By Jonathan Copsey / STAFF

“It’s just not the right time.”

That’s what just about everyone involved said was the reason for putting the kibosh on what was tagged as Alpharetta’s golden egg, the City Center Project. As of last week, it is no more, and Alpharetta will have to wait to see a new City Hall.

“I still support it, and I am still committed to downtown, and it is my hope that at some point we will be able to start this project,” said Mayor Arthur Letchas. “But it’s just not the right time.”

But if Letchas and his council were so sure of the virtues of the plan just three months ago when they voted for it, what has changed so drastically to reverse their positions?

In short, the economy.

“The timing is just pretty terrible,” said Councilman Jim Paine, who had supported the project. “When it was developed there were some really good intentions, but as time went on, there was some creep in the whole thing. Being a very dynamic project, things continue to change and we find ourselves in a situation where things are different now.”

“I’m still in support of this,” said Councilman David Belle Isle, who was a major proponent of the concept, serving as its spokesman. “I ran my election campaign on this. But the economy just kept getting worse.”

Even when the idea was first proposed, Solomon Holdings, the developer chosen to lead the construction, could not guarantee that any of the buildings in the private side of this public-private initiative would be built in a timely manner. In comparison, Prospect Park, what was deemed to be a grand shopping complex for several years, has ground to a halt; it’s little more than a pile of dirt and has no prospect of beginning anytime soon. That would not be an option for the middle of the downtown Historic District.

“Look down the street at Prospect Park,” said Councilman D.C. Aiken. “It’s not a matter of if that will be built, but when. But we’ve been a couple years now because of the economy, and these guys [the business occupants] need to get financing unless they can pay cash, which most of them couldn’t do.”

And there’s still no tax digest from Fulton County. This year’s budget was passed without a clear number given by the county as to just how much the city could expect from property taxes. Last year, Fulton reassessed commercial property taxes, in most cases resulting in much higher rates. Needless to say, many of the property owners appealed, leading to large uncertainty as to just how many of the reassessments would be upheld and how many would be overturned. The final number due to Alpharetta is still pending, and with it any certainty of fully funding the interest payments on the bond.

Alpharetta’s Halo

Alpharetta and its leadership have been trying to create the groundwork for a brand new City Hall – rivaling that of Roswell’s – to replace its aging and cramped current one. For the past five years, builders and developers have come and gone in a revolving door of promises and guarantees that have been anything but.

Solomon assured both the City Council and the citizens that they could pull together a team of North Fulton’s best and brightest to build something truly amazing. Parkland, a town square, a 400-car parking deck, new shops and office space would go up, with the crown jewel being a new city hall building, complete with clock-tower.

The hope – and one of the main selling points of the plan – was that such a building would revitalize Alpharetta’s historic district with some new blood, drawing tourists and businesses to a new “town center.” This so-called “halo effect” would, in effect, make everyone rich through higher property values and increased shoppers.

How much does a city hall cost these days? A whopping $25 million, to be paid for through a special bond that voters would authorize on the November ballot. That money would build both the city hall and the large parking deck below it. That would be the “public” in this public-private partnership; Solomon would get to build these structures for the city, throwing in $195,000 for the effort, and would then build the surrounding offices and restaurants.

It was with this in mind that the City Council voted in late March to move forward with the plan presented by staff and Solomon. Councilmen Doug DeRito and D.C. Aiken were the only two on the Council who raised serious objections to the proposal, citing, among other things, a lack of transparency in the selection of Solomon for such a project, and too many unknowns involved in the plan. These details were what forced Council to accept the plans but with the caveat that city staff conduct updated feasibility and impact studies.

The devil in the details

It was not just the economy that halted the plans. Those studies that staff was instructed to conduct, updating the ones done five years ago? They returned less than stellar results.

“We followed up to the directives that Council gave,” said Assistant City Administrator James Drinkard. “They had asked us to follow up on some things, feasibility studies, traffic impact, etc. The biggest thing was finalizing some of the details in the relationship between ourselves and Solomon. In sorting out those details, those points really started to shift [because of the dropping economy]. As a result of that, we couldn’t hit the comfort point with the project.

“Solomon tried very hard, we tried very hard,” Drinkard added, “and when we finally came to the middle ground, it was not where we were all comfortable with as the right deal for the city, the citizens, or for Solomon.”

Along with a lack of commitment given by Solomon on just when their private office space might go up, there was also the problem that they had not secured agreements with adjoining property owners to build on their land. The same thing happened last time Alpharetta tried to build a city hall, and, not surprisingly, the same people were involved.

A castle or chateau?

When the City Center project was first presented at public hearings, the community seemed excited about he porject. The meetings were packed with people who felt their city needed something a little grander than what it currently has. In fact, at the first meeting, almost all the questions raised pertained to whether the new library would be there and had nothing to do with the city hall. As the meetings progressed, some uncertainty began to bubble up about whether an economic slump really was the best time for such a proposal. Add to that questions over the large cost and the lack of any bidding on the contract given to Solomon, and it was only inevitable that people would begin to speak out against it.

One of the more vocal critics was local resident Jeff Berry and his humor website “Chateau Alpharetta,” which led visitors on a mock guided tour of the gilded halls of government. The camp nature of the site sharply pointed out drawbacks of the proposal.

Financial Times

“We didn’t have a financial model in place,” said DeRito. “D.C. [Aiken] and I are the only financial minds on the Council, and we were trying to say we don’t’ know how this thing is going to be paid for.”

The original plan was to take out the $25 million bond. Interest would begin to be paid in 2013, just in time for previous debt to be paid off, effectively maintaining the status quo. So immediately, the City Center was not costing the taxpayers more than they are already paying. The problem, according to Aiken and DeRito, is that a loan of that size is effectively all the city could ask for. Large-scale projects, such as road repairs, that might require some smaller bonds, would have to wait many years before the banks would allow another bond referendum. Also, there should have been other, cheaper, options on the table.

“We hadn’t considered any alternatives or transportation and [the bond debt would] pretty much take up all of our bond capacity that the city can take on. Roads and infrastructure will need lots of money to maintain in the near future,” said DeRito. “This thing would have bee a financial iceberg for the city.”

“I think there should have been more time spent looking at alternatives,” said Aiken. Why build the new City Hall on the site of the old one? Was that really the best option?

“There is vacant office space in Alpharetta we could have got at a very cost-efficient rate, instead of costing $25 million,” said DeRito. “There’s an office building that could have accommodated a new city hall. It is already built and [would have cost] 1/3 the price.” Housing a city hall in an office block is not unusual, since Johns Creek, Milton and Sandy Springs all use that option; Roswell is the only other exception.

It’s Not Over Yet

Despite the failing of this plan, there will surely be more in the future. The idea is just too good for Alpharetta to pass up and, like so many things, will have to be done someday. Just not today.

All Council members affirmed their support of the idea – and of Solomon, who they believe did its best given the conditions – but again, now was just not the right time.

­“We’re 150 years old,” said Belle Isle, “so we don’t have to be in a huge hurry. It’ll get done.”