Maitland will see cash shortfall

Maitland is planning to break ground on its new fire station in December and its new city hall in the spring. But it looks like the pot of money they have for the projects isn't going to cover the tab.

The fire station budget is $3.3 million and city hall's budget is $4 million. The funds to pay for the two buildings plus the recently completed police station came from a 2005 tax referendum in which citizens approved the borrowing of $8.5 million.

Jones suggested scaling down one of the projects. "Can we reduce the size of city hall but maintain the functionality and quality?" he asked. He's coming back to Council with a more detailed plan later this month.

Declining property values over the last four years have lessened property tax revenues used to pay the city's debt, said Brian Jones, assistant city manager, during a presentation on Monday, July 28.

The debt service property tax rate is capped at 50 cents per every $1,000 of property value, he said. If the debt due outweighs the revenue from this tax, the city has to find a way to close the gap, potentially stalling the city hall project."We need to close the delta on the construction price," Councilman Phil Bonus said. "If we're serious about trying to recast what city hall is gonna look like, then we need to put the brakes on city hall pretty quick."

Other options include raising the taxes, dipping into reserves or borrowing. Councilman Howard Schieferdecker suggested another option — adding a private retail component to city hall to offset costs.

What about retail?

Mayor Doug Kinson said the city could potentially benefit in various ways from adding retail to city hall. It would mean more access to amenities such as restaurants and coffee shops for city employees and the public.

But Jones and City Attorney Cliff Shepard said that having retail within city hall would compromise the public building's tax exempt status.

"You're going to have a conflict from the IRS standpoint," Jones said.

Shepard said the city could possibly carve out retail space, as was done with the snack bar at the Orange County Courthouse. "The key is can you spend the money (on constructing a retail space) without violating the bond covenant?"

Schieferdecker suggested a smaller building — likely for a restaurant — attached to city hall that would be constructed by a separate developer and privately owned. That would save the city money because they could share costs such as stormwater drainage and parking.

Councilman Phil Bonus said he is wary of adding retail to city hall, but remains open to the idea of it if the city can find a qualified public-private partner.

Councilwoman Linda Frosch said the design for 16-foot ceilings for the first floor of city hall is a good idea, just in case retail is an option.

Mayor Kinson said he is for adding retail to city hall, but will retailers actually migrate to the site?

"Typically, retailers look for great locations; they look for highly trafficked and highly visible locations as [U.S.] Highway 17/92 would provide," Kinson said. "The likelihood of retailers flocking to this location is very low unless the surrounding area is appropriately developed."

He said the last thing the city needs is more vacant storefronts.

"We already have one of those buildings," said Kinson. "Just drive by Village of Lake Lily, and you'll see how few retailers there are on the first floor of that building."

Councilwoman Bev Reponen said before Council moves forward with any changes to the project, the city needs to have a master plan for its downtown redevelopment. She said planning building by building is a "fatal move."

Bonus also reminded Council that the Maitland Town Center developer has first right of refusal for any of the remaining project land.

Reese and his company, Brossier Co., entered Ch. 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year, freezing his properties, which include the former Winn-Dixie property across from the project site.

Construction plans for fire station and city hall

The contractor for the fire station will be announced July 26 with construction beginning in November. Construction for city hall follows with the announcement of the contractor on Sept. 27 and construction beginning spring 2011.

The fire station will be built at the same site as the old fire station. City Hall will be next to the fire station on the corner of Packwood Avenue and Independence Lane.

The buildings will both be three stories tall. The fire station will be traditional with brick on the exterior, but the amount of brick may be reduced depending on cost. City Hall will have a Mediterranean look with a barrel tile roof and stucco exterior. The city will preserve the oak trees that exist on the site.