Provo city meets arts center deadline
And hotel owner waits on appraisal review to see if eminent domain will be used
Meanwhile, the owner of a hotel next door to the project on west Center Street is still waiting to see if the city will meet his asking price or if it will take his property through eminent domain proceedings and use it to expand the footprint of the proposed arts center.
Hogan built Provo's 2002 Olympic Winter Games venue, The Peaks Ice Arena, and submitted the lowest of two bids for the performing arts center — $7,042,600.
Provo has raised $4.3 million for the center, which will include a 700-seat theater, but the city is relying on an additional $2.2 million from tax increment bonds, a source banned by the Utah Legislature earlier this year.
The Legislature granted an exception for Provo's performing arts center on the condition that construction begin by today.
"The specific wording requires the city to commence construction before the 31st of December," Provo spokeswoman Raylene Ireland said. The statute didn't define what "construction" meant, but city officials initially planned to hold a groundbreaking ceremony.
Mayor Lewis Billings used concern about the deadline to push the City Council to authorize the use of eminent domain to take the Traveler's Inn, 469 W. Center, from owner Bob Patel if negotiations with Patel fail. The council voted 6-0 with the abstention of outgoing council member Paul Warner to give Billings that option.
However, Billings promised not to use eminent domain until appraisal work was completed. An initial appraisal valued the property at $550,000, but revisions made at Patel's urging boosted reworked appraisals to $800,000 and then $875,000.
The city agreed to pay for a reviewer to analyze the appraiser's work, something originally estimated to be completed a couple of weeks ago.
"They are not done with the appraisal yet," Patel said. "I'm just waiting for them. Maybe no news is good news."
Provo also offered to buy the Best Western Columbian Inn at 70 E. 300 South and trade it to Patel for his property, but he has refused. Patel said he would lose $48,000 a year in net operating profit if he made the trade.
Ireland said city attorney Robert West met with Patel's attorney this week and characterized the talks as "very reasonable."
"The mayor has said we want to make sure we have valued it correctly," Ireland added. "We have made a commitment to Mr. Patel and his attorney that once we have completed that appraisal process, we will present it to them and have a dialogue before we make any move."
She estimated completion of a final appraisal might take another week to 10 days.
Eminent domain allows a city to take property without the owner's consent. The Fifth Amendment requires just compensation be paid to the owner. If the sides can't agree on an amount, it would be set through court proceedings.
E-mail: twalch@desnews.com
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