Groundbreaking for the new Southside Stadium should be in late June or early July, city officials said Tuesday.
Jermaine Freeman, the mayor's chief of staff, spoke to the City Council during presentation of a development agreement on the project.
He said project master planner Jim Irwin of New City Properties has agreed to purchase property near the outfield of the stadium for over $5 million.
Mr. Irwin said he projects that buildings will be coming out of the ground at the same time the stadium is being built at the former Wheland Foundry/U.S. Pipe site.
Core Development is planning to begin a $170 million project at the site soon, it was stated.
Helen Burns Sharp, a taxpayer advocate, told the City Council, "It’s good to see progress on the stadium project.
"The Economic Impact Plan and the Development Agreement are the final steps in the public approval process. The amendment to the Economic Impact Plan reflects the new funding package hammered out over the past few months.
"Please pay particular attention to the Development Agreement. Do you believe it would adequately protect city taxpayers if the redevelopment site around the stadium is not developed as quickly as we all hope it will be? What if the City and County are later asked to make larger contributions toward the debt service on the stadium as a result?
"Here’s a suggestion to help you evaluate this complex legal and financial document. Last June, when the Council amended its TIF Policies and Procedures, you added this “Knoxville” language:
4.11. …Third-Party Review. The (Industrial Development) Board, as a condition to the approval of any Economic Impact Plan, shall retain an independent consulting firm with experience in public finance and real estate development…
"The City and County retained an independent third party to review the recent Bend/Westside TIF. That review focused on the amount of the public subsidy. In the case of the stadium project, it could focus on whether the Development Agreement offers adequate protection.
"The Lookouts will not move into the new stadium until the spring of 2026. This review would not affect that timeline. The private parties have spent the last six months trying to negotiate an agreement that is favorable to their interests. Please spend a little time making sure it protects the public interest.
"I became a believer in the power of a Development Agreement because of the last TIF project I worked on when I was the Community Development Director for an Oregon city. It involved plans by PepsiCo to build their first Gatorade facility on the West Coast. Things went very differently than anyone expected. (Double-digit sales growth for Gatorade in the U.S. flattened, and the company made a business decision to pull the plug on the project.) Because of the wording the city attorney had included in the Development Agreement, PepsiCo wrote the city a check for $25 million when they abandoned the project.
"I was surprised, given the City’s commitment to Affordable Housing, that there currently is no language in this agreement like what is in the Bend Development Agreement, which reads: “If Developer or any purchaser of property from Developer in the Plan Area constructs residential rental housing, at least ten percent (10%) of the units shall be reserved for persons of low to moderate income, which is defined as persons making 80 percent (80%) or less of the area median income adjusted for family size.”
"TIFs can be a good tool, and this is a classic TIF site. But even if things go as expected, TIFs have a long-term impact on the general fund for a generation.
"Thank you for the time you put in to evaluate this and many other city projects."