YOUNGSTOWN Officials work to nail down pact for civic center as deadline nears

Major issues should be cleared in the next couple of days, one official said.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Little is firm about the proposed downtown civic center project just a week before a deadline.
Nonetheless, city officials remain focused on reaching a May 15 contract with the chosen developer, FaulknerUSA.
Mayor George M. McKelvey said everybody involved wants to reach a contract by the deadline, set in January in a memo of understanding between the city and developer. The city will extend the deadline if circumstances require more time, he said.
Everybody involved has shown good faith, said Finance Director David Bozanich. An extension could be a matter of a few days, he said.
"A couple of days one way or the other isn't going to make or break the deal," he said.
A few telephone conferences are set in the next couple of days that should clear up major issues, he said.
Work remains
Each side is trying to secure more money for the roughly $50 million project, which is taking valuable time. The city wants extra state dollars and FaulknerUSA is raising equity funding, Bozanich said. He wouldn't elaborate on the state funding.
Officials also hinted that property issues are pressing the deadline. Appraisals on private land and buildings on Front Street started three weeks ago. The appraisal process won't be finished for several more weeks. The city recently closed the $1.5 million purchase of 26 acres from RSA Corp. between the Market Street and South Avenue bridges.
The city still doesn't have most of the documents that were to be made available in February and March, as outlined in the memo of understanding.
Only a hotel feasibility study due Feb. 1 has been completed and released publicly, in mid-March. A feasibility study for the proposed arena was due Feb. 1. The city received only a sketchy preliminary document in mid-March.
FaulknerUSA has met its deadlines and turned over its work to the city's consultants, said Terri Dusek, a company spokeswoman. The company is on track to reach a contract with the city by May 15 and isn't expecting to need an extension, she said.
The delay may be with the city's consultants, she said.
A preliminary site plan and architectural drawings were due March 1. The city hasn't received those.
Financial documents
On March 15, many important financial documents from the developer were due. They include costs to design, finance, develop and build the project and a 10-year outline of operational costs.
The developer was to have given the city an updated version of those cost estimates Thursday.
The city has had deep discussions of those financial items and seen drafts, said Law Director John McNally IV, but has little definitive documentation. What little financial information that's on paper involves attorney-client privilege, he said. The city won't release that publicly, he said.
McNally concedes the city may need substantial time to review those documents once it gets them. Still, he and others continue pointing to the May 15 deadline, or within a few days of that.
"The next few weeks are going to be busy," McNally said. "We all fully expect it will get done."
rgsmith@vindy.com