The $2,000,000 subsidy: Does it really matter what it is for?
Ostensibly, the $2,000,000 subsidy by the taxpayers is to be given over to Basic Energy Services for use on the Permian Place real estate venture's parking garage. We know this because the MDC's press release regarding the subsidy waxed eloquent about said parking garage and how it addresses a long term need for the central business district. That up to 75 of these supposedly highly sought after parking spaces would be available to non-Permian Place residents was treated as some sort of coup. Better yet, almost all of the parking facility would be made available "by arrangement" (whatever that means) after business hours.
Well, below is what the top three floors of the ginormous parking garage directly across the street looks like during business hours so I am unconvinced that the 75 daytime parking spaces provide any real utility to anyone other than the owners of Permian Plaza. And what would ever (ever!) be the cause for after hours demand over and above the those 75 spaces?
So was the Midland Development Corporation just uncomfortable with the idea of selling this subsidy to the taxpayers based only on the idea that Basic is a great corporate citizen of Midland (they are) and that if they threw $2,000,000 at them it might help keep the remaining 50 jobs here in town?
In other words, what if Basic/Permian Plaza had come to the MDC asking for the $2,000,000 so that they could update the air handlers, re-wire the electrical systems, and re-configure the floors to make them more attractive to renters? Is there any doubt that the subsidy would have still been forthcoming?
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10 Comments
The name of the project is Permian Plaza. Not Permian Place. MRT mistake.
I think you may be too focused on Basic with this deal. SCI is benefiting to some degree. I sue would like to hear Basic make a statement on this, as well as SCI or Elphick.
Interesting. I have always assumed that Basic was the sole owner and the sole beneficiary of the subsidy.
So you mean this in the sense of how some groups go minority shopping to get to some level of minority ownership when pursuing broadcast licenses and bids, i.e. find a partner that is attractive to development corporations?
More of the sense of "Now is a great time to sell your home, call me at 1-800-realtor". It's always a great time to buy sell for the realtor, and if you can raise the selling price, by all means. And if you can take that one lousy house on the block and renovate it, everybody benefits when it comes to the selling price. Including the one who gets a commission.
Forgive my intrusion into this rather nasty debacle, but may I lend my two cents? Thanks!
Since I did live in Midland for over 40 years (and was born there) it's easy to see what is happening. It looks as though the MDC, unable to bring companies to Midland, is now just trying to keep them from leaving. This includes, evidently, either giving a public company money (is this going to be disclosed in Basic's SEC public filings?) or assisting a local land/building owner improve their property with a parking garage (which really doesn't seem to be needed).
Either way, this just all seems so sad and very corrupt. As a matter of fact, I would hope Midlander's would wake up to this and demand it stop. The MDC was NOT created (by taxpayer vote) to enrich local companies. If this is now the case, I suggest a line start forming at the MDC offices of all Midland businesses for a "forgivable" loan!
I'm glad to see that the Basic spokesperson had to get in the old tried and true zinger...."I hope we don't have to move to Houston".
City Council ought to forget about the 75 parking spaces and ask that the garage include ground level retail space along its Illinois face, like the Wilco Garage has and Fasken Center with the Midtowner deli. That would prove more useful for downtown redevelopment. And make most of the surface parking that will be a part of the Permian Plaza all short term visitor parking for the public.
I like bob's idea a lot. So will the kids from Midland High during lunch...a restaurant location with instant clientele during school days. Pretty attractive, though the Midtowner folks might not be as enthusiastic. They could move to the newer space...
What other retail would make sense there?
A UPS store. A coffee shop or deli with some outdoor seating under umbrellas and trees.
Any retail that would make sense downtown would make sense here. Granted, that isn't much at the moment. But it would provide a better street side experience. All downtown planners will tell you that you need to make things more walkable, more pleasant for the pedestrian. Look at a successful, multi-use, vibrant-after-5 downtown and you'll see that the least desirable stretches of sidewalk and street are those adjacent to parking garages. In some locales it is required that parking garages contain first floor leasable retail space. Ground level street frontage is the most valuable space in these downtowns, and is the thing you only get one shot at, no matter how many office or residential floors you stack above it. Older buildings in town demonstrated this, and along Wall it is evident with the Wall Towers, and a few others, even Vaughn building had a travel agency in it for years on the ground floor. Over sized bank lobbies killed a lot of this, and now they seem so useless, like Bank of America. they have that massive lobby space, and two tellers working. If you put in retail space, it won't always be filled, but it is very adaptable. Parking garages are not.
Basic's current office building demonstrates this too, the parking garage starts on the second floor, the first floor is all bank, and a little greasy spoon. (Is that still there?) Claydesta, though not downtown, also devotes much of its first floor to retail, though not much of it is truly retail anymore.
Is this a matter of the MDC having $18 million to $20 million in the reserves and by giving $2 million to Basic, the board, at least, doesn't have to hear that the biggest benefactor this year will again be the Chamber?
Thanks for the pix, btw.