Thursday, August 13, 2009

SPX Update #1

We had some positive conversations this week with the City real estate department about our acquisition of Ladder 12. We hope to soon be able to report more details about timing and process.

We also recently had some encouraging discussions with two banks about the project. It seems that construction financing will be an easier lift than long-term permanent financing. Most of the commercial permanent loan products include repayment/amortization terms that can't be supported by Buffalo rents without heavy subsidies. In our case, we will use historic tax credit equity to balance our development budget.

If you've been to the building, you know that it's literally surrounded by parking lots. Great right? Well, not exactly. In the 1950s, the City conveyed the lots to a neighboring non-profit, reserving a parking easement for so long as the firehouse remained open. When the firehouse closed in 2004 (or was it 2005?), the easement evaporated and the building now sits land-locked. We attempted to contact our neighbors this week about a parking arrangement and we will keep you apprised of our progress.

Have a great day.

Jason

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Don't forget the bike rack!