Laubach feels Middletown is....

Kelly wrote: Contact your Council person and let them know what a great thing this will be to continue with the rehabilitation of the core of the Downtown.

Can anyone explain to us EXACTLY why this will be "a great thing" using actual facts and figures? Can anyone explain why it will be "a great thing" using ANYTHING other than wishes and dreams?

For that matter, can anyone explain why BeauVerre was "a great thing" for Middletown??? Or why they were worth the hundreds of thousands of tapayers' dollars that were "invested"??  Can anyone tell us what we got in return for our money???

Mike_Presta wrote: [QUOTE=Kelly] For that matter, can anyone explain why BeauVerre was "a great thing" for Middletown??? Or why they were worth the hundreds of thousands of tapayers' dollars that were "invested"??  Can anyone tell us what we got in return for our money??

The seems to be a little confusion on the whole Beau Verre Riordan deal and the nature of their business.

Beau Verre Riordan is not someone’s hobby.  Nor is it some sort of downtown experiment by the city.  It’s a business.  A business that chose to be in the downtown area.  While it may have started as a hobby for Jay and Linda Moorman, it’s now their livelihood.  And while it may offer opportunities for others to further their stained glass hobby or interest, BVR has paying customers who purchase a product.   In order to produce this product, BVR must HIRE and PAY skilled professionals an income.  Income that is taxable by the city of Middletown.

Here’s some history on the BVR

BV was located on the east-side of Middletown for many years in the KittyHawk area.  It was started and continues to be owned by Middletonians.

BV purchased Riordan Studios out of Cincinnati.  Riordan was the oldest operating stained glass studio in the United States.  With this purchase, BVR outgrew their existing location and needed to expand operations.

Like any business, BVR considered expansion options, including a new building on the east end of Middletown.

But Jay and Linda had a vision for a renovated building in Middletown’s downtown that could lead to the eventual spark in redevelopment.  And they worked with the city on a deal that would allow them to do so.

The city of Middletown owned a building in the former mall area at Central and Broad that many people will recall as the John Ross Store and later G.C. Murphy’s.  I don’t’ know at what point the city acquired the property or how much they paid for it.  It could have been part of the mall’s original construction.

During the planning process for the downtown mall’s removal, there was debate on whether or not to demolish this building due to the fact the storefront’s replacement cost was more than the building’s value, and the city didn’t have to acquire the property.  The decision was made, I believe, not to demolish because the corner was deemed crucial to downtown Middletown’s redevelopment.  A hurdle to the property’s redevelopment was the amount of asbestos.

BVR’s worked out a deal with the city consisted of the following:

-          BVR purchased the building for $1

-          BVR agreed to spend $30,000 on trim around the top of the building that needs substantial repair work. Anything above that was to be paid for by the city in a $30,000 grant.

-          The city of Middletown provided BVR with an 15-year interest-free loan with no payments for the first five years

-          The amount of the loan was $300,000 with $10,000 job credits off the principal of that loan for every job that adds at least $20,000 to the company's payroll.

-          BVR had hoped, as part of this expansion, to create 30 new jobs 

This was not some sort of free-be handout.  BVR will celebrate 5 years at their downtown location this fall/winter, so repayment of the loan should begin shortly, the amount depending on the number of jobs created.  Even if the loan is forgiven based on JOB CREATION, I can tell you the Jay and Linda’s personal investment in the building far exceeds the original loan amount—and may be up to twice the amount of the loan.

 Here’s an old article from The Enquirer that discusses the deal:

 http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2003/10/23/loc_middowntown23.html

You can be sure had Jay and Linda decided to expand BVR on the east-end, they surely would have sought tax incentives for that location as well.  I wonder if there would be as much criticism if this is the route they had chosen. 

The John Ross store was located in the Beau Verre location many years before it moved to northeast corner of Central and Broad:

Bill – BVR was not a new business.  It was an existing, successful Middletown business.  The city was working to retain this business.