Airport Project
Printed From: MiddletownUSA.com
Category: Middletown City Government
Forum Name: City Manager
Forum Description: Discuss the city manager administration including all city departments.
URL: http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4174
Printed Date: Nov 22 2024 at 11:58am
Topic: Airport Project
Posted By: Vivian Moon
Subject: Airport Project
Date Posted: Oct 14 2011 at 11:51am
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October 12, 2011
City Manager’s Report to Council
Airport Project Appropriation
City Council passed an ordinance at the end of 2009 authorizing a contract with Start Skydiving to improve one of the airport hangars for their use. The contract authorized up to $350,000 toward this project. The contract called for the money to be repaid over time from Start Skydiving lease payment.
Given that Council’s instructions were to accomplish this project, we hired Greg Pratt (filling in for various development projects since the departure of Mike Robinette) to work with Start Skydiving to define the scope of the improvements to the hangar. They have reached agreement on this project and are ready to proceed with the appropriation legislation. Start Skydiving would like to begin work as soon as possible to accomplish as much construction as possible before winter sets in.
We need two decisions from City Council:
1) an appropriation passed by City Council to spend the funds. Normally, if pushed for time, we would have a first reading on the 18th of October and then the second reading, passed by emergency on November 1. Start Skydiving has requested that Council consider passing this as an emergency on the 18th of October thereby adding 2 weeks to their construction season. The legislation will be prepared as an emergency, Council may either have the first reading on the 18th or pass it on the 18th.
2) From which fund do we want to borrow the money? Again, the contract calls for repayment of the funds through Start Skydiving lease payments over the next 5+ years. Staff’s recommendation is to use the Downtown Fund. We could also borrow from the General Fund or issue a note. We will proceed with the Downtown Fund unless I hear otherwise before Friday.
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Replies:
Posted By: VietVet
Date Posted: Oct 14 2011 at 12:03pm
"Given that Council’s instructions were to accomplish this project, we hired Greg Pratt (filling in for various development projects since the departure of Mike Robinette) to work with Start Skydiving to define the scope of the improvements to the hangar"
As acclaro has stated, I don't see the connection between Pratt, an attorney, and Robinette, who was the Econ. Dev. Director. What qualifications does Pratt have to allow him to operate in the venue of representation for the city in an economic development capacity? Apparently, Pratt is a "friend of the city" and business is being shoved his way with money supplied by the taxpayer. Why is this person being given special attention, apparently being used for issues that are out of his expertise as an attorney.
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Posted By: acclaro
Date Posted: Oct 14 2011 at 2:32pm
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Well, wasn't it the position of the emails that were put on here about Ms. G's lack of honest dealing, and using Bill Becker's words, a "potential breach of contract" claim, that they wnted the money from the 'downtown' fund, the one as M29 indicates is used for everything anyway? You know, buying property for Neyer to develo, and so forth? So, it will be the downtown fund.
As for Pratt, he and a few others, got burned by the city when they dumped about $50,000 in a failing effort to attract a small regional airliner that went bankrupt to Hook Field, I think Bill Becker championed that activity, to the tune of $50,000, so one could associate cause and effect of that loss, to make up to Pratt his "investment." I think Swope at FBT lost about $10 Kk, Pratt, others, so the schoool threw FBT $150 Kk in money for fighting Franklin schools, and the city either is trying to 'repay' Pratt, or they like his nifty digs he bought from B Levy, the Playboy Club house on Curryer, or both.
Lets do some quick math here. We have by 2016, about $1.6 Mm in net loss at Weatherwax, about $750,000 in net loss with the C State deal, maybe $3 Mm in net loss in the hospital move to Warren Cty, maybe $300,000 in loss in PAC, about $300,000 in net loss in worthless consulting fees including marketing and such (Neyer/ Renaissance, etc.). And the pool is destroyed to save $0, while all this money is wasted. I won't even get into the trips to Paducha, Vegas, and Massachusetts.
I wonder if they did any due diligence on Weatherwax if it better to sell a golf course in its prime 4 years ago, or hold it taking a loss of $1.6 Mm, when the market takes a turn, and because so many high school golfers, use it for their home course (maybe 30 students total?)
Oh...Pratt also gives the under warps "privilege" advantage, hush, hush. Maybe that is why my friend Mr. Presta, you never heard about that Letter of Intent you have been worried about---its a secret with Ms. G and her counsel.
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Posted By: Observer
Date Posted: Oct 14 2011 at 2:36pm
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I just went to Mr. Pratt's website and his site shows a subsidiarycalled The Pratt Business Group. It sounds as if he has some experience in doing what he has been contracted to do.
His law firm lists areas of practice as:
Business organization and operation
- Employment contracts including non-competes
- Contracts
- Incorporation and LLC creation
- Sales and acquisitions
Business and Employment Litigation
Contract litigation
Construction disputes
Commercial collection
Employment
Civil rights litigation including sexual harassment, sex and age discrimination, reverse discrimination, Fair Labor Standards.
Juding by the website it would appear to me that he's qualified for the job.
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Posted By: acclaro
Date Posted: Oct 14 2011 at 2:45pm
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Oh my Observer, are you stating the city of Middletown is being sued by an employee for discrimination, termination in violation of public policy, or other reason? No, Mr. Pratt is not a merger/ acquisition expert, nor an urban planning authority with knowledge and ability to structure a deal. But., neither was Mike Robinette. Pratt is a generalist, a trial lawyer who handles everything from divorce to insurance matters, like any number of a hundred in Butler Cty. No better, no worse. An attorney closes the i's and dots the t's, he does not build urban planning pipeline. But I guess he can draft a contract (or ebven better---a Letter of Intent).
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Posted By: Observer
Date Posted: Oct 14 2011 at 3:15pm
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acclaro....thanks for the sarcasm. I'll assume that you know Mr. Pratt and his business much better than I. Seems to me that any merger or acquisition large or small would need an attorney. Judging by his website I'm guessing that Mr. Pratt has done done both. Maybe before we we say things like " the city either is trying to 'repay' Pratt, or they like his nifty digs he bought from B Levy, the Playboy Club house on Curryer, or both" you should at least take a look at his website to see that his business does exactly what you say it doesn't do. I'm referring to negotiating a contractual agreement i.e. Cin State and not Urban Planning (which i imagine is what the "planning dept" and Mary Kohler do).
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Posted By: acclaro
Date Posted: Oct 14 2011 at 3:39pm
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Observer, to be clear, there is no m/a, there is no contract. HEP will decide when it buys what buildings with city of Middletown, on what terms, and any number of about 1,000 attorneys in southwestern Ohio could write that up, or even Mr. Landen or Adkins (assuming he still is an active bar member).
No, there is nothing done in this effort which required an attorney to be involved. Correct, I do know all practice areas in law well.
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Posted By: JesWonderin
Date Posted: Oct 15 2011 at 1:42am
Irrespective of Pratt's capacity, and setting aside that he seems to be doing a little bit of everything these days (I'm thoroughly unqualified to assess what he's qualified to do), this approach is disquieting.
Assuming any of the "inside baseball" previously posted on this issue is accurate - and it needn't all be, just some - there seems to be a frightening lack of due diligence here. Also, the financing options seem sloppy & dangerous.
Following a simple path of "matching sources & uses" would suggest that the city - if it has an obligation to fund these improvements - should issue notes. That would allow the payments to be utilized, unequivocally, to retire the associated debt. It also leaves the DDF with necessary resources/debt capacity should it be needed for, I don't know, a downtown project.
Just MHO...
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"I have a perfect horror of words that are not backed up by deeds."
- Theodore Roosevelt
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Posted By: acclaro
Date Posted: Oct 15 2011 at 8:57am
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JW- the Cincinnati State matter has been beaten to death, and I admit I continue to respond to the deal. Therefore, I must make a few corrections in what you state. Firstly, there was and never will be, due diligence in the Cincinnati State deal. Due Diligence is made prior to making a commitment for an acquisition, not after, hence, there was and never will be, due diligence on the expenditures for slightly under $500,000. for Cincinnati State's conceptual plan brought forth by Middletown.
The trip now to Massachusetts is to try to squeeze a play for MUM's newly created HIT program to be put downtown, and more activity from Cincinnati State's Allied Health Program to be put downtown than out at Greentree. That is associated with the miscaluclation more buildings (all) were to be used to restore downtown, when the actual Allied Health partmenrship with C state and Greenetree is out by the Atrium. I assume there may be a computer lab downtown, one floor, and two or three floors of administrative presence.
Finally, there is no capital outlay for restoration, modernization, with HEP. Perhas Ohio will offer some form of tax credits, but the ity doesn't foot the bill for that, they just sell the buildings at cost, after carrying them for a year or so, at cost to HEP. I would suspect now the city may be aware that C State and the HEP deal is really a play on Allied Health, not culinary, not involving The Manchester, and maybe one building, then the concern is what would HEP do with the buildings after 5 years, if the enrollment goals are not met. Does HEP sell them to a gambling casino? That's what the 'due diligence/ trip is about, among other reasons which have nothing to do with the city of Middletown. It does create 'buzz' just before the election, and enough people have their head in the sand to not have any insight what is taking place.
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Posted By: ground swat
Date Posted: Oct 15 2011 at 9:36pm
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Does the paper come off like this town has 200,000 residents. 48,000 and I talk to alot of people in one day in this town. Who's in charge????
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