CC - Agendas - City Council - REGULAR - 5/13/2014

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Prescott City Council Special Voting Meeting April 8, 2014 Page 4 suggested deferring a street project for one to two years to reach the total money needed to purchase the land. It would be better to bond a street project for a year or two and be remembered for protecting the heart of the Dells forever. Jason Gisi, Prescott resident, looks at the opportunity to purchase the Wirth property as a legacy asset for the next 150 years in Prescott that will drive quality of life and economic development. He noted that the City was focused and dependent on tourism. He said the City has a unique opportunity to finish what has been started with the acquisition. He said that without the City's participation, the deal will not come together. The City got lucky to have a benefactor come forward with $lmillion. He noted that he makes real estate deals for a living. There should be representation to move forward and try to close a deal and not debate the deal any further, assuming the City is willing to commit funds. He said it will create momentum if the City does commit funds. Joel Hiller, resident, said he was on the Watson/Willow Planning Committee and that it was not an easy process. He said this was a great opportunity for a public/private partnership that should not be dismissed. He noted that the acquisition is about defining Prescott and not about money. He said it was the right thing to do. Steve Silvernail, owner of Prescott Transit Authority, asked that Council to be careful with the funds that they have. Elisabeth Ruffner, Prescott resident, gave a quick history of the sales tax for streets. She noted that the citizens initiated the acquisition of the lakes. She said the citizens also formed the Open Space Alliance and initiated the extension of the street tax for five years and added the words acquisition and maintenance to a ballot issue, which was passed. She noted that by the time the issue got to the ballot, the word "maintenance" was dropped. She did not know how that happened. She said the City still has the option to have the voters approve a .25 cent sales tax for open space and consider maintenance. She urged Council not to pass up the opportunity to increase Prescott's value to the world. Ben Williams, works directly for Mark Wirth. He said Mr. Wirth has three properties in the tri-city area. He asked the Council to find a way to make this acquisition happen and said that he could be contacted at 928-202-7666 or 928-899-0469, if anyone wanted to speak with him. Councilman Kuknyo said that Mr. Wirth has always been easy to work with. David Parker, citizen, talked about properties purchased by the City of Prescott and said that a value was established for those properties and that Mr. Wirth used that value to price his property. He noted that Mr. Wirth offered to sell his property for $8 million at the height of the market.