A hitch with environmental cleanup is one factor delaying the sale to St. Patrick Hospital. However, related plans are under way for Safeway to open a new grocery store at the West Broadway site in 2008, according to city officials.
The Missoula Redevelopment Agency's Chris Behan told the MRA board this week that while the transactions are held up, they are nearing completion.
MRA board members have asked the council to approve a one-year extension on the $845,000 buy-sell agreement. It won't be the first time council members consider such a request, and they're likely to ask plenty of questions when they formally hear the proposal at a presentation tentatively scheduled for next Wednesday.
The project emerged in 2000, when the city put its old shops for sale. Subsequently, the city, St. Pat's and Safeway made a deal. Basically, the city sells the land to St. Pat's. The hospital, in turn, swaps with Safeway for its existing site.
The exchange brings the neighborhood a consolidated hospital campus and a larger Safeway store.
A lawsuit filed three years ago temporarily stalled the transaction. City staff questioned whether the proposal for a huge grocery store complied with planning documents, and a group of residents then sued. In March 2006, the Montana Supreme Court ruled in favor of the city, saying council members had sufficiently considered a neighborhood plan and growth policy in crafting a special zoning district that allowed a big store.
So about a year ago, the project went back online. While the three parties have taken steps to settle the deal, some work remains that won't be completed by the end of the month.
Safeway has made progress. The company has almost completed detailed design plans for a new store surrounded by trees and shadowed by a clock tower. Its goal is to open in November 2008 - a target Behan characterized as ambitious.
Meanwhile, the city cleared a significant financial hurdle. A $1.5 million tax increment bond is paying for the work, which includes demolition, remediation, sidewalk construction, retaining wall construction, and even legal fees and resident relocation.
The taxes generated by the new store will go toward paying off the bond, but Safeway guaranteed the difference if taxes aren't enough, according to Behan.
“That was a big step,” he said.
He expects several other steps to take place in the next few months. Before St. Pat's swaps land with Safeway, about 10 tenants who live in residences in one corner of the property will need to be relocated.
The old shops site also needs to be cleaned, and soil remediation has proved to be more difficult and costly than originally expected. One challenge is finding a place to dispose of lead, though Behan said he believes the issue will soon be resolved.
The project has been in the works for some seven years, but several people in attendance at Tuesday's MRA meeting said the plans are inching toward reality despite delays and increased costs.
Board chairman Hal Fraser said other undertakings in Missoula also have encountered cost overruns and holdups, and they've moved ahead. Missoula has a ballpark and new aquatics facilities, for example. Though these developments met similar challenges, he said completion is in the best interest of the Garden City.
“It's pretty important to this area of town,” Fraser said.
Area residents rely on their neighborhood grocery store, said board member Rosalie Cates. It's the only one in a wide radius.
Presently, the involved parties are meeting weekly to reach the finish line, and the sentiment Tuesday was they're nearly there.
“We're pretty excited at this point. It's feeling very real,” said Jinny Iverson, representing St. Patrick Hospital.
The delay isn't costing taxpayers money, according to Behan. St. Pat's is reimbursing the city for $1,200 monthly holding costs. While the land might be worth more money now than it was when the sale was agreed upon, Behan said reopening negotiations would be risky. Safeway, for instance, could back out of the deal and the neighborhood would lose its grocery store.
While not every MRA board member initially supported the project, several said now is not the time to undo it. Behan is hoping council members trust the scrutiny historically provided by the MRA board and follow its lead in approving an extension. However, he said he expects some pressure from council members when they hear the request.
The council will take a final vote during a regular Monday night meeting.
Reporter Keila Szpaller can be reached at 523-5262 or at Keila.Szpaller@missoulian.com
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