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Council approves extension of loan
Council agreed to pay $45,000 to an owner of a defunct hockey team that used to play at the Chevrolet Centre.
YOUNGSTOWN — City council signed off on a request to extend payment on a $2 million loan by the developer of an upscale downtown apartment complex to Sept. 30.
The city’s board of control — consisting of the mayor, finance director and law director — must finalize the request, something expected shortly. Council approved the extension Wednesday.
The project, estimated to cost $8.4 million, to turn the vacant 13-story office building at 47 Central Federal St. into the Realty Tower Apartments will be done by mid- to late June.
The first tenants are to move in around August.
When finished, the building will have 23 apartments.
The owner of the building is Management Parking, a company run by Lou Frangos of Cleveland. His companies own numerous downtown buildings and parking facilities.
The city loaned the $2 million to the company in September 2006. The term of the loan was 18 months.
At the company’s request, the city extended the loan term in March 2008 by 12 months.
Under this city loan program, a business must have an irrevocable line of credit from a lending institution to ensure the city gets repaid even if the company can’t pay back the money. Management Parking has the line of credit through Key Bank.
The longest term for a loan through this program is three years, so Management Parking can’t seek another extension.
The company received approval in December 2007 to receive $3.41 million in state and federal tax credits for the project. Though it has the commitment for the money, the company hasn’t received any of it to date, Frangos said.
Except for the $2 million it borrowed from the city, all expenses for this project have been paid by the company, Frangos said.
Also, council approved legislation authorizing the board of control to pay $45,000 to Blue Line LLC to settle a lawsuit.
Blue Line is the parent company of the Youngstown SteelHounds minor league hockey team that played its home games from 2005 to 2008 at the city-owned Chevrolet Centre.
The board of control will approve the settlement shortly, said Mayor Jay Williams, a board member. Other board members are the law and finance directors.
International Coliseums Co., a Phoenix company that managed the center for the city between October 2005 and October 2007, will also make a payment to Blue Line. That amount isn’t known.
The settlement will resolve all outstanding legal issues between the city, ICC and Blue Line.
Blue Line filed a federal lawsuit in December 2007 contending it wasn’t paid at least $250,000 for certain fees, most notably about $170,000 for the sale of club seats to SteelHounds games.