Urban design board approves renovation plans

Amarillo Globe-News KAREN SMITH WELCH May 2, 2013 11:36 PM EDT Copyright 2013 Amarillo Globe-News. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Plans to renovate a historic downtown building to house a bank have the blessing of the Amarillo Downtown Urban Design Review Board.

The board unanimously approved a certificate of appropriateness Thursday for Herring Bank’s plans to remodel the former Blackburn-Shaw Memorial Chapel and Funeral Home at Southeast Fifth Avenue and Pierce Street.

A certificate signifies the changes proposed by the project follow the city of Amarillo’s urban design standards. Projects must obtain certificates from the board before the city will consider issuing a building permit.

The design standards apply to new construction downtown and exterior renovation of existing downtown properties. They include stipulations for exterior facades, signs, lighting and streetscape amenities.

The bank project previously received the board’s approval in May 2011, but no work had begun and elements of the site plan had since changed. Certificates expire after one year, city Planning Director Kelley Shaw said.

Architect Gregg Bliss outlined the project for the board and said construction could begin as early as September.

Herring Bank purchased the historic Spanish Revival building in June 2010. E.M. Blackburn moved his undertaking business from Polk Street to Fifth and Pierce in 1926.

A chapel and significant renovations occurred in the early 1940s, according to Amarillo Globe-News files.

Herring Bank has operated a temporary banking facility on the parking lot of the Pierce Street property since 2010.

Downown property values saw sharp growth in recent years Posted: January 27, 2013 - 11:19pm

Kevin Welch - January 28, 2013 4:22 AM EST

Copyright 2013 Amarillo Globe-News. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Downtown isn’t the old nag anymore in the race to increase property values.

Values in the Center City Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone rose 38.5 percent from 2006 to 2012, according to information from the city of Amarillo. The city’s values as a whole went up 27.9 percent for the same period.

That’s far from the way things had been.

Overall city values increased by 168.2 percent from 1985 to 2006 while downtown values actually fell 21.2 percent during that time, said Assistant City Manager Dean Frigo.

The city created the Reinvestment Zone in 2006 to provide a source of funding for public improvements downtown. It’s boundaries are roughly Interstate 40, Adams Street and the railroad tracks north and east of downtown.

The property taxes collected in 2006 serve as the base for figuring TIRZ payments. The same amount of money that went to the city, Potter County, Amarillo College and the Panhandle Groundwater Conservation District in the base year still goes to those entities.
Amarillo Independent School District does not contribute to TIRZ and collects on current values.

“The only thing the TIRZ has to spend is the growth in tax payments and only what comes from the reinvestment zone downtown,” said TIRZ Board Member Carol Autry. “Nothing comes from anywhere else.”

The values in the zone have gone from $140 million in 2006 to $193 million in 2012, according to Potter-Randall Appraisal District records. The district’s records also show about $13.5 million of the increase was from newly constructed buildings.

The zone began the current fiscal year with an estimated $2.4 million for property owners to use to defray the cost of improvements such as trees, benches and pedestrian lights to enhance public walkways.

Some of that money has been tentatively budgeted this year for the area around the proposed convention hotel on Buchanan Street, but the timing of the project is not clear. The cost of that would be about $2.7 million, so the zone would have to borrow about $1.5 million to both pay for the project and keep a reserve for others, Frigo said. The debt would be issued with a pledge of payments from future income collected by the TIRZ because of the property value increases.

Another tool the group has is tax abatements.

“We have $250,000 a year put in the budget for small projects,” said TIRZ Board Member Carol Autry. “But the best thing we can do is a 90 percent tax rebate. But there has to be an economic reason.”

All Reinvestment Zone projects must be approved by city commissioners.

Developers or business owners pay up front for construction and then get rebates over time when they start paying taxes on the improvements.

There has been criticism of some TIRZ spending because it has gone to tax-exempt entities such as Amarillo College and Polk Street United Methodist Church.

“A rising tide raises all boats,” said Melissa Dailey, executive director of Downtown Amarillo Inc. “Even though some of the investments were with nonprofits and churches, it’s going to raise property values in the area.”

And supporters see benefits that aren’t easily measured.

“The value is that it makes downtown so much more welcoming. It’s more aesthetically pleasing, but it’s hard to put a dollar value on it,” said Beth Duke, executive director of Center City of Amarillo. “People see them and they know they’re going to be here. I think that gives us a stability.”

Even when businesses such as the Courtyard by Marriott at the Fisk hotel are getting tax rebates, there is economic activity added to Amarillo.

“They’ve brought in 40 jobs. They’re collecting hotel/motel tax and exceeding what they had projected for occupancy, so that’s bringing more people to spend money downtown,” Duke said.

Duke uses a different approach to calculate downtown growth.

A Center City reinvestment summary based on building permits shows $107.5 million spent downtown since 2006 on projects funded by the public, private entities and a combination of those.

The private and joint ventures, which include Center City facade grants and TIRZ projects, make up almost 70 percent of the total spent.

Downtown meeting highlights changes Kevin Welch October 24, 2012 12:36 AM EDT Copyright 2012 Amarillo Globe-News. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. About 250 people attended Downtown Amarillo Inc.’s annual meeting Tuesday to hear about how downtown has begun to change. Chairman Les Simpson provided a summary of the group’s first annual report, which actually looks at about six years since completion of the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts. More than $200 million in projects have been constructed or are planned, boosting downtown property values 37.5 percent, said Simpson, who also is publisher of AGN Media. The highlighted projects range from the restoration of the Potter County Courthouse and its square, the opening of the Courtyard by Marriott at the Historic Fisk hotel in the refurbished Fisk Building and the addition of about 140 period street lights. Also on the horizon are the proposed convention hotel set to open in 2015, a planned Toot’n Totum and the renovation of apartments on 10th Avenue to be called Plemons Village Apartments. Executive Director Melissa Daily said she is asked when downtown development will be finished. “The answer is never,” she said. “The key has been and continues to be maintaining the vision and putting one foot in front of the other.” The group also presented its first Spearhead Awards that recognize achievements in downtown improvement. Potter County won the Preservation Award for the courthouse work, Newcrest Hotels got the Adaptive Re-use Award for the Fisk project, Happy State Bank’s new downtown branch netted the bank the Urban Design Award, the Ambassador’s Award went to Bill Ware and turning a nondescript building into the Burrito Stop earned Jorge and Misty Veloz the Chairman’s Award. It was Simpson’s last Downtown Amarillo meeting as chairman because the board elected John Lutz chairman at its last meeting.

(click for full details)

by News Channel 10

Where are we in the process of downtown redevelopment?

We're at an exciting point. As you know, years of dedication and hard work led to a significant milestone this February: an agreement between the City and Wallace-Bajjali Development Partners for Wallace-Bajjali to assess the benefits and feasibility of specific redevelopment projects in the Civic Center area, and to deliver a recommended path forward in August.

Today, August 3rd, after months of due diligence and transparent public dialogue and input, Wallace-Bajjali and Downtown Amarillo, Inc (DAI) are recommending an implementation and funding strategy for the Civic Center Area projects; a strategy that doesn't rely on increased property taxes or municipal funding instruments such as Certificates of Obligation (CO's) or General Obligation Bonds (GO's).

This is great news for Amarillo. Wallace-Bajjali is recommending a funding strategy for the Multi-Purpose. (Click for full details)

Companies joining Wallace-Bajjali on the development team include:
• Architects: HKS Sports and Entertainment Group, Lavin Architects, Architexas
• Construction Consultant: Western Builders
• Construction Manager: Ewing Construction
• Financiers: Estrada-Hinojosa, Civitas
• Hoteliers: American Property Management, Wyndham Worldwide
• Sports: Southern Independent Baseball (Amarillo Sox), American Association
of Independent Professional Baseball

“This is an amazing team,” said David Wallace, partner and co-founder of Wallace-Bajjali, “representing
top firms from Texas and throughout the nation. When companies like these commit to a project, we know the kind of excellence they will bring to it.” (Click for full details)

http://www.newschannel10.com/story/15204831/downtown-revitalization-project-will-not-raise-taxes

The big question for many in Amarillo is how the $113 million dollar downtown revitalization project will affect your taxes?

The developers at Wallace-Bajalli say it will not raise taxes for the people living in Amarillo for several reasons. They say the money to build these projects will be paid up front by private investors.

Money will also come from user fees from events at the baseball stadium and fees at the parking garage. There is expected to be a 10% surcharge on items such as baseball games, concerts, and other functions at the multi-purpose event center.

Dave Wallace with Wallace-Bajalli says "through the funding sources and that capital resources, it will not cost the taxpayers a dime of ad-valorem taxes and it will not affect your tax rates at all. If you use it you pay for it. If you don't use it, you don't pay for it."

The existing hotel occupancy tax, which comes from hotel stays in Amarillo, will be reinvested into the development of the event venue and the parking garage.

“This is a banner day for the future of Amarillo,” said DAI Executive Director Melissa Dailey. “Voters rejected the divisive wedge issue ballot items and reaffirmed downtown redevelopment by a margin of greater than two-to-one.”

With 60 of 60 precincts reporting, the races for Commissioner and Mayor were called Saturday night, as were the ballot measures. All three ballot initiatives were rejected by decisive majorities, thereby upholding the lawful downtown urban design standards and sign ordinance, and maintaining the current tradition of all Amarillo voters electing all the commissioners.

“Downtown is the heart of Amarillo,” said Dailey. “In this election, the people of Amarillo stood up and were counted in support of progress towards a better future. DAI is grateful for the widespread public support for downtown redevelopment, and we look forward to working with Amarillo’s new Mayor and City Commissioners.”

“Our elections are a sacred trust,” said DAI Board Member John Lutz. “All sides made their appeals in the public square. Neighbors joined together to listen, weigh the information, and cast their votes. Now is the time when we move forward with unity; the people have spoken.”

For more information about Downtown Amarillo and the public redevelopment process, and to provide feedback, please explore the resources online at www.downtownamarillo.com.

Perhaps rampant conspiracy theories and speculation about "the suits" lording over struggling downtown landowners are unavoidable. Internet froth too easily supplants reality in contemporary culture. Wired though we may be, the "unplugged" often carry the argument.

Property owners downtown have endured decades of neglect, bad planning and periodic, dead-end schemes with little to show for it besides leaky roofs, empty buildings and another year's taxes.

For better or worse, downtown remains the city center. If current planning and revitalization efforts finally yielded stalwart property owners a bit of gain, the whole city accrues much more in terms of improved property values and tax collections. Certainly for many, it will remain the most significant measure of success for current revitalization efforts. (Click here for full story)

Taxpayers will get a more solid idea of the costs of possible large-scale projects for downtown Amarillo in August.

"There are so many different variables that, at this point in time, (cost estimation) is a moving target," David Wallace said Tuesday.

Wallace's company, Wallace Bajjali Development Partners, must present to city leaders in mid-August a list of projects determined to have the best chance of success, he said. The Sugar Land-based firm is the City of Amarillo's master developer for downtown projects in the area surrounding the Amarillo Civic Center. (Click for full story)

Amarillo, Texas - A big piece of Amarillo's history is now for sale... Something many say will either make or break downtown revitalization.

Those we spoke with today say in many ways, the success of revitalization in downtown Amarillo will be centered around this building... The Herring Hotel, which has been vacant for the past few decades.

J. Gaut of J. Gaut & Associates says, "It sits on the skyline of Amarillo. It's between the police department and the Civic Center and it's so visible from I-40. I think Center City revitalization will be much more complete once something is done with the building. As long as it's empty and on the skyline, it's going to just kind of an eyesore I think."

Some developers have said the Herring would possibly be an option for the convention center hotel.

Other possibilities for the building include mixed use space with offices and apartments or condos and lofts. (click for full story)

Not only will it determine who will occupy all five of the city's commission seats for the next two years, but it also will decide three measures brought to the ballot box by petition.

Anger by some residents appears to be the driving force behind the petitions. But to be brutally honest, depth and breadth of that anger seems a bit dubious.

And the measures should be defeated when all the ballots are counted May 14. (click for full story)

AMARILLO -- Amarillo has taken a dramatic and pivotal step toward a new age of public-private cooperation.

City commissioners this past week approved a partnership with Wallace Bajjali Development Partners, based in Sugar Land. Wallace Bajjali becomes the primary development partner with the city for two significant downtown projects - a convention hotel and a multi-purpose event center, which would include a baseball stadium.

The agreement also gives the developer opportunities to develop projects on other city land near the Civic Center - as long as the city agrees with its potential use. (full story)

We appreciate all of our Facebook and Twitter friends! Please suggest our Facebook and Twitter pages to all of your friends in and around Amarillo. If we can get 200 followers we can start having some really great contests with awesome prizes! http://on.fb.me/icy0Np

AMARILLO -- A Sugar Land firm will pay the upfront costs of planning large-scale projects in downtown Amarillo and only be reimbursed if the projects win City Commission - and likely voter - approval.

The commission Tuesday unanimously approved a pact to create a public-private partnership with Wallace Bajjali Development Partners, a Sugar Land company that has been involved in more than $1 billion in urban redevelopment projects in Waco and elsewhere.

Under the pact, Wallace Bajjali will serve as master developer for a proposed convention center hotel, possible multipurpose event venue and other potential projects on city-owned land in the vicinity of the Amarillo Civic Center. (full story)

AMARILLO, TEXAS -- Among the topics Amarillo City Commissioners addressed yesterday, perhaps the most important was the downtown Amarillo redevelopment agreement consent agenda.

Commissioners gave the green light to that agenda that creates a private-public partnership between the city and Wallace Bajjali development partners, to help fix up downtown.

We asked one of them, what exactly does this agreement allow Wallace Bajjali to do?

"To go out finally and develop proposals and budgets and feasbility studies on a hotel, on a multi-purpose events venue and bring those back to us and allow the city at some point to make a decision about whether to procede with the actual building of those facilities," said Brian Eades, Amarillo City Commissioner, Place 2. (full story)

Disclosure: My great-grandfather was in the movie business.

That is, he owned and operated the Mission Theatre in Menard, a town on the edge of West Texas whose population peaked at 2,674 nearly six decades ago. The building has been mostly dormant for nearly 60 years, since he closed the theater in 1953. It flooded in 1980, and a decade later the roof collapsed. In the years before a new one could be put on, trees began to grow through the floor.

In 2010, Kaci Kothmann formed the Mission Theatre Restoration Foundation, a small band of Menard residents who hope to reopen the theater. “It would be fantastic for the community,” Kothmann said. “To help create business, create revenue, create some interest and hopefully put Menard a little bit more on the map.”

That statement is music to the ears of Amy Barbee, the executive director at the Texas Cultural Trust, which is leading a push to redefine the state’s understanding of the role of the arts as a driver of economic growth, not just cultural niceties. With financial hardships making people keep their wallets snapped shut, and as the Legislature looks to scale back the state’s spending by up to $27 billion over the next two years, expenditures that are seen as luxuries may quickly be cut.

“It’s more than fluff,” Barbee said. “We want to tell the qualitative and quantitative story that the arts truly are economic development.” (full story)

"The Art of Economic Development," prepared by TXP Inc. for the Texas Cultural Trust and the Texas Commission on the Arts, includes a multimedia component for each the report's featured communities. This example focuses on the way Amarillo has leveraged the arts. (Click here to watch video)

"Redeveloping downtown is crucial to Amarillo's continued and future prosperity," says Mayor Debra McCartt. "Selecting Wallace Bajjali as our development partner is a significant milestone among the many steps in this process. Wallace Bajjali is an experienced public-private developer with a record of success and were looking forward to the resources and leadership the Wallace Bajjali team brings to the table." (full story with video)