Bradenton City Council OKs 30-day extension for 14th Street West project
BRADENTON -- The Bradenton City Council on Wednesday granted a 30-day extension on a sale agreement with Benefecial Communities for the redevelopment of the old Manatee Inns site on 14th Street West.
Beneficial asked for the extension on closing its $700,000 purchase after it failed to win federal tax credits it needs to finance the project.
Beneficial will first present options for the site to the Bradenton Downtown Development Authority on April 5 and then appear before the city council for a final decision on whether to continue the same project or seek other options on April 13. When it was announced last week that Beneficial's attempt for tax credits was unsuccessful, Mayor Wayne Poston implied that the council may learn that there are other options.
On Wednesday, city administrator Carl Callahan confirmed there is at least one other offer on the table. Downtown investor Vincent Crisci has offered $500,000 for the 3 acres of vacant land in the 1400 block of 14th Avenue West. City officials indicated little interest in making the deal.
The Bradenton Downtown Development Authority still
owes $614,000 on a $1.5 million loan it took out in 2006 to buy the property and demolish the crime-ridden hotel.
"It's hard to say that we would take a loss and come out of pocket to close," said Ward 4 Councilman Bemis Smith.
Ward 3 Councilman Patrick Roff said it wasn't necessarily the offer, rather "my main concern is selling it to someone who is going to let it continue to sit empty."
Crisci's typical operations involve purchasing downtown buildings, renovating them and finding suitable tenants. Crisci could not be reached to comment Wednesday on what he would do with the property.
Ward 1 City Councilman Gene Gallo questioned whether the 14th Street West corridor could afford another mistake.
Callahan said there are no plans associated with Crisci's offer, which prompted a quick motion to approve Beneficial's extension. DDA program administrator Karen Kyser said she met with Beneficial last week and, "it was a very good meeting. They are looking at how to proceed and they'll meet with the DDA board and go through some scenarios and the board should have some suggestions for you before your April 13 meeting."
Mark Young, Herald urban affairs reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7041 or follow him on Twitter @urbanmark2014.
This story was originally published March 30, 2016 at 11:07 PM with the headline "Bradenton City Council OKs 30-day extension for 14th Street West project ."