Toledo's budget for buying land is controversial

EDITOR'S NOTE: This version corrects the day of the council hearing.

Toledo's newly released budget for permanent improvements such as streets and major purchases -- which is stressed with a sizable transfer to the city's general fund for expenses such as police and fire salaries -- is expected to be approved this month, but council is first expected to dissect out at least one controversial allocation.

Included in the budget recommended by the Bell administration is $4.97 million for "new projects," which includes spending $350,000 this year and the following two years to buy 48 acres known as Capital Commons at 5600 Angola Rd. for a total of $1,055,000.

The Bell administration is recommending that Toledo City Council approve buying that land, with the cost spread out over three years. But that request has raised a few eyebrows on the 12-member council since Mayor Mike Bell's administration has been divesting the city of properties such as The Docks and much of the Marina District, both in East Toledo.

Council has a hearing set for 1 p.m. Monday on the request.

Toledo's deputy mayor of external affairs, Tom Crothers, said the city has an obligation to the property's owners, who are not listed on records filed with the Lucas County Auditor.

"Earlier administrations made representations to the owners of the property that we would as a partner make certain infrastructure improvements to the site expected to cost $1.2 million and we would not own the property," Mr. Crothers said.

Tom Schlachter, who was one of the principal members of the "Take Back Toledo" recall campaign against former Mayor Carty Finkbeiner, is involved in the property.

City leaders, like many on council and Mr. Crothers, have said they understood that Mr. Schlachter is an owner -- if not the owner -- of the property, but Mr. Schlachter himself said he no longer owns the land.

"I am no longer an owner of that property. I donated my shares to St. Francis de Sales High School," Mr. Schlachter told The Blade. "I was chairman of the [school's] capital campaign … I have been actively trying to help St. Francis liquidate."

Mr. Schlachter has tried several times to get the property rezoned from industrial to a designation that would allow mobile homes. "The last attempt to rezone was last year," he said.

Each time, he has been denied by both the city plan commission and council.

According to the purchase authorization ordinance now before council, Toledo has been in "cooperation with Capital Commons Investors, LLC" since 1987, and the city has been working to develop the property. "The development agreement called for the city to invest in or secure funding to construct street and subsurface infrastructure improvements," the ordinance states.

Neither Mr. Finkbeiner nor former Mayor Jack Ford before him would authorize the street and sewer improvements. The final time Mr. Finkbeiner denied the improvements was before the birth of the recall campaign against him in 2009.

"He, for the second and third years I was mayor, falsely proclaimed that the city made a commitment to him," Mr. Finkbeiner said Wednesday. "The city never, ever agreed to provide water or sewer to that piece of property. We did not, absolutely did not, make a commitment. It is one of the reasons why he was a leader in the 'Recall Carty Finkbeiner' effort."

Councilman Joe McNamara also disagrees with the Bell administration that the city has any obligation to buy the property.

"We have a $15 million structural deficit, we have many needs such as fixing our roads, demolishing abandoned homes, and getting more police on the streets," Mr. McNamara said. "I don't believe we have an obligation there from the city of Toledo to either buy it or build roads."

Councilman D. Michael Collins said essentially the same thing.

"The City of Toledo under the Bell administration has taken a position that we divest ourselves of real estate and to take $1 million out of the CIP to purchase this is a step in the opposite direction," Mr. Collins said. "We cannot afford to take that million out of the CIP at the expense of comprising our infrastructure."

The city's $46 million capital improvements budget includes spending $15.4 million for general obligation debt service, $6.77 million more for the transfer to the general fund, and nearly $6.5 million for "operating budget costs." The remaining money is carved up and includes $1.6 million for "lease payment commitments;" $4.7 million for major street repaving; $2.5 million for residential street repaving; $353,000 for sidewalks, and $989,000 for bridges.

Also earmarked within that $4.97 million for "new projects" is $400,000 to raze the former Acme Power Plant at the Marina District; $125,000 for improvements to Roosevelt Park swimming pool; $750,000 for Promenade Park, and $130,000 for flood control dike maintenance.

Councilman George Sarantou, chairman of council's finance committee, said the CIP budget is very tight.

"The good news is we do have a commitment from the administration to do more street paving than we did last year and also the sidewalk program is in there," he said.

Contact Ignazio Messina at: imessina@theblade.com or 419-724-6171.