City to Make ‘Last-Ditch Effort’ in Redevelopment Project

Temple Terrace Mayor Frank Chillura said Tuesday that the city is making a “last-ditch effort” to work with Vlass Temple Terrace, the developer of the city’s downtown redevelopment project.

In order to avoid litigation, the city’s negotiation team, which includes Chillura, City Manager Gerald Seeber, and City Attorney Mark Connolly, are working on a new proposal to share with the Vlass group.

“What we’re planning to do is to try and develop a written proposal for them that’s really based upon what it is they last submitted to the city as a proposal, but we also want to modify that to reflect the concerns that were expressed by the city when that proposal was submitted,” Seeber told the Temple Terrace City Council during their meeting Tuesday, Aug. 20.

Vlass signed on to the redevelopment project in 2009, agreeing to build a $160 million complex that would include a residential area, retail, a cultural component and office space. The development is intended for a 21-acre property on the east side of 56th Street near Bullard Parkway.

When the city and the Vlass group were in negotiations on the redevelopment project in the summer of 2012, there were several sticking points that they couldn’t agree on, including:

• Retail vs. residential on the first floor of the residences planned for the northeast corner of the site;
• Ceiling heights on the first floor of the same building;
• Parking for that building; and
• Commitment for the construction of the Arts & Education Center.

Earlier this month, Seeber said both sides were “pretty far apart” in their expectations moving forward.

“Clearly, there needs to be some compromise on both sides of this if we’re going to be able to move forward and have some type of mutually acceptable package,” he said Tuesday.

If the Vlass group finds the city’s new proposal acceptable, the negotiation team would bring it to the City Council for approval.

In June, both parties entered into a forbearance agreement, saying they wouldn’t sue each other during negotiations. That agreement expired Wednesday, Aug. 21.

“What we’re trying to do at this point is to continue the dialogue with the developer to avoid litigation,” Connolly said. “Ultimately, if we can’t reach some sort of agreement with them on how to move the project forward, the only way to get the property back will be through the court system.”

Chillura said he’s hopeful that neither side will need a lawsuit.

“The ultimate goal is to have a viable, successful downtown development,” he said. “The goal is not to end up in court, the goal is not to find a new developer. It’s to have a viable development that suits the vision of our people.”

The negotiation team met with the Vlass group twice in June and once in July, and Chillura said those meetings were mainly focused on unwinding the relationship.

“I want to make sure that we leave no rock unturned,” Chillura said. “We can’t look back and say ‘We should have done this, we should have done that.’”

He told the council that he hopes this new proposal is the right compromise.

“We are going to give it one last shove,” he said, “and hopefully that will take, and we can bring some positive information back to you all.”

See also:

• City, Vlass Expected to Part Ways; Lawsuits Still Possible
• Council: Redevelopment Not Being Put Aside
• City to Vlass: Let’s Not Sue Each Other Yet
• Mayor: Let’s Move Redevelopment Forward
• Downtown Developer Calls it Quits: What’s Next?