From Stark
Although the matter is at an early stage, the city may have a buyer for a 31,000-square-foot lot at 1115 Cornwall Ave.
Public Development Authority Executive Director Jim Long said the first step in selling the property is a resolution of approval from the authority’s board. That board has scheduled a special meeting to consider such a resolution for 11:30 a.m. Monday, March 21, in its office in Room 308 of the old Federal Building, 104 W. Magnolia St.
Although the development authority controls the property, a sale would have to be approved by the City Council, Long said.
Before the city acquired the site, developer William Maris had planned to build a 15-story condo project called Cornwall Place there. But Maris lost the property to Bank fo the Pacific in a foreclosure in May 2008. The city purchased the site from the bank for $1.53 million later that year before deeding it to the Public Development Authority for possible redevelopment.
Long said he was not at liberty to discuss the potential buyer or terms of a deal, but he said his goal is to make sure the city recovers its investment while getting the property back on the tax roll.
Long said he wants a green light from his board before exploring a possible sale any further.
That lot has been pretty great over the past couple years as parking during the Farmers market or any other large event downtown. Hopefully those spots aren’t lost as a result.
“he said his goal is to make sure the city recovers its investment while getting the property back on the tax roll.”
What an unusual thing to hear from the City of Bellingham…as business’s move out of town to Ferndale and the city buys property around Lake Whatcom to take it OFF the tax roll.
Nice Lot.
That is right over a bunch of coal mines. The Herald did an article years ago by George Hunsby who recollected about the tide washing in and out under neath downtown through all the miles of coal mines.
The most famous story was about a coal pit that is under Starbucks at Holly. According to Hunsby, trainloads of fill were dumped in the giant pit each day to fill up the abandoned coal mine shaft. By morning, it would be all gone. Washed out to sea. Next they used larger rocks that couldn’t be swept out to seal. The tides are still working away at the walls and ceilings of those abandoned, unfilled coal mines.
Check out the floor in Starbucks. Large cracks are appearing already.
We can only hope the City doesn’t stick the tax payers with the liability for future settling due to predictable coal mine Collapse like Asmundson did with the mason building scam.
I was at the meeting when the council discussed this purchase. I looked at the Council meeting materials and unfortunately, there isn’t a video available, only a list of actions taken: http://www.cob.org/web/COUNCIL.nsf/$vAllByUnid/764EB520EDDAD212882575200080300A?OpenDocument
I believe this property was purchased with the intention of putting a parking structure on it. I don’t know who they are planning on selling the property to, and for what sort of development… but I would like to know if the city no longer plans to build a parking structure here, where will parking go? The Army street structure that has been talked about would serve the waterfront development… this lot is in a really great place for the farmers market and the Cornwall/Railroad area.
So the question is why do we want to sell this lot when we had plans for it?
@almost ray,
Interesting about those coal mines; I will make it a point to visit Starbucks and take a look at their floor.
I’m probably going to get this wrong, but doesn’t Dan McShane have a website about Bellingham’s geology and history?
~
@Clayton,
That meeting must have been held on one of apexnerd’s furlough days; that’s probably why there’s no video on it.
@ Petree – like the city makes long range plans, thats hilarious.
Camille:
McShane’s blog:
http://washingtonlandscape.blogspot.com/2011/02/coal-terminals-in-washington-state.html
Thanks Marian!