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The city plans to partner with a private developer on a $65 million downtown redevelopment project adjacent to the former home of Market Square Arena.
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Plans for the mid-rise project call for 600 apartments and 37,000 square feet of retail space at the long-vacant former Bank One operations center, which occupies a full city block between
A series of agreements related to the deal are on the agenda for a Wednesday hearing of the Metropolitan Development Commission.
The developer, an entity called Market Square Garage/Ops Partners LLC, would get a 10-year tax abatement worth about $6.6 million in exchange for investing about $65 million for multiple phases of the project and creating about 52 jobs. Details on investors in the partnership were not immediately available.
A proposed agreement between the city and developer calls for the project to begin within 12 months and be mostly complete within 30 months. About $30 million would be spent to renovate and reuse the 150,000-square-foot operations center, and up to $35 million would go toward development on the surrounding land.
The developer would buy back 600 of the garage spaces from the city, and the remaining spaces would be available for public use at market rates. That revenue would repay the city’s garage investment.
The city would retain an option to locate a public facility on the western half of the property. A project timetable estimates the city and developer will close on the garage deal and the developer will secure a loan from Regions Bank by July 31.
The deal does not include two parcels that previously housed Market Square Arena, but city officials hope the adjacent development will help spur development interest in the MSA site.
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