Downtown redevelopment board develops sense of urgency

Erin Neff

Friday, Feb. 18, 2000 | 11:06 a.m.

New people and a new sense of interest gripped the City Centre Development Corp. Thursday.

Even though attorney Marty Keach and architect Steve Swisher were the real newcomers to the downtown redevelopment board, mid- to high-ranking city officials also came down for a listen.

Several times during discussions, board president Jodi Goodheart wanted information on the time elements involved in various projects.

"This issue is one of time," she said. "We are being charged to get things moving."

Mayor Oscar Goodman's "white paper" on what he hopes to accomplish during his term is considered an ambitious attempt to revitalize downtown. Observers say Goodman pushed to create a seat for Keach on the board because he wants a close ally to watch out for the city's interests on the private sector board.

Keach is Goodman's friend and law partner. Goodman wanted to appoint Keach to the board when a vacancy arose. However, the City Centre bylaws specified that only an architect could be appointed to the particular seat in question.

As a result, Goodman pushed to change City Centre's bylaws and create an eighth, at-large seat with Keach in mind. The council unanimously appointed Keach and Swisher to the board Wednesday.

Although only the makeup of the board had technically changed when it met Thursday, the sense of interest and urgency also seemed a bit stronger.

City Manager Virginia Valentine, City Attorney Brad Jerbic, Planning Director Tim Chow and Deputy City Manager Steve Houchens were among 14 city staffers in attendance.

City officials in the Building, Planning and Neighborhood Services Department typically attend the board's meetings, but higher-ranking staff usually does not.

Keach immediately made his voice heard, asking the board to pay close attention to an item related to the future use of the historic Fifth Street School downtown.

City Centre has received a $10,000 grant for consulting services regarding the school. The board on Thursday authorized its staff to advertise a request for proposals for the consultants.

Keach said he wanted the staff to bring the prospective consultants back before the board instead of just selecting one themselves.

"I see the Fifth Street School as being an important part of downtown redevelopment," Keach said. "I'd like to have an opportunity to see who the consultants are going to be."

In another item, the board approved the design development plan for the proposed parking garage at an office tower at Fourth Street and Lewis Avenue. The board called for a precast construction option which lowers the anticipated construction cost by $414,635.