IS IT TRUE that the Evansville Redevelopment Commission has finally formally placed the contract with City Centre Properties to refurbish the McCurdy Hotel into apartments on formal notice that they are in default?…that it took no less than three years for this artesian well of knowledge to burst from the collective body that has presided over what has been perhaps the two most impotent projects in the history of the City of Evansville?…that this should have happened in either 2009 or 2010 but there just always seemed to be some reason to keep extending the deal while that last signature was perpetually two weeks away like a carrot on the end of a stick to get a jackass to pull the plow around the field just one more time?…that brings up the question of just what will happen with the McCurdy now?

IS IT TRUE that attorney Ted Ziemer has been quoted as saying that Fifth Third Bank has initiated foreclosure actions to protect a $2 Million mortgage that they hold against the McCurdy?…that Fifth Third is in the first position and will someday (do not hold your breath) be able to force an auction to get as much of their $2 Million as possible if they choose to do so?…that it seems as though between the $1,403,000 put into the project so far by the City of Evansville and the $2,000,000 loan taken out by City Centre Properties against the McCurdy that $3,403,000 has been spent on this project and the upstairs windows have not even been closed?…that this money is down the proverbial rat hole and outside of a miracle or a compromise the McCurdy may be heading to the auction block like its next door neighbor the Riverhouse did?…that we must remember that the Riverhouse only brought a bid of $350,000 at that auction and that it is still owned by the bank that repossessed it?…that we hope for a better fate for the McCurdy?

IS IT TRUE that it has been widely publicized that the Kunkel Group along with Bloomington developer Randall Lloyd have intention to complete the task that City Centre Properties choked on?…that we hope that this is as easily done as said?…that we are sure that the City of Evansville and the ERC will be enthusiastic to cooperate any way they can because if Fifth Third takes the auction route the City of Evansville will be getting exactly nothing for the $1,403,000 that the last administration sunk into this un-vetted project with an un-vetted developer?…that it would appear that the fate of the McCurdy is in the hands of whomever at Fifth Third makes decisions with respect to repossessed properties?…that if Fifth Third has any reason to believe that an auction or a for sale sign will result in a sale at over $1.5 Million that this will probably be the route that they take?

IS IT TRUE that the Kunkel and Lloyd team could then pick the McCurdy up at that auction and the City of Evansville will be out of the deal and out of our money?…that the Kunkel and Lloyd team could create a cooperative effort between three entities to pick up the pieces and move forward?…that from a private enterprise perspective that getting the City out of the deal would be preferable?…that the only financial reason to want to keep the City in this deal is to get some additional incentives from the City or to have the City intervene with Fifth Third to grease the skids?…that we seem to remember that Fifth Third owes the City of Evansville some money from a loan made to their predecessor’s predecessor back in the early 1980’s when the Fifth Third building was being built?…that some convoluted pact of debt swaps could make this attractive to Fifth Third and clear the way for Kunkel and friends to move forward?…that at this point in time and the absence of a white knight that Kunkel and Lloyd are probably the last hope for the McCurdy to be standing in 5 years?…that being the case we encourage the powers that be to grease whomever and whatever needs greasing and get this show on the road?…that this project has thus far been a showcase for why government should stay the hell out of what private business should be doing for a profit?

IS IT TRUE that the 2012 rendition of the Evansville Redevelopment Commission has a line item on its agenda today that calls for the formal action of placing the deal that was made with City Centre Properties into default?…that while this is a necessary and correct action it is 3 years and $1.403 Million short of the desired result?…that there is one installment of real estate taxes due on the property and another one coming due in 10 days?…that while this action will most certainly free up the private partnership of the Kunkel Group and Bloomington developer Randall Lloyd to be able to move forward with converting the McCurdy into 90 or so apartments NO ONE SHOULD FORGET THAT THE CITY OF EVANSVILLE SQUANDERED $1.403 MILLION ON THIS PROJECT BY FAILING TO VET THE PROJECT AND ITS PRINCIPALS AND BY FAILING TO GRASP THE REALITY OF THE VALUE OF THE UNDERLYING ASSET UPON COMPLETION?…that every time that the Evansville Redevelopment Commission, the Evansville City Council, or any surrogate of either group runs off starry eyed with their mind oblivious to economic reality something like this happens?

IS IT TRUE that it will be interesting to see if yesterday’s announcement with regard to the former owner of the Riverhouse will make financing more difficult for the McCurdy?…that it was announced to the media yesterday that Todd Van Natta who had bought the Riverhouse for nearly $5 Million seems to have been under FBI investigation for a couple of years and that now Mr. Van Natta is under “probable cause” for bank fraud?…that reading the complaint specifically for the Riverhouse it is alleged by the bank that the loan terms were changed at the last minute and that they did not even have a loan officer present at closing?…that sure seems like a strange way for a bank to conduct business?…that what was allegedly changed was the definition of what the down payment was?…that the original deal called for a 20% down payment and an 80% loan?…that somehow that was changed to a situation where the down payment amount became a credit for future repairs which essentially made this deal slightly over a 100% loan?…that all being taken at face value and having been through several closing one must wonder just how that $8,000 check from the bank to Mr. Van Natta’s company found its way to the closing?…that another curiosity is just how did the Riverhouse appraise at nearly $5 Million to get the transaction to the point of closing in the first place?

IS IT TRUE that the saga of the Riverhouse and its next door neighbor the McCurdy have been real black marks on valuations in Downtown Evansville for the last 3 or 4 years?…that the Riverhouse eventually went to auction and only garnered a bid of slightly over $300,000?…that the for sale sign is getting dusty and faded and given the difficulties encountered the Riverhouse may be in for a long haul before a buyer comes along?…that when a 90 room hotel in need of repairs brings less at auction than the parking lot next door brought from the Evansville Redevelopment Commission that there is a terrible disconnect and misunderstanding with respect to values?…that the CCO hopes that the McCurdy project is able to move forward to completion and that someone will actually go in and close the windows on the upper floors that have been open all winter?…that there will most certainly be some damages from this typical neglect of what could be and should be a beautiful and functional building on Evansville’s riverfront?

IS IT TRUE that the key phrase in the long dissertation of the FBI agent who has deemed that the Riverhouse escapade is worthy of probably cause are the words “material misrepresentation”?…that this means that the FBI agent is alleging that Mr. Van Natta stated things on loan applications that were not accurate and that he knew it when he did it?…that we are quite interested in seeing the outcome of this unfortunate situation of alleged “material misrepresentation” play itself out?