A bill for an ordinance approving the Service Plan for the creation of Denver Rock Drill Metropolitan District. Approves the service plan for the formation and establishment of the Denver Rock Drill Metropolitan District Title 32 district in Council District 9. The Committee approved filing this item at its meeting on 8-28-18.
Speakers must stay on the topic of the hearing and must direct their comments to the council members. Please refrain from profane or obscene speech. Direct your comments to council as a whole and please refrain from individual or personal attacks. Councilman Flynn, will you please put Council Bill 885 on the floor? Yes, Mr. President. I move that council bill 18. Dash. 885 be placed upon final consideration and do pass. It has been moved. Can I get a second? It has been moved and seconded. The public hearing for Council Bill eight five is open. May we have the staff report? Good evening, council members. I'm Michael Kerrigan with the Department of Finance. Accountable 18 818 0885 is for an ordinance approving a service plan for a new metropolitan district supporting redevelopment of the site commonly known as Denver Rockdale. The district is called Denver Rock to a metropolitan district. The service plan is being submitted for City Council approval on behalf of the Saunders Commercial Development Company, LLC, pursuant to the requirements of the Special District Act, sections 30 21201 and more particularly 30 21204.5 CRC Service Plan contains the District's Purpose, Powers, Requirements and Financing Plan. The districts are responsible for compliance with the City's Municipal Code Rules, regulations and all other applicable law. The districts will ensure that the District's public improvements are designed and constructed in accordance with the standards and specifications of the city and other governmental entities having jurisdiction. The new Metropolitan District will be responsible for coordinating the financing, acquisition, construction, completion operation and maintenance of all public infrastructure and services within and without of the service area, including without limitation street and sidewalk improvements, parking infrastructure, water, storm drainage detention and sanitary sewer improvements, landscaping, irrigation, a public plaza and traffic and safety control improvements. The new metropolitan district will have the power to raise revenues pursuant to the authority's granted by the Special District Act, including the imposition of up to 50 mills plus rates, fees, tolls, charges and debt for the debt and district and debts in district operations and maintenance. Once the district imposes a debt mill, the district's operations and maintenance melody cannot exceed ten mills. Additionally, the district will be authorized to impose up to five mills for regional improvements at the direction of the city. The district anticipates estimated eligible costs for the public improvements to be approximately 23.5 million. And in order for the new metropolitan district to have the fiscal wherewithal to provide funding for the upfront costs of the public improvements needed in the service area, that the new metropolitan district shall have the authority to issue debt and impose a debt mill levy to provide funding for the upfront infrastructure costs. The Denver Rock Trail site is not currently located in an urban renewal area. The developer has an application into into Denver Urban Renewal Authority for authorization to use tax increment financing and at completion. The current plan projects a transit oriented development envisioned to approximately to include public spaces and approximately 600,000 square feet of commercial space. The current planned development will include only commercial space and will involve both new construction and restoration of existing unique buildings for office, retail and entertainment space. The development plans also include 175 key hotel approval. The service plan establishes the following There are sufficient existing and projected need for organized service in the area. The existing service in the area is inadequate for present and projected needs. The district is capable of economically providing sufficient service to the area within the proposed boundaries. The land and proposed development to be included does and will have the financial ability to discharge the proposed indebtedness on a reasonable basis. The facility and service standards will be compatible with the facility and service standards of the city. Staff recommends approval of the service plan. The applicant, the representatives and city staff are here tonight to respond to questions regarding this council. Bill. Thank you very much. We have five individuals signed up to speak this evening. So if you've signed up to speak on this, if you could come to this front bench so that we can move through as quickly as possible, I'll call your name, step up to the podium, and your time will start to elapse. First up, we have Sam Sharp. Hi, Sam Sharp with the Davidson Company. We are a financial consultant to the applicant here to answer questions only. Thank you very much, Trey Rigby. Good evening. Trey Rigby Sanders Commercial Development Company. We are developing the rock drill property. Thank you, Bruce O'Donnell. Good evening, Bruce O'Donnell. With Star Board Realty. I'm an. Advisor to Saunders on this application. And here to answer questions. Thank you. Thank you, Alan POGUE. Thank you. Members of Council Allen POGUE. I snagged Seaver POGUE legal counsel to Saunders here to answer questions. Thank you. Next up, Jesse Paris. Good evening. Members of council. My name is just Paris. I am a large candidate for 2019 and also I'm representing Denver Homicide Loud and Black Star Action Movement for Self-defense, which is a community for profit organization that seeks to solve the problems of the homeless, working poor, senior citizens, students and teachers. My question was, this is going to be a commercial development in the already being gentrified area. What is who is going to be working on this at this facility? I heard something about a hotel. Who is going to be employed to work at this hotel? And also how many businesses are going to be involved with this project? Thank you. Thank you. That concludes our speakers. Are there any questions from members of council? Catherine Flynn. Thank you, Mr. President. Michael could. The issue of the regional mill levy of up to five mills for city improvements on within the district or just outside, particularly through Ninth Avenue Greenway. I expressed this concern in committee as well, but can you talk to me about the precedent setting nature of of having a metro district impose a regional levy for city projects that are offsite or adjacent to but off site, but from which that development benefits in some form or fashion. Because 39th Avenue Greenway is adjacent to many of the Coca-Cola plant and other properties. And I'm also concerned about whether this sets a precedent for an ability to surcharge or do some sort of a mill levy for private for residential property that might benefit from a city improvement. So it's actually not precedent setting. We we already have this clause in a number of other service plans that have been approved in the city. Gennaro Metropolitan districts, they have a couple and then a couple of the the service plans for the metro districts around the Broadway Broadway I-25 redevelopment. They have they have the clause in there for their service plans for that additional mill for a regional mill. Okay. So go ahead. Well, would just say to the answer question or do you have so this would we don't envision extending this principle to other types of owners ownership of property particularly I'm concerned about residential. So to the extent that other developers and other property owners do come in and seek a creation of a metro district at that time, we'll have those discussions with those property owners, but only associated with a metropolitan district from the from the Department of Finance perspective. That's the only kind of key that we have or that's in any type of development entitlement. All right. Thank you. Thank you. Councilman Flynn, Councilman Brooks. Thank you, Mr. President. Someone from the development team give a give a basic for folks who don't understand the area of your project, basic understanding of why you're going for a metro district. Yes. So the property is quite large. It's over two city blocks and there's a series of buildings that, while inherently neat and interesting and create a lot of the appeal for the property were built from 1909 through the 1960s, have various levels of remediation needed there. They're essentially dilapidated, as is the infrastructure. So they're on a two city block site. There's one restroom on the whole property, so there isn't infrastructure, utilities adequate to service, which proposes 600,000 square feet of development. Yeah, and most of it from folks. Coming from the historic perspective, how will you retain some of the historic elements of the building? Yeah. So there's. There's kind of two parts of that. There's a series of almost 200,000 square feet of I call them brick and timber there. They're brick timber. They're the sawtooth buildings. Those will be retained. Repurpose. You know, the term adaptive reuse? Yeah. There are buildings that were built in 60, 70 or 80, 90 that are CMU block or metal that are completely nonfunctional and not historically architecturally interesting. Those will be removed to make way for new development. Great. And you're talking about a 100% commercial building. But should you decide to build housing? Did you guys agree to an affordable housing plan? Well, what we've what we've discussed a couple of things. One, it's not zoned for residential. So for that to happen, we'd have to request a zoning change would be here in front of all of you requesting that. And at that point, we can, whatever the current affordable housing rules regs are, certainly would comply. It was also mentioned that we are in discussions with Denver Urban Renewal Authority for TIFF and likewise the development agreement we would negotiate today would be commercial only if we wanted to include residential. So you would do it, but you would do a plan. Okay, great. Thank you. Thank you. Councilman Brooks, seeing no other questions. The public hearing for accountable 885 is closed. Comments by members of council. Councilman Brooks. Yeah. No, Mr. President, thank you. No comments, really. I mean, this is this has been a long time in the making of anybody who's. I'm actually five blocks away from this site. And so I think for this current proposal that's on the table, the infrastructure that is required here alone is going to be a heavy lift. And so I'll be supporting this and looking forward to working with the developer in the neighborhood and folks out there as we continue to move past the 39th Avenue Green Way Channel and also the incorporation of some small businesses that benefit the community in the future. Thanks. Thank you. Councilman Brooks. Councilman Espinosa. For those few dedicated individuals that that watch this regularly, you probably see me sort of hammer on metro districts from time to time, sort of where I'm questioning the validity and necessity of using this as a tool. This one, I just want to say thank you to the development team and the owner. Byron, if you're in the audience there, because, you know, I for exploring this avenue as a way to help sort of reshape and recraft this site, but do it in a way that helps make it possible to preserve what are some pretty unique structures in the city, remnant structures in the city, and in an integral part of the history of the 38th and Blake area. So I just this is, to me, one of those things they can wholeheartedly support because it's the right tool for the right reasons, both for the development team and for the for the city at large. Thank you. Thank you. Councilman Ezra Espinosa. In other comments, Madam Secretary, roll call. Brooks Clark. Sorry, Espinosa. I Flinn. I Gilmore. Herndon Cashman. Carnage. Lopez. I knew Ortega. Sussman, I. Black I. Mr. President. I. Am secretary, please. Because the voting and thus results. Are you get a flame. When 11 eyes. 11 eyes counts, about eight five has. Passed. Councilman Flynn, will you please put council bill 944 on the floor?