A developer's request for $3.25 million from Winston-Salem got a thumbs-up from the city's finance committee yesterday, but the bigger question could be whether the county will increase the amount it has unofficially offered to give.
Winston-Salem and Forsyth County are being asked to split the cost of building a $6.5 million parking deck and public park that will sit at the center of the proposed Civic Plaza off Fourth Street in downtown Winston-Salem.
Developer Kerry Avant sees the park and deck as the hub of the proposed $60 million Civic Plaza development that is to include residential, office and retail spaces.
By a 3-0 vote, with Council Member Vivian Burke abstaining, the city's finance committee endorsed a resolution directing city staff to flesh out the deal for the city's involvement in the project. The plan would be for the city to borrow $3.25 million as its half of the park and deck costs, then pay back the debt over 21 years from property taxes generated by the new development.
Deputy City Manager Derwick Paige said it would take about $296,000 to pay the annual debt on money the city borrows, and new property taxes from the Civic Plaza development are expected to generate $300,000 to $310,000 annually.
That means that the city would get its money back, Paige said. The full council will hear the request Sept. 15.
Finance committee members in favor of the city's contribution were Wanda Merschel, Robert Clark and Joycelyn Johnson. Burke said after the meeting that she is not against the project but wants to get more information
The county has informally offered to contribute $2 million, but not in one lump sum and not up front.
Gloria Whisenhunt, who is the chairwoman of the county board, said that the county's offer is to pay $100,000 a year toward the project for 20 years. That's about $200,000 a year short of what it would take to finance the county's share under the same terms as the city's share.
Whisenhunt said that the park and deck do not qualify for economic-development assistance under county policies, which do not allow the county to contribute toward residential development. The county would approach the deal as a partnership with the city to develop the park.
"We are still taking it under consideration," Whisenhunt said of the county's participation. "There is some support for a certain amount, but not the amount that has been asked for. There is still a conversation going on."
Meanwhile, the Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership sent out an e-mail to between 3,000 and 4,000 people on Monday asking them to contact the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners and appeal for support for the project.
"We feel the downtown partnership needs to take the lead for this project because we are the lead organization for the downtown plan," said Jason Thiel, the partnership's president. "As we have worked on this project we have always known that the county was going to need to help us. This project is at a point where we need to take some specific action."
■ Wesley Young can be reached at 727-7369 or at wyoung@wsjournal.com.
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