Kish states that No Progress has been made in the Last 2 weeks, and None is Expected
In this morning’s meeting of the Evansville Redevelopment Commission a motion was made by Sara Miller to terminate the agreement with Woodruff Hospital LLC. Ms. Millers motion was adopted by a vote of 5 – 0 by the members of the ERC instantly erasing an agreement that has been at the center of the public stage for a couple of months now because of the failure of the principals to attract a financing package.
Internal struggles within Woodruff Hospitality LLC have complicated the cooperation process that was hoped to result in a Hyatt Place hotel being built in downtown Evansville. John Kish, the project manager expressed the belief that cancellation of the Woodruff contract was a necessary step to make the newly issued RFP attractive to other bidders. Woodruff Hospitality LLC’s attorney, Chad J. Sullivan, said the Kunkel Group was the only holdout to being able to go forward with the project. Sullivan also told the commission he was not aware of his client’s interest in submitting a proposal to the new RFP. Sullivan plead with the ERC to delay rescinding the contract a while longer so that a meeting of the minds could be reached. His pleas was to no avail as the ERC proceeded to terminate the agreement.
Mr. Kish announced that the RFP had been published in the Courier Press and that it would be available online shortly.
Just before adjourning a member of the ERC asked Mr. Kish if it would be possible to incorporate some requirements for financial information for submission with future bids. Mr. Kish advised the ERC that they may add any vetting procedures that they wish to the RFP.
No members of the Evansville City Council were in attendance.
And the curtain closes on act one, intermission, act two “The Kunkel Group”
Wasn’t that Act 2. Browning = Act 1, Woodruff = Act 2, ??????? = Act 3
Wouldn’t the act of an ERC member asking Kish if requirements for financial information could be added to the submission of future bids be an example of the tail (Kish) wagging the dog (ERC) ? Who in the Wide, Wide World of Sports is in charge of this project ?
Right. Kish has (or should have) no responsibility for or say in this project.
Is Kunkel the only firm in the United States interested in multifamily housing and the hospitality industry in Evansville? At what point will these people become sufficiently over-invested in one withering old midwestern factory town to the point where they financially implode, leaving the city administration with a diverse portfolio of bankrupt facilities? Is it true that if the arena hotel is built it will be empty and bankrupt in less than three years?
You betcha!
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