THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE
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by Michael Monks
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At that meeting in March, representatives from Legacy spoke of the deplorable, unsalvageable condition of the building, currently used as law offices, while the City's historic preservation officer, Beth Johnson, argued that Legacy had plenty of available parking and that the building was worth saving. (Read comments from both sides of that lengthy debate by clicking here: Possible Home of Covington's First Mayor Won't Be Parking Lot Yet)
At that meeting in March, representatives from Legacy spoke of the deplorable, unsalvageable condition of the building, currently used as law offices, while the City's historic preservation officer, Beth Johnson, argued that Legacy had plenty of available parking and that the building was worth saving. (Read comments from both sides of that lengthy debate by clicking here: Possible Home of Covington's First Mayor Won't Be Parking Lot Yet)
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Finally, Johnson asked for assistance with an economic analysis from Jeanne Schroer, executive director of the Catalytic Development Fund of Northern Kentucky. Schroer wrote, "Generally, though based on the assumptions I used, a developer would probably not consider this to be financially feasible even with the historic tax credits. Total costs with acquisition are close to $460,000. The cash flow from the leases only supports a loan of $189,000 so developer cash required is $227,000. This can be offset with about $64,260 of historic tax credits... Even with this, the developer's return on cost is only about 5.4% and his return on equity is 3.5% (not good -- negative leverage)."
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Schroer continued, "Basically, the developer is not able to borrow enough money to make it worthwhile from a return standpoint."
Schroer continued, "Basically, the developer is not able to borrow enough money to make it worthwhile from a return standpoint."
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Johnson's official recommendation then was for the board to approve the demolition on the basis that the building could not be reused or earn an economic return upon its value. Members of the UDRB seemed unanimously uncomfortable with the task then before them. The widow of the building's longtime owner spoke up. "I invited the urban design review board to tour the building, I thought you should all the inside, not just the cute little bricks on the outside," said Catherine Hawes before weaving a tale about a sewage flood in the structure's basement. "The building is not in good shape."
Johnson's official recommendation then was for the board to approve the demolition on the basis that the building could not be reused or earn an economic return upon its value. Members of the UDRB seemed unanimously uncomfortable with the task then before them. The widow of the building's longtime owner spoke up. "I invited the urban design review board to tour the building, I thought you should all the inside, not just the cute little bricks on the outside," said Catherine Hawes before weaving a tale about a sewage flood in the structure's basement. "The building is not in good shape."
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The board took particular caution with what it viewed as possibly setting a precedent that would allow for buildings to be torn down simply because they are no longer viewed to be economically viable and then replaced with parking lots. By not voting on the issue and allowing the plans to move forward by default, no such precedent was set.
The board took particular caution with what it viewed as possibly setting a precedent that would allow for buildings to be torn down simply because they are no longer viewed to be economically viable and then replaced with parking lots. By not voting on the issue and allowing the plans to move forward by default, no such precedent was set.
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