Two local developers killed their bid to purchase much of the West Broadway area of downtown Eugene and are now modifying their plans to redevelop the land into a commercial and residential hub.
After negotiating for more than a year, local developers Tom Connor and Don Woolley announced Thursday that they have only one confirmed sale agreement with a downtown property owner, and said that they had “terminated” their Broadway District Project.
The developer’s proposed $165 million project required the additional purchase of 16 properties owned by 12 different owners between Willamette and Charnelton streets.
The pair and Opus Northwest, a real estate development firm, intended to raze existing buildings and to construct 186,000 square feet of retail space, 100,000 square feet of commercial or office space, a 1,600-seat multiscreen cinema, a parking structure, a hotel and an estimated 350 residential units.
Connor and Woolley already own seven properties in the development site, but the majority of them are vacant because of the lack of pedestrian traffic and because the building configurations don’t work well for retail space, according to their development plan.
While the project will not go forward as planned, Connor and Woolley “will evaluate their options for their properties,” according to a press release issued Thursday.
The Broadway District Project first incited public outcry earlier this year when the developers proposed that the Eugene City Council could obtain the needed land. The developers nixed the prospect of asking the city to use eminent domain to acquire property in early February; instead, hoping to negotiate with landowners.
For now the pair is “calling a halt to further discussions with property owners regarding purchase of the parcels needed for the project to proceed,” according to a press release from Connor and Woolley.
The developers said counteroffers from the remaining property owners ranged to eight times the assessed value, exceeding property values in Portland, and several property owners hadn’t counter offered and had indicated an unwillingness to sell at any price.
“It became clear to us that the hurdles on this project were insurmountable,” Woolley said in the release.
Luckey’s Club Cigar Store, located at 933 Olive St., was one of the properties Connor and Woolley hoped to purchase.
Luckey’s owner Jo Dee Moine said she heard Thursday morning that the project was no longer on the table, but added that she had never seriously entertained the proposal to sell her property and the bar, which has been in business since 1911.
Moine said the downtown business climate has improved lately and she hoped that Connor and Woolley would now make many of their properties, which she said are being held vacant, available to businesses.
“The only properties that are vacant are operated by Connor and Woolley. It leads to an appearance of blight,” she said. “I hope they will make some of those properties available for sale – one way, or another. I really encourage people to invest in downtown.”
Moine said she is planning to try and open a music studio downtown and had even made an offer on a smaller property owned by Connor and Woolley.
Commercial real estate broker Sue Prichard, who was working with Connor and Woolley to purchase the properties, said in February that many property owners expressed a willingness to sell, but that the purchasing price was a major issue.
Woolley also cited Mayor Kitty Piercy and city staff “for their work and commitment, and he encouraged the city to redouble its efforts to make downtown a safer, more attractive place to do business.”
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