A proposed sale and development of 5.8 acres of city-owned property along the North Little Rock riverfront earned approval from the North Little Rock City Council Monday evening.
The North Little Rock Building Authority would sell the property, 632 W. Riverfront Drive, for $2.53 million under what Mayor Joe Smith has referred to as an "option to buy," because the agreement allows for a year for the buyer to obtain financing, with two six-month options for extensions.
Aldermen voted 6-0 for approval in a 40-minute, final council meeting for the year. Aldermen Beth White and Linda Robinson were absent.
The former Smarthouse Way industrial site, just west of the Broadway Bridge and Dickey-Stephens Park baseball stadium, is envisioned as a mixed-used project that would include residential properties, developer J. Fletcher Hanson III said in a brief presentation to the City Council.
Hanson, chief executive officer of Newmark Grubb Arkansas, is heading up the potential buyer, H3RE LLC, to piece together the financial investment and development opportunity for the property, utilizing partnerships in Dallas, Oklahoma City and other cities, he said. Newmark Grubb has also been the firm listing the property for sale at a price of $3.2 million.
Hanson said he has already "talked with private investors who would like to provide capital for the project." He said he approached Smith and city Chief of Staff Danny Bradley "a few weeks ago" with the proposal.
"This will be a collaborative project that will energize" North Little Rock's downtown and its riverfront, Hanson told the council.
In an answer to a question from Alderman Bruce Foutch about the property's appraised value, Smith said that the last appraisal was in 2008 for $3.1 million.
"It's been on the market for a number of years," Smith said. "The market drives the price. ... We hope we have a great partnership."
The city has listed the site for sale since 2005. That year, the property was awarded an Environmental Protection Agency Brownfields cleanup grant to clear it of contaminated soil. A brownfield is property that was contaminated by former industrial, agricultural or commercial operations. In 2008, the city announced a $1.3 million bond issuance to relocate power lines from the property. The removal was completed in 2011.
A different development group proposed in 2005 to build a pair of high-rise condominiums with an adjacent marina on Smarthouse Way, but later abandoned the project.
The city has an agreement for the property to be used starting next year as a construction staging area for the removal and reconstruction of the Broadway Bridge. That lease will stay in effect while the development group works to put together a project, Smith has said.
Metro on 12/23/2014