DOWNTOWN Panel: Extend period for sale of buildings

The company has until Aug. 1 to secure funding.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The downtown redevelopment agency's property committee recommended extending the time for a company to finalize financing to purchase three downtown buildings.
This happened Tuesday despite the skepticism by some board members about the funding proposal becoming a reality.
The recommendation goes to the full Youngstown Central Area Community Improvement Corp. board at its meeting next Tuesday for approval.
P & amp;P Development had until the end of last month to secure financing for its proposed $1.7 million project. But the CIC didn't get the results of appraisals, needed before the financing is approved, until last week, said Jason T. Whitehead, the agency's executive director.
Gregory Vantell Associates Ltd., the appraisal company hired by the CIC, took a long time to do the work because the company couldn't compare the three buildings to any others in the city to get a grasp on the structure's actual worth, Whitehead said.
Charles Sammarone, a property committee member, expressed skepticism about P & amp;P's obtaining financing, noting that numerous other companies have failed to get funding to lease or purchase CIC-owned building.
"We've always had projects, but getting people's financing, that's a problem," he said.
Even with his concerns, Sammarone recommended an extension to Aug. 1 for P & amp;P, a partnership involving Gael Pullen of Cleveland and Denise Powell, who owns James & amp; Weaver Inc. in Youngstown. The property committee approved the extension, requested by P & amp;P.
The buildings
The company wants to purchase three buildings on West Federal Street: the Wells Building, the Armed Forces Building, and the former State Theater. If the company can obtain financing, the CIC will sell the three buildings to P & amp;P for $24,000, the appraised value.
Wells is worth $24,000. The other two buildings combined are worth nothing, according to the appraisal. The Armed Forces and State Theater properties are worth something, but the buildings are so dilapidated it makes the appraised value $0, according to the appraisal.
P & amp;P plans to renovate the four-story Wells Building, and use it for retail and/or restaurant space on first floor, office space on the second and third floors, and apartments on the top floor. The company wants to demolish the two other buildings and use the space for parking, but keep the facades.
P & amp;P needs tenants before it can obtain funding from a lending institution, Whitehead said. The company is seeking financing from KeyBank, he said.
Contacted after the meeting, Powell said the company is progressing in talks with Key Bank, and having the appraisal will make things move quicker.
"We have no big issues," she said. "We'll move forward. We don't have any reason to believe it won't go ahead as planned."
If the financing cannot be obtained, the CIC would sign a lease with P & amp;P with an option for the company to purchase the buildings, Whitehead said.
Whitehead also told the property committee that the $7.1 million office for Mahoning County Children Services Board is on schedule. Foundation was poured last week, and the construction phase of the project should begin next week.
Also, the committee said construction of a new 7th District Court of Appeals building should begin by early next year and be finished by Jan. 1, 2006.
skolnick@vindy.com