IN HINDSIGHT: STUART LICHTER HAS BEEN BAD MEDICINE FOR STARK COUNTY?

UPDATED:  2:36 PM

JULY 9, 2018 RECORDED VIDEOS
OF
NORTH CANTON MAYOR
DAVID HELD
ON
THE HOOVER PROJECT 

It appears to The Stark County Political Report that North Cantons Hoover Rehab Project (Hoover) and the Professional Football Hall of Fame Village Expansion Project (HOF, HOF-VP) are going nowhere these days.

What is the common factor with both?

Master Developer (in the case of the HOF-VP) and "just plain-ol'" and if you believe some local media portrayals of being "folksy" (also, drives a 10 year old car and could care less about money) Stuart Lichter (developer, [never described as "master" re: Hoover project]) in the case of Hoover.

Laughable, no?

It appears to the SCPR that Lichter has outsmarted/out maneuvered many of, but not all of "the best and brightest" of Stark County political subdivision leadership.

The focus of this blog is on the Hoover project, however, one cannot from a Stark County wide impact not talk about Hoover without also noting the development stagnation afflicting the HOF-VP.

As this blog is written, both projects are pretty much at a "standstill:"

• as desperately needed additional long term "private" financing is being sought for the reported $1 billion plus HOF-VP and, 
• in the case of the Hoover complex project, Lichter's company Maple Street Commerce, LLC (MSC) deals with bringing the complex up to standard on North Canton's building and fire codes and, of course, as graphically indicated in the lead of this blog curing deficiencies in a U.S. Environmental Agency mandated Facility Investigation Work Plan which is a prelude to MSC as a "potentially responsible party" (PRP) getting on with the work of remediating/removing documented hazardous materials that testing reveals to be on site at Hoover in unacceptable levels, and to monitor levels that are being dealt with measures other than in outright removal.  (Note:  MSC includes partner Chris Semarjian and 10% interest holder and North Canton developer Robert DeHoff)

Lichter who is described in one article as a developer who specializes in redeveloping old industrial sites got to work in North Canton on Hoover in the latter half of 2007.

By 2013 with jump-start "Kick Off" $5 million state of Ohio Jobs Ready grant in hand at the outset, there were to be a variety of office, retail, restaurant and residential housing factors in place in the 400,000 square feet that formerly housed vacuum cleaner industrial giant The Hoover Company (closed earlier in 2007)  as a locally owned (1908 - 1986) enterprise that at one point provided about 40%, if not more, of the income for North Canton government.

At the time, it made sense for North  Canton to bring Lichter in.

Though North Canton mayor David Held denies what once made sense has turned out to be a mistake, the SCPR believes that in his "heart of hearts" thinks it has turned out to be a nightmare.

In the course of reading this blog, readers are presented in segments (the full video will be published in the Annex section of this blog so that readers can determine for themselves if the segments are fairly contexted) as this blog moves along.

But first readers should read the entire EPA letter which is reproduced below:

NOTE:  THE EPA HAS EXTENDED PLAN COMPLIANCE TO JULY 31, 2018

The most worrisome part of the findings at paragraph 8 of the EPA letter is the description of the environmental concerns regarding former Hoover Company owned ballfields transferred to the North Canton City Schools in March, 2018.

The SCPR is told by a person in a position to know that area youth do play on those fields except for a small part of the area.

Beyond health concerns going forward should contamination be found, there has to be the incurring of expense that a "no room for 'financial' setbacks" North Canton City School system school system might have to spend to meet the EPA requirements should unacceptable levels of contaminants be found.

That the US EPA has not banned the use of the fields pending testing for possible existing contaminants seems to indicate that the EPA does not think there are immediate health concerns.

But what if the EPA is wrong?

As soon as the SCPR got a copy of the June 13th letter, reading it raised concerns about the viability of the part of the Hoover complex covered by the missive.

Mayor David Held brought the letter up during the public official comments section of last night's council meeting.

Of course, the SCPR was going to follow up.

Here is the beginning of the Held interviews of July 9, 2018 interviews in which he begins to outline the environment outline (4 min,06 sec):

Held in the following video says that the 130 planned apartment units for the complex are still doable from an environmental standpoint notwithstanding the June 13 EPA to Maple Street Commerce officials.  (1 min, 56 sec)



However he does enumerate two overall factors that outsiders (to MSC by virtue being outsiders) cannot gauge, which is to say:

• Can MSC generate (through additional public sources the monies needed to finance completion of the project?
• Does MSC in light of the complexities/complications of the project have the willingness to persist through the complexities/complications 

Held thinks that Lichter's Maple Street Commerce does have the "willingness" given the Held's believe that MSC has $12 million of its (perhaps in combo with partners) money invested in the Hoover project IF (the SCPR's interpretation) there is more public money out there including a revival of a North Canton Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) property tax credit that covers the Hoover project.

Here is Held on those matters:



And even more in the context of laborious economic development can be and troubled when it comes to implementing CRAs and other tax relief

Moreover, he says there are three non-negotiable conditions (the latter two of which set forth in the bullet points below come in later video segments) being satisfied by MSC for the realization of the residential phase of the project and indeed for the completion of the estimated at the beginning to be a $50 million project, to wit:

• Environmental problems,
• Not being in compliance with North Canton's building code, and
• Not being in compliance with North Canton's fire code

In this video, Mayor Held adamantly maintains:

• that North Canton government will see to it that MSC comes up to standard on the  city's building and fire codes whether or not the project is finally completed, and, of course
• that the EPA will see to it that environmental standards are met (Held says perhaps at a cost of tens of thousands of dollars if not into the hundreds of thousandS but certainly not in the millions)

Additionally, he says that he is  confident that the Hoover complex will not end up being put to the wreckers ball in the event MSC walks away from the project.

Here is the video (5 min, 40 sec)

The SCPR does not share Held's optimism on MSC completing the Hoover project.

As this blogger said to Held in the above-video, to Maple Street Commerce/IRG $12 million to $20 million is peanuts compared to the HOF-VP and the many other much larger projects Lichter is involved with across America.

Here is Held in a less optimistic mode at a Strengthening Stark meeting in January, 2018 which ironically was held at the Professional Hall Fame complex (which the SCPR thinks Lichter is paying attention to at the expense of the Hoover rehab) at 2121 George Halas Drive.

There has also been the need for MSC (a beneficiary of federal Historical Preservation tax credits [HPTC] used by MSC for restoring the Hoover smokestack  to comply in its construction activities the standards of HPTCs.

As the SCPR sees it, North Canton over the longer term could be facing a "tear-down" and capping of the  of the part of the Hoover complex (i.e. the section facing Main Street directly across from North Canton City Hall) should the lingering presence of hazardous materials prove to be financially strapping on MSC which consequently might cause the Lichter owned company to lose its will to complete the project.

If such were to happen or appear in the perception of North Cantonians to be inevitable, the political consequences for Mayor Held and long time council members could be ominous by the time the 2021, if not the 2019 municipal elections roll around.

As sort of a parallel to the HOF-VP, there are those in Stark County leadership circles who tell the SCPR that if the HOF-VP could replace Lichter as the master developer on the HOF-VP, a lot of the problems which has led to a stalling out of work on that project would get settled rather quickly.

However, those same leaders are quick to say that to think HOF master developer Stu Lichter will be replaced given his large owners equity in the project is "pie-in-the-sky" thinking and that he and his companies will be part of either the success or the short of success (i.e. the project as envisioned is never completed) realities.

Mayor Held right now, the SCPR thinks, is understandably in a "spin mode" as The Report is evidenced by his emphasis on the "success" (his characterization) of Phase I of the Hoover project.

Even that, the SCPR thinks, is ignoring what appears to be a high probability that the Schroer Group (about 300 employees) will be leaving the Hoover complex within the next two years because (according to Held and others) a difficult relationship (landlord/tenant) that Schroer is said to be experiencing with MSC.

Here is Mayor Held speaking about the impending Schroer Group exodus from North Canton and his overall take on North Canton's tax revenues going forward (6 min, 38 sec).



In the video he cites 1100 employees located in Phase 1 facilities at the rehabbed portion of the Hoover complex which, of course, will be reduced to 800, more or less, if Schroer does in fact relocate to a site said to be near Akron Canton airport.

In the following video (6 min, 19 sec) Held elaborates on the slow pace of most economic development projects and provides readers with some insights to some the problems inherent in putting together government financed incentives with a specific explanation of why the North Ridge apartments (DeHoff/Lemmon) proved to be troublesome.

At Wednesday's meeting of North Canton City Council, council held its second reading on raising the city's income tax from 1.5% to 2.0% on an affirmative vote of the voters of North Canton in the upcoming November 6, 2018 election.

Nobody is talking about the seeming imminent departure of the 300 Schroer group employees as a reason for the proposed income tax increase, but could that prospect be at least part of the reason for asking North Canton voters to approve the .5% increase.

While the proposal is for a 10 year life of the increase, who believes that in 10 years city officials will not find reasons why the voters approve an extension of the life of the increase?

As a side issue, Citizen Chuck Osborne presented a chart to North Canton City Council on Monday evening showing that North Canton is not making the most of the proposed increase when compared to other Stark County municipalities and their respective income tax rates/credits, to wit:



These are trying days for North Canton government and it appears that the city frustrations in dealing with MSC and its owner Stu Lichter is the overwhelming problem that the city faces.

Others can try to portray Lichter as an "aw shucks," unassuming guy, but the SCPR is not buying.

The Report believes Lichter is a hard-nosed business guy who does not miss a penny and any political/government leader who deal with him need to have the guard up at all times.

Mayor David Held has learned this the hard way.

And other Stark County leaders are learning fast.

Mayor Held had a tough time in the interview admitting in hindsight (which of course presents an opportunity to have 20/20 vision) that bringing Lichter in was a mistake.

Here is that part of the interview in which the SCPR presses Held on what this blogger thinks has been a mistake for having brought Lichter in (7 min, 50 sec).



It could be, that despite Mayor Held's abiding confidence that all will turn out well for what was once named "The Dogwood City," that North Canton will be stuck with Lichter like "chewing gum on the bottom of a shoe" that seemingly is cemented in place.

One has to question whether or not North Canton officials are to dealing with the hardscrabble Lichter.

The persistent questions in the minds of North Cantonians going forward some ten years later on the Hoover rehab with no end in sight likely will be:  Will the ultimate outcome be that the walls of its nostalgic Boss Hoover industrial complex have to come tumbling down?

As opined before in this blog, IF SO, there could be political consequences in the 2019/2021 North Canton municipal elections!

APPENDIX

The entire Held Interview.