Iowa City Council recommends finalists for Linn/Court project

IOWA CITY - Finalists for four proposed developments in Iowa City's Riverfront Crossings District will pitch their ideas to the council later this month.

The council during a special Thursday work session selected four finalists vying to develop roughly 60,000 square feet of property, where the St. Patrick's Catholic Church's parish hall once sat. The council will hear from three student and young professional proposals recommended earlier this year by a special committee, along with a senior housing option proposed.

Finalists chosen include proposals made by CA Ventures, Core Campus, Sherman Associates and CG Hanson and representatives with each proposal will make individual presentations to the council during a special Nov. 17 meeting. The council will make the final decision on which developer to begin negotiations with at its Dec. 2 meeting.

While the three original finalists recommended to the council include largely student or young professional housing options, several members of the council expressed a desire to add CG Hanson's project to the list, as it contains a senior housing option.

'I'd like to see a more robust range of options," council member Rick Dobyns said.

However, council member Susan Mims noted that a lack of project experience resulted in CG Hanson's proposal to fall to second lowest during the committee's rating process.

'There were some really great ideas in all six of these and it was a matter of looking at what would fit best in that location,” Mims said.

While University of Iowa's aggressive enrollment goals will likely drive up the need for student housing and proposals for such housing from CA Venture's and Core Campus request no financial assistance and offer to purchase the property, council member Jim Throgmorton questioned if that is necessarily what the council should consider for this site, or if that development should be driven by demand in the open market elsewhere.

'Why not use the site differently? We have a choice,” Throgmorton said.

The finalists being considered are:

' CA Ventures proposes a roughly $87.7 million project that would include three high-rise towers: a 117-room hotel with 3,500 square feet of retail space and two residential towers with a total of 304 multifamily student units and three floors of underground parking. CA Ventures, based out of Chicago, has offered to buy the property for $5 million and is not seeking any financial aid from the city.

' HUB at Iowa City's proposal includes a 15-story tower with 430 units for more than 900 students, 20,000 square feet of office space and on-site parking. The Chicago-based firm has offered to pay $4.5 million for the property and is not seeking financial assistance.

' Minnesota-based Sherman Associates proposes a roughly $66.9 million project that would include five floors of residential housing for young professionals, a rooftop deck, swimming pool and theater room. The project also would include a six-floor national-brand hotel with 146 rooms and 23,000 square feet of office space. The company is not offering to pay for the property and is seeking up to $3 million in tax abatements and $8 million in tax increment finance assistance and tax credits.

' CG Hanson's Linn/Court Lofts senior housing proposal would offer up to 12 floors, all told 330,000 square feet, with residential units for active seniors with encouraged learning and living lifestyle. Commercial space also would be included in the project. The development comes with a $14.1 million gap in finances and the project is estimated to cost $56.5 million.

The council will be weighing financial assistance requests, residential and office options and project experience while selecting the final developer.

The site in question, on the corner of Linn and Court streets, has sat vacant since the church and parish hall relocated after the 2006 tornado and was bought by the city in 2008 for $3.05 million.