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City still trying to agree on value of land for downtown project
Council approves developer contract
By Erin Mayes
The redevelopment agency is still trying to seal the deal with the owners of the last few parcels it needs to make room for a downtown mixed-use development, but the two sides haven't found middle ground yet.
The city council, however, acting as the redevelopment agency, was able to move forward with the project last week, approving a development contract with Barry Swenson Builder on Feb. 20.
In the deal, the agency will buy the land for the project, then sell the property to the Swenson for the same price it paid, Redevelopment Manager Kirk Heinrichs said.
Steve and Paul Werthmann own the last significant portion of land that the agency wants to purchase on E. Campbell Avenue, between Second and Third streets. The Werthmanns have been unwilling to sell their property for the price for which it was appraised --$1.6 million, or $50 per square foot.
Neither the Werthmanns nor any city officials were willing to say how much the Werthmanns have asked for the property. The agency purchased parcels from two other property owners on that block for a total of $726,750, excluding relocation costs.
One of the conditions of the deal is that Swenson will pay up to $80 per square foot for the Werthmann property, although the city may have to pay more to acquire the land.
If the agency ends up paying more than that, it will decide, along with the developer, how the overage will be handled.
The agency began eminent domain proceedings more than three months ago, in order to obtain the remaining 13,230 square feet of the Werthmanns' land. The entire area to be developed is approximately 26,000 square feet.
Eminent domain is a legal process that allows cities to claim land to be used for the public good.
Mayor Matthew Dean said the redevelopment agency is eager to acquire the property before the appraisal expires, necessitating another appraisal. If another appraisal is done, it could be a higher price than the original estimate.
Another reason for using eminent domain to acquire the property is to make sure that the three-story parking garage, which is scheduled to be completed in March 2002, isn't built and left standing next to a vacant lot for a few years, Dean said.
Steve Werthmann, one of the owners, said that, while he didn't want to comment on the eminent domain proceedings or the price of the property, a meeting with a mediator has been scheduled for a couple of weeks from now, to help the agency and the Werthmanns come to an agreement.
In the meantime, Heinrichs said construction of the 300-space parking garage planned for that area should begin around June. He said the 30,000-square-foot, mixed-use development should be completed sometime in 2003.
The building is to be two stories tall with retail space on the bottom floor and office space on the top. Tenants have not yet been confirmed for the spaces.
The new building is called the Master Development Project and is one of many construction efforts in Campbell. The redevelopment agency's goal for the downtown area is to restore it as the focal point of the city.
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Campbell, California
