Tuesday, December 07, 1999
Luken takes slap at Shirey
Surprised partners, mayor says
BY ROBERT ANGLEN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Luken |
Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken criticized the city manager Monday over publicly dis cussing plans to move 600 county parking spaces for the Bengals' new stadium without discussing it with the team or the county first.
In his first official meeting since being sworn into office Wednesday, Mr. Luken said “this is not the way we want to do business” and apologized to the Bengals and Hamilton County officials.
He said City Manager John Shirey should have told the county and the team that he was considering moving parking spaces as a way to revitalize the failed downtown McAlpin's department store.
“It's not fair for people to find out about city intentions when it is announced unilaterally at a planning commission meeting,” Mr. Luken said. “It's just that when you have partners, you don't surprise them the way the city manager did Friday.”
Mr. Luken made his remarks during Monday's meeting of council's Community Development Committee and said afterward he was surprised by an article Saturday in The Cincinnati Enquirer outlining details of a plan to move 600 parking spaces for the Bengals from the riverfront to Fourth and Race streets, site of the vacant McAlpin's store.
“I had just been over to talk to county commissioners two days before and told them we would keep them advised” on city projects, he said. Instead, he received irate calls from county and team officials after the article appeared.
Mr. Luken, who made the performance of Mr. Shirey an issue in his election campaign, said he has no concerns with the substance of the plan, just the way it came out. He did not say the McAlpin's problem would be used against the manager in any performance re view.
In order to develop the former department store into a new retail center, officials say, the county needs to move 600 parking spaces from the riverfront to the McAlpin's site. Those spaces are among 5,000 promised to the Bengals by the county in its stadium construction contract.
Building parking garages at the McAlpin's site is estimated to cost about $11,000 per space or $6.6 million. Mr. Shirey said the city — which is investing about $8.5 million for demolition, property purchases and public improvements — can't afford to pay for parking.
The solution, he said, is for the county to renegotiate its lease with the Bengals and pay for the parking. That would also accomplish a goal of the city-appointed Riverfront Advisory Commission, which recommended moving 1,700 above-ground parking spaces north of Third Street to help spur development.
Andi Udris, city economic develop ment director, blamed problems on the “tone” of the article, not with the plan, which he and Mr. Shirey discussed with members of the Planning Commission at their Friday meeting. He said he did not foresee any problems working with the county.
County and team officials said Friday they had not heard from the city about the McAlpin's site or about moving parking spaces. However, they said that wouldn't necessarily jeopardize the plan. “They should have had a heads up,” said Council man Todd Portune, chairman of the Community Development committee. “Not that they had to sign off, but we should have talked to our partners.”
Mr. Portune said Monday the committee should hold off on a scheduled recommendation to the City Council for an agreement with a developer for the McAlpin's site. He said he wanted to make sure the project was “reflexive of the interests of this entire community.”
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