Burlington Iowa plans to displace over 400 low income people. The city will not reveal any financial relocation information.

Friday, September 8, 2006

Council proposes $5 million plan to purchase neighborhood.

By RON FIELDS
rfields@thehawkeye.com

Twenty-three years after the first phase of redevelopment at Flint Hills Manor ended, the second phase is about to begin.

The Burlington City Council met Thursday evening to announce "The Manor Revisited," a $5 million plan to purchase the neighborhood called "The Manor," turn it into an empty lot by next summer and redevelop it as a commercial property.

While a Minnesota developer has been in contact with the city, no formal agreements have been made for new construction.

Funding for the project will be in the form of a tax�increment financing note, which will raise the required cash to purchase and demolish 171 parcels of property in the 24�acre area between Agency and Market streets and Roosevelt Avenue and Columbus Drive.

Bonds will be sold to provide the initial capital, with the debt being repaid through property sales and the increased tax revenue development will generate.

"City councils have looked at this for 30 years," City Manager Bruce Slagle said. "It's time to create a more permanent solution."

The city already owns about half the property, said city planner Chris Nosbisch, including the ballparks that house youth baseball leagues. Until a long�term home for the ballplayers is found, games will be temporarily moved to the Burlington Regional RecPlex.

"With over 30 individuals and companies owning property (in the area to be redeveloped), assembling the entire site will prove to be difficult," said Mayor Mike Edwards. "Although eminent domain is not the preferred method of acquiring property, it may be necessary."

Letters were sent Thursday to the approximately 400 Manor residents, informing them of the city's intentions to clear the land.

Nosbisch said a new housing committee will be formed to help residents relocate to available and affordable housing.

He estimated there are about 1,000 available homes in Burlington and West Burlington, with between 25 percent and 30 percent considered "affordable."

"We have seen nothing that is going to prevent us from finding adequate housing for these individuals," Nosbisch said.

Slagle said 92 percent of the properties are occupied by renters, noting that homeowners living in the area will benefit from enhanced relocation and acquisition guidelines set forth by the federal government.

Eminent domain will only become an issue if the owner's asking price is too high for the city's pocketbook.

"We are not in a position to pay three or four times what the property is worth," Nosbisch said, noting that only about 20 of the households in the Manor are government�subsidized, Section 8 housing.

"I want the city of Burlington to be the poster child ... of the right way to make this happen," Edwards said, noting the city has every intention to act with "compassion" when it comes to the relocation process.

Prior to this year's special session of the Legislature to deal with new eminent domain legislation, Gov. Tom Vilsack listed the project as one of those that would be derailed if lawmakers agreed to prohibit condemnations for economic development purposes.

Nosbisch, however, said he didn't expect the legislation to impact the plan because it was well in the works before the Legislature made its ruling and because it will be implemented prior to an October window set forth by the new statutes.

A real estate agent was hired by the city to do an initial canvass of the area, making offers on homes already on the market and asking property owners if they were willing to sell.

The timeline for the project begins Sept. 25, when the City Council has scheduled a public hearing on the project and plans to vote on a resolution approving the project. Shortly thereafter, negotiations with remaining property owners will begin, and the housing committee will meet to determine how best to find new homes for those displaced by the project.

The parcel is expected to be cleared by the spring of 2007, Nosbisch said.

Edwards said the Manor, World War II�era properties built by the federal government as "temporary housing" for Iowa Army Ammunition Plant workers, has been on the path to demolition for decades.

A partnership between the city and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development started in 1979 resulted in the rehabilitation of property west of Columbus Drive. By 1983, however, grants and other funding mechanisms had been written away by the federal government.

In the remaining Manor, Nosbisch said the city has responded to about 400 nuisance complaints since 1979. Crime also is a problem, said Burlington Police Chief Dave Wunnenberg, noting that his department recorded more than 700 calls for service in the area in the past 18 months.

"We realize that it's going to continue to deteriorate unless the government steps in," Nosbisch said.

Councilman Garry Thomas likened the area to South Hill's Third and Fourth streets decades ago, before HUD stepped in to invest in the area and create Maple Hill Apartments.

"Those folks there were in a rut, and they didn't know how to get out," he said. "Once they got that helping hand, they moved forward.

"I think this is going to be great for the citizens of Burlington ... and those people out there in the Manor are in the city of Burlington."

Edwards agreed city intervention was a necessary component to change the only residential area remaining on the highly visible Roosevelt Avenue thoroughfare.

"Without the city of Burlington's involvement, it would be impossible for individual property owners to create the wholesale change necessary to make this area a productive element of the community once again," he said.

Although no deals have been signed, Slagle said he has been in contact with Edina, Minn.�based Robert Muir Co., a shopping�center developer focused on the Upper Midwest.

Slagle said he was put in contact with the company by businessman Randy Winegard, whose FunCity entertainment complex and casino project drew Muir's interest.

"This is a bold step in the right direction," said Dennis Hinkle of the Burlington/West Burlington Chamber of Commerce. "That's doesn't necessarily mean it will be easy every step of the way."

The city currently collects about $80,000 in property taxes assessed at the Manor, a figure that is expected to increase by $250,000 after the redevelopment.

A number of street and sewer projects also are listed in the proposed project, including a new frontage road east of Roosevelt Avenue and a southern connector linking Columbus Drive to Market Street.