CCP 10-25-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES SEPTEMBER 9, 2002 5 - . the original 18-month extension because they believed Chesapeake was intending to negotiate, and intended to acquire this property. He stated his clients believed 18 months was reasonable, but there had been no due diligence in proceeding on this or acquiring the property, and Chesapeake has had no communication with his clients for the past year. He stated his clients had listed the property for $300,000 below the market rate from two years ago. He noted nobody was interested in purchasing this property for market value as long as there was a cloud of redevelopment. He stated his clients wanted to be released from this cloud of redevelopment so they could market their property. In the alternative, he suggested they extend the Master Plan PUD approval for as minimal time as possible, and to require Chesapeake to negotiate with due diligence, However, he respectfully requested that the extension be denied. He noted their appraiser had indicated it was very unlikely that anyone who had an interest in this property was going to buy it and then move their business operation into it knowing that at anytime they could be forced out because of a possible redevelopment. He stated this significantly affected what interest there was in the marketplace. He asked the City hold Chesapeake to a standard of good faith and due diligence. He stated A.T.S, Steel, Inc. had communicated directly with Mr. Carlson, but there had been no willingness on Chesapeake's part to engage in negotiations, and the previous Chesapeake offer had been withdrawn. . Peter Carlson, Chesapeake Companies and CUK Holdings, updated Council on what had happened since they had granted the PUD, He stated they were not able to start marketing the property until after the closing with Morris Communications on December 31, 2001. He indicated it took approximately one month after that to start the marketing of the property. He indicated they have had seven full months to market the property, and they had spent a substantial amount of money to market it and finalize different analysis from civil engineering, surveys, etc, He indicated they had been pleased with the response, but with the economics of the nation at this time, the market had gotten worse from when they first started this process, He stated they were right now talking with a national company and were hopeful these negotiations would work out. In response to A.T.S. Steel, Inc, comments, he believed Chesapeake had attempted to negotiate with A.T.S, Steel, Inc, on this. He stated they could not pay a premium however as this would ruin the viability of their project. He stated their first offer had been rejected. He indicated when he had met in August with Mr. Beeson and A.T.S, Steel, Inc. they had an asking price of 3.4 million. He indicated Chesapeake was trying to be reasonable, but could not afford $88.00 per square foot, so they turned