OSIN’s Daniel Suddeath provides coverage of last evening’s River View public hearing, of which I must confess to abject ignorance, having somehow entirely missed whatever tepid notification was given.
To summarize: The River View project’s cost now has risen to $53 million, and yet there remain no financial disclosures on the part of investors; other potential real estate investors in the neighborhood question why the same package wasn’t offered to them by the city; all the things presumed that you cannot explain still are expected to move growth in mysterious ways because Mike Kopp and DNA say so; and if we all stay quiet and play along with the lame duck administration, we may be able to watch movies at a two-screen national chain theater atop former public property.
But I digress.
River View team says New Albany not responsible for $12M bond; Proposed development discussed during Tuesday public hearing
… River View is now being projected by Mainland Properties to cost up to $53 million, up from early estimates of $44 million. The development would be located adjacent to the Floyd County branch of the YMCA of Southern Indiana along Main Street …… “All of this will spur additional growth,” said Mike Kopp, the Realtor for River View and the owner of Blue Sun Real Estate in New Albany …
… There were about 30 people at the public forum, but the majority were city officials or members of the development team …
… As for potential tenants, Mainland Properties said several restaurants are interested in River View including Bristol Bar and Grille, Baja Fresh and Heine Brothers Coffee.
Secure in the knowledge that knowledge is good, and follow-up questions even better, I’m checking today with the folks at Heine Brothers and Bristol to gauge their level of involvement, and to let them know of some of the issues with River View that I’m guessing were not shared with them.
Meanwhile, according to Wikipedia, “Baja Fresh is a chain of fast-casual Tex Mex restaurants founded in Newbury Park, California, in 1990 and headquartered in Cypress, California.” Since I don’t feel like making a phone call to corporate HQ in CA to leave an unreturned voicemail about local issues, I’ll merely reiterate: Death to chains and the projects that foster them. New Albany is a La Rosita’s town, and I aim to keep it that way.
