Third Coast In The News

Parking Commission not ready to decide whether to sell spaces Developer who wants them says he can wait, Editorial, The Grand Rapids Press, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Apr 13, 2007

GRAND RAPIDS -- City parking commissioners said Thursday they aren't ready to decide if the city should sell two-thirds of its downtown parking supply to a private developer.

But the advisory panel decided it is entitled to have a say in the process if the City Commission wants to consider an offer by Third Coast Development Partners.

Third Coast has offered to buy 4,478 of the 7,250 parking spaces the city owns in the downtown area. It has said it could pay between $35 million and $45 million for the four ramps and 10 parking lots.

Though Third Coast has asked for a 45-day negotiating period, Parking Commission Chairman Jack Hoffman said his board could take six to 12 months or longer to study whether it wants to sell off one of the city's key economic development tools.

"There are some very serious questions to be raised," board member John Tully said. "From one point of view, it's thinking outside of the box. From another point of view, it's a dramatic change in direction."

Commissioner Kathy Clements said downtown business owners are worried about the offer. "I would like to see us do some surveys of downtown businesses. Sometimes, we don't ask the customer what they think."

The Parking Commission's lukewarm response echoed the Downtown Development Authority's comments when it met to discuss the Third Coast offer Wednesday. The DDA owns seven of the parking lots included in the offer.

After the meeting, Third Coast co-owner David Levitt said they can wait.

"The Parking Commission and City Commission are grappling with important issues from a policy perspective," he said. "We're in this for the long haul. If they want to do a longer evaluation process on the broader policies, we're going to be there."

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