Posts Tagged developers
Broke My Rule and Crain’s Shows Why I Shouldn’t
Posted by Roldo Bartimole in Media, People, Politicians on May 27, 2010
I broke my standing rule about saying something nice about anything or anybody. Always disappointed soon after. I praised the Crain’s Cleveland Business daily blog recently. I don’t take that back. And I still congratulate the weekly business magazine on its 30th birthday. BUT…
Crain’s did a series on some Cleveland’s most influential (their selection) people in the last 30 years.
It’s fluff and puff at its worst.
Mostly done, of course, for blatant advertising revenue. The ads accompany the profiles and photos of Important People – a rogue’s gallery in my opinion. They are mostly Important People who helped produce the Cleveland of today.
Is there anyone who likes what they see?
Everyone profiled is a hero. From Art Falco at Playhouse Square to Peter Lewis of Progressive. And of course, the late Richard Shatten and the late Dick Jacobs. Fred Nance of Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, of course. And even LeBron James.
And the saintly George Voinovich. Who could forget that? Get ready for the platitudes by the bushel as Voinovich’s Senate term comes to an end. If there is anything that has happened that isn’t GREAT we’ll never know. Because someone will have to explain (but won’t) why the City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County and the State of Ohio are in such bad shape after Voinovich served as Mayor, County Commissioner and Governor. It’s too difficult a task. And too embarrassing.
Voinovich, his profile says, should have copyrighted the term “public-private partnership.”
Yes, he should have. The problem is that the see-saw public/private sharing usually meant that the public paid and the private enjoyed. As in Gateway, the Browns stadium, downtown development, rock hall, Playhouse Square. None of these Voinovich fans ever even tries to tote the public cost, especially to the Cleveland schools.
The article says, “As he would throughout his career, Mr. Voinovich downplayed his own role.”
Of course, he did.
He had The Plain Dealer, Crain’s and every Cleveland television station doing it for him.
Somehow, Crain’s forgot George Forbes. I guess George’s law firm wouldn’t spring for the ad to accompany the flattery.
Nor did they profile former Mayor Michael White. No alpaca ads.
So they failed to highlight two of the most crucial figures – at least in politics – of the past three decades.
And it goes without saying that Dennis Kucinich didn’t make the cut.
Of course, it’s only Cleveland’s history by Crain’s Cleveland Business. So you know it’s limited.
But as the headline on the front of Crain’s 30 years special edition says, – “Make Your Own History.” Certainly, Crain’s did that.
Stimulus Money to Save County Money on Medical Mart
Posted by Roldo Bartimole in Economic Development on April 30, 2010
April 30, 2010… Cuyahoga County could save up to $1 to $2 million a year in interest for the Medical Mart/Convention Center by using bond borrowings allowed by federal stimulus subsidies. The subsidy would decrease the cost of borrowing.
The savings would depend upon interest rates at the time bonds are issued, likely this year.
Federal stimulus programs allow the County to reduce interest costs on some $94.1 million in borrowing, according to County officials.
I questioned whether the subsidies could be used for other County projects. According to Matt Rubino, County director of Budget and Management, this subsidy could not have been used for other County projects.
However, Rubino said, other County General Obligation bonds – some $43 million – had been used already via the stimulus funding to help support the County’s new Juvenile Justice Center cost.
Tim Offtermatt, senior vice president of Stifel Nicolaus & Co., said that bonds for the project could be issued as early as September of this year. He is handling some financial aspects of the bonds. Squire, Sanders & Dempsey also will participate in the bond issuance.
The stimulus money gives the County the ability to borrow at a lower cost. It is not a grant but allows the cost of borrowing to be lowered as the feds subsidize some of the cost. The federal subsidy will apply to some 45 percent of the interest on $94 million in bonds, according to Rubino.
Cuyahoga County was able to increase the amount of bonding to be covered by the special funding because other counties in the state did not use the total allocated for Ohio. Money from the unused state allocation was then shifted to Cuyahoga County at its request.
The complicated allocation of subsidy allows the County to use some $20 million of borrowings on public aspects of the project. For example, the cost of new sidewalks, grass and reconstruction over the rebuilt underground convention center and new street reconstruction would be eligible for the subsidy.
The federal subsidy would lower the interest costs even below the cost that would apply to tax-exempt bonding for public purposes. Because of the private aspects of this development by MMPI of Chicago, bonds would not have necessarily been at tax-exempt rates.
Bonds that were not tax exempt would have cost the County project more dearly.
The County has collected more than $91 million in sale taxes on the quarter percent sales tax voted by the County Commissioners for this project. The tax has a 20-year term. It took effect January 2008. It will likely raise some $800 million over 20 years. The project’s estimated cost – without the cost of borrowing – is some $425 million.
I had questioned whether the County could have used this special subsidy to enable it to do other projects, for example, redevelopment of the Ameritrust property at E. 9th and Euclid Avenue.
According to Offtermatt, the Medical Mart/Convention Center project is the only one ready to go, a stipulation for the use of the special stimulus program funds via the state allocation.
County officials said that this should insure the project would come in within budget. We’ll see.