a media session to explain why the city should give him millions in public money to build a shopping and business center in a commercially bustling part of North Raleigh.

The session came eight days after Kane gave a similar presentation to Wake County commissioners, who responded by pledging their unanimous support for Kane Realty's proposed $800 million public-private partnership.

"It's a way, quite frankly, to energize smart growth," Kane said Tuesday. "Why keep making the same mistakes?"

Kane wants $75 million in public money to build parking decks for North Hills East, a project planned for 45 acres across Six Forks Road from the existing North Hills shopping center. Kane says the public financing, which would be repaid with future tax revenue from the project, would allow him to build a high-density, mixed-use project instead of the usual sprawling strip mall.

The media event was part of Kane's campaign to convince the Raleigh City Council to go along with his plans. Although the council has yet to formally receive Kane's latest pitch, an earlier version of the plan was panned by half the council.

Kane is hoping the revised proposal, which uses private loans instead of government bonds to repay the cost of the parking decks, will attract more support. If they participate, Kane said, the city and the county would receive a windfall of more than $550 million in tax revenue.

Critics of Kane's proposals have said public-assisted financing should be used only in areas where development would not otherwise happen.

"Raleigh has never considered giving a massive subsidy to a private developer, and now is not the time to start doing so," Mayor Charles Meeker said Tuesday. "This [type of financing] just shouldn't be used in this area of the city. Period."

While surrounding property values have benefited from the success of North Hills, Kane insists the area across Six Forks Road was blighted.

"We had all sorts of unsightly things going on at that site," he said.

Plans for North Hills East include a 20-story office tower, shops and homes. Kane has been waiting to decide what to build on the rest of the property until the city makes a decision on financing.

Kane said Tuesday that his company couldn't wait forever, though he wouldn't place a deadline on when he needed a final decision.

The fate of Kane's proposal is being watched closely by other developers who operate in Raleigh. Meeker said he fears there would be a line of developers outside City Hall if Kane's proposal is approved.

Kane said his project would set a good precedent for the city.

"If you're not going to do it here, you're not going to do it anywhere," he said.

(Staff writer Jack Hagel contributed to this report.)