Nada

Nothing new here.

The predictions of the previous posts are all coming true. This is not good.

Prescient

My posts here appear to have been annoyingly prescient. I wish it were not so.

The present

It seems that Trinity Site will be rebuilt and that this rebuilding is still a stupid idea. So there is no longer a need for this blog. It will be closed when I have a chance.

What will Trinity Site become?

My current guess is that it will not resemble the submitted plan and that it will serve whatever the county of Los Alamos might be 5 years from now.

I have guesses about what the county might be. All of those guesses envision a county with a dramatically smaller presence of LANL and a very different demographic.

We will see.

Whither Trinity Site

Best current information suggests that Trinity Site will be redeveloped but not in the manner that was presented a year ago.

Now the scenario appears to be the following.

1. Tear down some of the old county buildings over the next few years.
2. Build new county buildings on the same time scale.
3. Build a few upscale houses where the old buildings used to be. See if this makes money.
4. Build more houses as needed.
5. Build a shopping center as needed and in support of the community that exists at that time, probably a community that does not resemble the current Los Alamos.
   

Rumors at LLNL

There are a lot of rumors at LLNL about pensions, benefits, and obligations.

Based on my experience at LANL, most of these rumors are incorrect or at least dangerously incomplete.

Status

Boyer and the county made a press release that the initial stages of moving people out of the trinity site and starting work on the airport property should begin in August 2007.

Boyer funded the Yes on 529 proposal, which allows the county to create bonds to pay for Boyer's work. Boyer funded this effort to the tune of $200,000

We will see what happens next.

Timing

I may have had the time scale wrong.


Boyer could lose in the short run (2-5) years and win big in the long run (more than 10 years from now)

Status

Trinity Site Revitalization seems to be currently evidenced by discusssions between Boyer and the county to get details and timings right.

The quonset huts to be destroyed at the Trinity Site are in really bad shape. I went down there and looked around a couple of days ago.

Update

For better or worse, the predictions of the last posting seem to be coming true.

The good, the bad, and the ugly

The referendum for Trinity Site Revitalization passed with 57% of the vote. This is the good.

I predict that Trinity Site Revitalization will not occur for three large reasons. First, voters will block it. Second, the budget crisis at LANS will severely stress the town and the county so that funds for revitalization will no longer be available. Third, Boyer will watch all this and decide that they can make a safer return on their money elsewhere. This is the bad.

Things in the county will get ugly starting about August 2007.

Does anyone have data to dispute the above?

P.S. Current blog posts are likely to occur on my blog - Working at LANL.

Referendum 529

In a couple of days, we have to vote on Referendum 529.

A yes vote allows the county to sell bonds to finance Trinity Site Revitalization and other projects. A yes vote is not the same as spending the money. It just gives the county authorization to get the money when they are ready with a good project.

My suggestion is to vote yes on this Referendum.

An hypothesis

I propose that Trinity Site Revitalization, as currently stated, is emotionally very positive for some and fiscally very negative for others.

I propose that Trinity Site Revitalization, as currently stated, will hasten the economic collapse of Los Alamos, not brighten it's future.

Can anyone prove that my hypothesis is wrong?

Thanks

Lack of posts recently

There is a lot going on with Trinity Site right now. I will try to post appropriate parts of it over the next few days.

If you are in town on Saturday, there will be fliers explaining the project handed out at the Arts and Crafts fair at the Middle School and at other places around town.

What are the associated costs

Associated Costs
Three important points:
1. All financial estimates at this point in time are conceptual and preliminary. They will change as the project planning process continues.
2. There is no property tax increases planned to pay for project.
3. The developer, Boyer Company, will be incurring all cost to build their development on Trinity Site, the County/Schools do not pay for any part of Boyer’s costs.

• Estimated Cost of demolition and construction to replace dilapidated School and County Maintenance Facilities located on the Trinity Site and build new facilities on the Airport Basin site.
o Total estimated cost is approximately $62 million
• County portion : ~$49 million
• School’s allocated costs: ~$13 million
o This estimate includes most demolition; however there are still some costs elements that are not yet included.

Preliminary Financing Plan
Again, these estimates are conceptual and will change as the project plan is completed. In addition, in light of expected changes in County GRT revenues, the County is actively working on an update to the financing plan outlined below.

Cash – approximately $13 million; Debt – approximately $49 million

• The School’s allocated costs are currently planned to be paid with $1.5 million cash and the remainder to be recovered by the County through the School’s portion of Estimated Project Income (see next section).
• The County’s portion of the costs is currently planned to be paid with $11.5 million in cash and $49 million in debt proceeds. [Note- this totals more than the County’s portion of the costs. The County is expecting to pay all the upfront construction costs, and as noted above, recover most of the School’s allocated costs through the School’s portion of Estimated Project Income.]
• The County is currently planning to fund yearly debt service (estimated to be $4.3 million annually [@6% for 20 years] ) as follows:
o 3/8 cent increase of Gross Receipts Tax -1/8 cent increase went into effect on January 1, 2006 and 2/8 cent increase will go into effect on July 1, 2006. The income projected from the 3/8ths cent tax increase was estimated to be approximately $2.7 million.
o The GRT will have gone from 6.5625% before January 2006 to 6.9375% after the increase in July 2006. This translates to an extra 37.5 cents of cost per $100 spent. [For reference: Area GRT rates: Los Alamos after July1 - 6.9375%, Espanola – 7.5% and Santa Fe – 7.625%. Even with the GRT increase, LA’s tax rate is still significantly lower than the surrounding counties.]
o The remaining $1.6 million of debt service would be paid from Estimated Project Income (see next section).

Estimated Project Income (according to preliminary financial feasibility study)
Once again, these estimates are conceptual and will change as the project plan and development agreement are completed.

o Land Lease Revenue - estimated to be $1.1 million annually (a majority of the land lease revenue is expected to be allocated as the School’s income, however the final percentage will not be know until all the land lease terms have been finalized.)
o New GRT income associated with new retail activity - projected to be revenue of $1.3 million annually

These are not all of the Estimated Project Income sources, but the ones that are most likely to be used to help pay the County’s debt service cost.

This information was first posted on the 9th of September. My current feeling, possibly just worry, is that we are still buying a pig in a poke. I do not understand the real costs to us as residents. It feels like "Take this nice car for a drive and buy it. We will tell you the price later." This is standard politics but not necessarily good sense. Does anyone else get this feeling?

Email exchanges with County Council Candidates

To the Editor and the County Council:

As I opened my Sunday paper and saw yet another article by Bob Wells, I felt I had to clarify some assumptions. There is an assumption that when an article is placed in the paper by a person who is a County Council Candidate, the article would show an understanding of the situation and reflect the facts of the matter. There is also an assumption that a person who was running for County Council would realize that to run is a serious issue and the job is one of public service. In the case of Bob Wells and Skip Dunn, those assumptions are dead wrong. In an email sent to Bob Wells and copied to others, Skip Dunn expressly talks about using the public forum of Council Candidate as a vehicle for furthering their own agenda and a source of free advertising. He states they would then be able to withdraw from the race if they wished. Shortly after this email was sent, both Skip Dunn and Bob Wells registered to run for Council. Please see the entire email at the end of this letter.
During the past months, hardly a week goes by without a written piece from one of these so called candidates. Bob Wells has stated that the citizens ….“need to be informed.” I can state with absolute certainty I am very informed on the topics he has written about and I have found numerous omissions, errors and misinformation in his writings. I am appalled at the dissemination of misinformation and the obvious disrespect shown to the democratic process by these individuals in an attempt to further their own agenda.
Andrea Cunningham
1371 Barranca Rd.
662-2742


-----Original Message-----
From: Skip & Hedy Dunn [ mailto:shdunn@newmexico.com]
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2006 11:56 AM
To: rwellsnm@earthlink.net
Cc: Annette Fox; Barbara Calef; Barkhudarovs; BB & Carlotta McInteer; Becky & Tom Shankland; Betsy Barnett; Briggs family; Cathy & Ian Strong; Chris Chandler; Clarice Cox; Dale Henderson; Dave & Eve Kloepper; Dave & Faye Brown; Dave Fox; Dick Opsahl; Dixie Jameson; Don & Elaine Morris; Elizabeth Allred; ElRoy Miller; Ev & Ed Griggs; Frank Clinard; George Chandler; Ginny & Mahlon Wilson; Ginny Bell; Heather McClenahan; Henry Finney; Jack Kephart; James Rickman; Janie & Peter O'Rourke; Jeffery Howell; JJ Maier; Joan Cochran; John & Renata Zinn; Joseph Bergstein; Joyce & George Carlson; Judy Humphrey; Julie Pearson, AIA; Kathy Campbell; Kathy Lorio; Ken Fuller; Lloyd & Masha Hunt; Lori Kelley; Lou Agnew; M Skarra; Mark & Linda Wells; Nancy Bartlit; Pat Max; Richard Dunn, GreenWheels; Robert Gibson; Robert Nunz; Ronald Moses; Sarah & Bart Daly; Sarah Chase; Sid Singer; Stepanie Sydoriak; Terry Langham;
Subject: Consider Registering March 21 as a candidate for County Council

I picked up a "2006 DECLARATION OF CANDIDACY" form from the County Clerk's office. It is an extremely simple, one-page form, requiring no signatures for local offices (at least for County Council), requires no party affiliation, etc. It only needs to be signed in the presence of a Notary Public (I use LANB tellers), and must be delivered to the County Clerk's office ON TUESDAY, MARCH 21, 2006 (a week from today).

I tell you this as an eternal optimist, and for other reasons listed below. I mentioned to a group last week that it would be very interesting if, say, 15 of us all submitted Declarations of Candidacy for County Council! Reasons:

1. strength in numbers (and only 4 from each party would be left "holding the bag" i.e being on the November ballot after the primary

2. a voice (!!!)
a. the Monitor, for example, would have to put candidates' press releases into print
b. Candidates are invited to speak at civic organizations, e.g. Rotary, Kiwanis, LWV
c. present Councilors and other Candidates would take notice

3. A refreshing "flowering of democracy" right here in Los Alamos, New Mexico, U.S.A.

4. The opportunity to bring to public awareness the generally dysfunctional consequences of our unitary County Council form of government.
a. no checks and balances (e.g. Governor vetoes)
b. results in "Plan A, Business As Usual" BAU instead of "Plan B"
(Lester R. Brown, Plan B 2.0: Rescuing a Planet under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble, W.W. Norton & Co., 2006)
My localized title: Plan B 2.0: Rescuing a County under Stress and a Community in Trouble ...

5. Many candidates withdraw their candidacy later; you can, too, AFTER your voice is heard.

There may be many more reasons: the important point is I urge you to seriously consider picking up a form and filing your candidacy on March 21.

Skip

Richard "Skip" & Hedy Dunn
107 Sierra Vista Dr.
Los Alamos, NM 87544-3426
(505) 672-3866
shdunn@newmexico.com

Timelines

The existing EPS and Boyer financial analysis are merely preliminary
guesses -- the EPS work was conceptual work done to help the
County/Schools decide whether there was reason to believe it would be
useful to pursue the project. The Boyer work is a first draft based
upon their first cut ideas about what they originally envisioned for
the project. Boyer's concept is evolving as they have gathered
public input and as they have continued their market assessment
work. Over the coming 4-6 weeks they will try to settle in on a site
plan that will incorporate both what they are learning about what our
community wants as well as what their market work indicates potential
tenants will be interested in. They will then seek acceptance for
the resulting site plan from the County and Schools. The site plan
will provide the parameters for creating a financial plan.

Given an acceptable site plan, Boyer will create an updated
corresponding financial analysis and proposed development agreement
and land lease terms. That will be the point where an economic
analysis can be made by the community to evaluate the cost benefit of
the Boyer proposal -- that will be the point at which the analysis
that I perceive Eric is talking about will become viable and a
decision would be made by the County and Schools whether or not to
enter into the development agreement, lease the land, and proceed
with the project. The target for getting to this point in the
process is the end of the year.

Written by Kevin Holsapple

County petition drive

Max Baker spoke Thursday at a lunch meeting and explained that the petition that is being circulated about the Trinity Project will also impact several other projects that are important to people if a referendum is held. Although Trinity Site is being specifically targeted, did you know that the perimeter road improvement project would also be impacted? As well as potentially (1) a new skate park in Los Alamos, (2) downtown parking infrastructure, (3) bike and trail paths, (4) the Golf Clubhouse, (5) road and sidewalk repair and replacement, and (6) a Historical Archives Building? I asked Max for a written version of his comments and I include them below so that you can read them for yourself.

PLEASE, share this information with everyone you know so that folks better understand WHAT the petition that is being distributed will affect. Many who think they are signing only about Trinity may have second thoughts when they realize other projects will be impacted. The important thing is to inform folks with truthful (and complete!) information BEFORE their name gets on that petition, so that they can better determine whether they want to sign. I'm so sorry this is long; Max was thorough in his explanation. :) Thank you!! Laura.

===========================================================
Subject: Bond Ordinance Information
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 17:01:52 -0600
From: "Baker, Max"
To: "Boards & Commission Chair"
Cc: "~County Council" ,
"Department Heads"

At the Boards and Commissions Lunch-time meeting on Thursday September 21st, I was asked to provide information in written form of some verbal comments at that meeting. I apologize that this takes longer in writing.

On September 12, 2006 The County Council unanimously approved Ordinance 529 authorizing the sale of up to $75 million of bonds. The title of this 49 page Ordinance prescribes that the purpose of the bonds is for ”defraying the cost of public projects related to public facilities, roads and streets, public works, parks and recreation, and community services, including without limitation, the Trinity Site Revitalization Project and the Perimeter Road Improvement Project”. (see the text of the full actual title of the ordinance below)

These bonds are Gross Receipts Tax Revenue Bonds and as such have a pledge of the County’s Gross Receipts revenues. It is important to understand that no property tax increase will result from this ordinance. In fact Council recently made it very clear that we will avoid an increase in property taxes earmarked for roads and streets that would have increased those taxes significantly for property owners. These bonds were authorized because of forecasts of increasing interest rates and the need to bundle many projects together to minimize transaction costs associated with issuing bonds many different times for individual projects.

It is worthy to note that while only two specific projects are cited­The Trinity Site Revitalization Project and the Perimeter Road Improvement Project­many other projects from the County’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) which are in the early stages of development.

The Trinity Site Revitalization Project as outlined in the currently approved CIP will require approximately $50 million of the amount. The amount along with other sources of funding from reserves and a payment from the Schools will pay for demolition of current facilities and the building of new warehouse and shop facilities for both the County and the Schools at the Airport Basin site­thus paving the way for redevelopment of the Trinity Site by the developer who will provide a mixed use­retail, office and housing development. This complex project has been considered by the community for 36 years, and has been determined by Council to be the #1 goal to provide a better future for Los Alamos citizens. Furthermore, no viable alternative project has been identified which meets the #1 desire of our citizens as stated in numerous statistically valid Citizen Perception surveys over the past decade to provide for more retail shopping opportunities.

The Perimeter Road Improvement Project will require up to $12 million of the amount. This project will construct a significant portion of the Bypass Road contemplated to allow citizens and visitors to avoid going through the new security gates constructed as part of the NNSA’s Security Perimeter Project. Our citizens, retailers and tourist interests have made it clear to the County, the Governor and to our Congressional delegation that an alternative route must be provided. This project meets that need, and the bonds will ensure that we can do it in the near future instead of many years from now. While the Governor has indicated that the State will provide a grant for $6 million of the required amount, because of the overwhelming outcry of citizens to get the Bypass constructed we feel it is prudent to allow for the full amount of the project in case that grant does not occur in the next legislative session.

Other Capital Projects that are being developed and may require some portion of the remaining $13 million include such things as: (1) a new skate park in Los Alamos, (2) downtown parking infrastructure, (3) bike and trail paths, (4) the Golf Clubhouse, (5) road and sidewalk repair and replacement, and (6) a Historical Archives Building. All of these projects are important elements in addressing our aging infrastructure problems and improving the quality of life for Los Alamos citizens.

We understand that the County Clerk has this week issued a petition at the request of citizens that calls for either the immediate rescission by Council of the Ordinance or the calling of a election for the citizens to vote on whether to uphold the Ordinance or rescind it. If the petition is presented back to the County before November 16th, with sufficient signatures then the Council will have a choice and will likely take the question to the voters in a special election costing about $25,000 in late December or early January. If citizens approve the Ordinance going forward, then the County will likely issue bonds soon thereafter and the projects will continue to move ahead. Alternatively, if the citizens rescind the Ordinance then projects will be stopped for a minimum of a year as required by the law. With construction costs rising at about 1.5% per month, the $75 million may need to be increased by an additional $10 million one year later just to account for these construction cost increases.

In the motion for approval of the Ordinance, the Council has made it very clear that prior to issuance of any bonds, there will be additional opportunities for the Council to approve moving forward on each project and for the public to express their opinions about each of those steps. If anyone requires additional information on the projects, there is considerable information on the County website at www.losalamosnm.us and at the KanDu Center along with the reference desks at both libraries.

Staff would be happy to respond to any questions.

Max Baker
County Administrator

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here is the full text of the title of Ordinance No. 529.


INCORPORATED COUNTY OF LOS ALAMOS, NEW MEXICO
ORDINANCE NO. 529

AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE ISSUANCE OF THE INCORPORATED COUNTY OF LOS ALAMOS, NEW MEXICO GROSS RECEIPTS TAX IMPROVEMENT REVENUE BONDS, SERIES 2007, IN THE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $75,000,000 FOR THE PURPOSE OF DEFRAYING THE COST OF PUBLIC PROJECTS RELATED TO PUBLIC FACILITIES, ROADS AND STREETS, PUBLIC WORKS, PARKS AND RECREATION, AND COMMUNITY SERVICES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE TRINITY SITE REVITALIZATION PROJECT AND THE PERIMETER ROAD IMPROVEMENT PROJECT; PROVIDING THAT THE BONDS WILL BE PAYABLE AND COLLECTIBLE FROM CERTAIN GROSS RECEIPTS TAX REVENUES DISTRIBUTED TO THE COUNTY; PROVIDING FOR THE DISPOSITION OF THE RECEIPTS DERIVED FROM CERTAIN GROSS RECEIPTS TAX REVENUES; PROVIDING THAT CERTAIN TERMS AND DETAILS OF THE BONDS WILL BE PROVIDED AND APPROVED BY SUBSEQUENT ACTION OF THE COUNTY; PRESCRIBING OTHER DETAILS CONCERNING THE BONDS AND GROSS RECEIPTS TAX REVENUES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO COVENANTS AND AGREEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH THE BONDS AND THE FORM AND MANNER OF EXECUTION OF THE BONDS; RATIFYING ACTION PREVIOUSLY TAKEN IN CONNECTION WITH THE BONDS; AND REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT HEREWITH.

Council forum highlights Trinity Site project

DARRYL NEWMAN lareporter@lamonitor.com Monitor Staff Writer

As what can easily be described as the largest undertaking by Los Alamos County, the Trinity Site project was the focus of a county council candidate forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters on Thursday night in Fuller Lodge.

Candidates were given an opportunity to introduce themselves and share with the public where they stand on the project, which has been debated in the community.

Robert Wells characterized the general public as the ultimate decision-makers in whether the county should proceed with the project.

"The collective citizens are our best decision-makers," Wells said, calling for a referendum. "I've not been impressed with the county's economic development. The Trinity Site efforts have escalated from $40 million in 2005 to $100 million currently."

Wells continued that not all residents in Los Alamos County may be able to absorb the costs of such a project through gross receipt taxes.

"Some people may not be able to continue to live here," he said.

A former Los Alamos National Laboratory employee, Wells also referred to his experience in county government.

"With my involvement, I feel confident to address the spectrum of problems facing Los Alamos County," he said. "I will give attention to affordable housing, quality of life issues, volunteerism, transportation alternatives, school and county interfaces and county and lab interfaces."

Robert Gibson described the topic of the night as "change."

"Change is inevitable," Gibson said. "I hope there is not a need for a new Municipal Building and that is something that needs to be clearly determined. One thing that is clear is that we need to replace the ancient yards that sit on the Trinity Site and we need new retail ... Developing retail on the Trinity Site appears to be our best bet."

Gibson referred back to the time he served on the council in the late 1990s when replacing county facilities on the Trinity Site was part of a study completed in 1997.

"Yes, change is needed but it needs to be based on priority decisions and needs," he said.

Councilor Jim West referenced the public meetings held that addressed the Trinity Site project.

"We've had 33 public meetings on the Municipal Site and this council has tried hard to keep everyone aware of what is happening," West said. "Keep in mind that the county has not come to decisions with a knee-jerk reaction. The issue of the Trinity project has been wrestled with for four years at least."

West said it will be the decision of the developer of the Trinity Site as to what retail will be brought to Los Alamos.

"A major portion of this project money is going to go to the Airport Basin," he said. "The Municipal Building is not part of the Trinity Site. They are independent and separate projects. Now is the best time to do this project and replace these facilities that were given to us. All seven councilors are in agreement that this is what we need to do."

Councilor Nona Bowman chose to target the safeguards that the council has in place for the $75 million bond that was recently approved.

"We have authorized the county staff to begin the paper work necessary to issue these bonds. Before any decisions are made, they need to come before the council for approval."

Bowman likened the county's $75 million bond situation to borrowing money for a home loan.

"I am a teacher, so remember I like analogies," she said. "This same process will be in place when the county goes to sell its bonds. They might say 'we can offer you this much money' or they can decide otherwise. A lender isn't going to lend us money for projects that he doesn't think we can pay back. At the end, the lender will decide. Ignoring our problems and deciding to do nothing is evidence of decay."

Council Chair Mike Wheeler highlighted goals of more jobs, education and more adequate health care.

"I value community, responsibility and opportunity because these are the values that can help us reach these goals," he said.

Wheeler shared an e-mail that he received from a resident, which expressed concern about the condition of retail in the county.

"She referred to some areas, especially in White Rock, as retail ghettos," he said. "She wanted to see the county clean up dilapidated buildings and make sure that the school district is maximizing its resources. We as a council have done work to ensure this and continue to work together."

Richard Dunn said he looks to a form of more "sustainable governance."

"We've been informed as the public with fear that if we don't go along with the county's plans, 'this is what is going to happen to you.'

Dunn said the charter and comprehensive plan documents that govern the county should be what leads making of decisions in the future.

Marc Clay acknowledged the work that the county has done in terms of the Trinity project.

"This is a win-win for everyone," Clay said. "The county has invested a lot of time and money into this.

"I want to represent the youth in this town and that has been a platform for me," he said. "I am looking for sustainability ... The longer we wait, the more expensive the project is going to get. I don't have an agenda one way or the other. I just want what the public wants."

How to vote on Trinity Site or council members

I have reread the EPS report and have read the Boyer Company report. I like the Boyer report much better.

My dad was an architect who designed hospitals so I have seen many reports like the Boyer report. My brother is a civil engineer who helps communities and developers with projects such as Trinity Site.

When I write a business plan for a project or a business, I routinely put in pro forma financial results for the parties. In this case, I would expect such results not only for the site but also for Boyer, for the county, and for the school system. These pro forma (meaning what we think will happen but has not happened yet) results include a few pages of financial assumptions and a few pages of explanations of why the particular assumptions were made.

To me, what is missing from both the Boyer report and the EPS report are these assumptions and their rationale. I do not expect Boyer to supply this information. It is not their job. EPS was not apparently asked to create such scenarios.

As a voter, however, I need this information so that I can make an informed vote. For instance, I need to know what happens to the financing of Trinity Site if LANL becomes a pit production facility or if more people retire and only shop on line.

Does this make sense?

Cheers,

League of Women Voters

Last night's League of Women Voters meeting was interesting and promising.

The candidates attending were Mike Wheeler, Jim West, Skip Dunn, Nona Bowman, Bob Gibson, Marc Clay, and Bob Wells.

Most of them supported Trinity Site development and a strong developmental plan for the county. Skip Dunn and Bob Wells seemed to want to delay development for unspecified amounts of time.

The meeting was well worth attending.

Other sites of information about Trinity Site

I know of four other sites of useful information.

The Bombtown News Observer http://btno.blogspot.com/


Los Alamos County www.lac-nm.us/

The Boyer Company

and

The Los Alamos Monitor http://www.lamonitor.com/

Site plan and elevation

Thanks to Andrea, I now have Acrobat files containing the site plan and an elevation for Trinity site.

I don't know how to get the images directly onto the blog, but I am willing to forward them in interested parties.

Just give me a call at 662-3115 or send an email to frf42@yahoo.com

Thanks

Thursday night meeting

There is meeting so that county residents can meet the candidates for county council. The meeting is on Thursday night, 7-9PM, at Fuller Lodge.

Information

In addition to the Thursday forum, the Chamber of Commerce Discovery
Dialogue on next Monday, September 25th (6-7:30PM) at the Best Western
Hilltop House will feature County Council candidates expressing their
views and fielding comments/questions about economic and business
issues facing the community. Helping LANL stay healthy, economic
diversification, housing issues, increasing retail opportunities, and
schools/county funding for infrastructure will all be issues on the
table.

If you would like background for the candidate forums, the
LACDC/Chamber positions on key economic issues are available to read
at www.econ101.info

For more info on Monday's forum, please contact Debbie Gill at 661-4816

Please pass along this info to others you think may be interested.

More comments

Given that there is a petition drive to overturn it, I thought the
group would be interested in some summary information about the
County action that the petition seeks a referendum on. Hopefully
this will help readers be more informed about the issue.

Kevin Holsapple, Executive Director, Los Alamos Chamber and LACDC

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have noted recent criticism of the County Council approval of
general authorization of bonding to pay for capital improvements.
The criticisms were short of understandable rationale, so I would
like to offer several observations about the Council action.

The Council approved general authorization for borrowing (issuing
bonds) to support implementation of the County's approved capital
improvement program. The capital improvement program includes
considerable detail about the potential projects that may be funded
by the bonds. Even so, the Council action specified that the capital
improvement program must be updated with more specific details before
any debt will be undertaken -- the merits of the projects will be
considered in detail by the Council in public hearings before any
commitment to expend funds on them is made.

Why then did the Council approve the general authorization? Why
didn't they just wait for the updated capital improvement program?
The Council was being responsible in putting the County in position
to move ahead rapidly as warranted depending on the merits of the
updated capital plans. Stretching out a a serial process of
approvals in an environment of increasing interest rates would not be
prudent. There is no downside to the County being prepared to move
rapidly in the event it makes sense to do so. Whether it does make
sense or not will be the subject of future public hearings.

If issued, repayment of the bonds relies on current Gross Receipts
Tax (GRT) collection expectations. There are no future GRT
expectations from the projects to be financed that are being counted
on to fund repayment of the potential bonds. The County is
not "betting on the come."

The bonds will not require raising either property tax or GRT rates
from the currently existing levels in order to facilitate repayment.
The County action will not change tax rates. The current GRT rate of
6.9375% (raised to that level earlier this year) is low relative to
other communities throughout the State. For instance, when shopping
in Espanola you incur GRT of 7.5% and in Santa Fe 7.625%. Los
Alamos ranks 31st lowest out of 33 New Mexico counties for property
tax rates. The only counties with lower rates are Catron and Taos
counties. Implications that our tax rates are in some way out of
control does not square with the facts.

What are the projects in the capital improvement program that the
bond funding could be used for? The largest amount, $50 million, is
alocated for the Trinity Revitalization/Airport Basin Project. In
addition, $12 million is allocated for the Perimeter Bypass Road
Project and $13 million for various other capital projects such as
road and street replacement, parks and recreation, skateboard park,
golf clubhouse, and contingency as needed. The reason to group these
together is that there are significant transaction expenses
associated with bonding -- we save transaction costs by grouping.
Again, updated plans and information is required to be brought to the
Council in public hearing before any funds could be authorized for
any of these projects.

Insinuations that the County Council has been irresponsible or
imprudent in taking action to prepare for implementing the approved
capital improvement program are way off base. To the contrary, our
Council has taken a thoughtful, rational approach to preparing for
potential capital investment, has maintained our tax rates at lower
than average levels, and has committed to future public hearings on
the merits of individual projects within the capital improvement
program prior to expending any public monies.

Joint Powers Agreement

Did you see the interesting twist on JPA in tonight's Monitor?

School Board President Loui Janecky refused to sign the Joint Powers Agreement. The School Board approved the JPA on last Tuesday, but Janecky will not sign it. Since it was approved 3-2, Morrie Pongrantz signed it and forwarded it on to the County. According to the Monitor, Janecky declined to comment. Pongratz is quoted as saying, "The signature is only prefunctory and only affirms what the board approved. It doesn't mean you personally agree to it; otherwise, it would give the president veto power over everything." Interesting...

Pit Production

If 80% of the Lab's budget were spent on producing plutonium pits, would you live here? Would there be a need for Trinity Site Revitalization?

What stores are appropriate for the site if the average income per person decreases and if there are many fewer people with post graduate degrees living in town?

What is a good design for the Trinity Site if the shoppers are evenly divided between old LANL retirees and new LANL manufacturers?

If a referendum on Trinity Site is turned down so that the redevelopment does not happen and this lack of development causes young families to leave town, how can Los Alamos County become economically viable?

It seems that all of these questions require credible answers before we know what to do with Trinity Site.

Unbudgeted costs

"The Trinity Site project is on a well-worn path to failure because of increasing costs to the public," Gibson cautioned. "You need to critically review the project for scope and costs."

To me, this statement is the critical unexamined question.

Newman article on Trinity Site September 13

Council OKs county bond sale

DARRYL NEWMAN lareporter@lamonitor.com Monitor Staff Writer

An ordinance that allows for up to $75 million in revenue bonds for various capital improvement projects in Los Alamos County was approved Tuesday night, prompting residents to request that the item go before the public through a referendum.

The ordinance authorizes $75 million through the issuance of debt, stemming from gross receipt tax improvement revenue bonds.

Council approved the agenda item unanimously through a public hearing after county staff recommended that the county take advantage of current low interest rates for municipal bonds.

Assistant County Administrator Diana Stepan said a bulk on the bond revenues, namely $50 million in debt proceeds, would to go toward infrastructure expenses related to the Trinity Site revitalization project. The security perimeter project may require $12 million in debt proceeds, Stepan said, and the remaining $13 million would serve as a contingency to cover all other significant projects still in the early planning stages, as financing plans are adjusted.

Setting aside the possible $12 million in debt proceeds for the security perimeter project, would demonstrate to the state that Los Alamos is committed to proceed with its portion of associated project costs, Stepan said.

Councilor Jim West asked for a clarification of how each project would be approved and whether it would come before the council before final decisions are reached.

"One of the things we need to do is explain all of this to the public so that they clearly understand where we are," West said. "Does this mean that we are going to spend all this money right away?"

West also asked the nature of the county's current indebtedness.

The $75 million would not be spent all at once, Stepan said, and county staff will ask council to issue individual bonds only after it has "firm numbers."

Kevin Powers, director of fixed income banking at RBC Capital Markets, an Albuquerque firm that partly manages the bonds for the county, explained that the county currently has two outstanding debts. The first is a $1.1 million loan from the New Mexico Environment Department scheduled to be paid off in 2013. The second debt also is in the form of a loan for $1.8 million to be paid off in 2010.

"These are relatively small and short loans that will soon be completed," Powers said, addressing council. "The rates have remained fairly constant and now is a good time to do this because we don't know where they're headed. The numbers look good."

Councilor Jim Hall asked for an explanation of the process associated with utilizing the bond money.

Approval of the ordinance allows the county staff to proceed with initial work and, after an assessment period identifying project costs and the amount of funding necessary for projects, each project to be funded will be presented to the council.

"The items would go to council where details of bonds would be discussed, including interest rates," said County Attorney Peter Dwyer. "Each individual contract is subject to approval."

Hall noted that the public should be clear of the county's control over the bonds.

"We want to make sure that people understand that we're maintaining control, which allows us to enter into projects," Hall said.

Councilor Nona Bowman expressed some unease in a portion of the wording in the ordinance.

"It seems to me to be a lot of money," Bowman said. "I want to feel confident that we know the specifics will be brought back to council. The public wants to know what the money will be spent on."

During public comment, resident and council candidate Robert Wells questioned the release of $75 million in bonds, which he described as "a loosely defined collection of projects."

Wells has begun circulating a citizen-initiated petition with the intention of bringing the council approved ordinance subject to a vote.

"Fortunately, citizens will have the opportunity to determine for themselves whether or how they want tens of millions of their tax revenues to be spent," Wells said today.

Robert Gibson, who also is vying for a seat on the council this fall, said he is not against large-scale county projects, such as the Trinity Site revitalization, but would like to see the county proceed with the venture within "reasonable public cost."

"The Trinity Site project is on a well-worn path to failure because of increasing costs to the public," Gibson cautioned. "You need to critically review the project for scope and costs."

Federal land

In a number of sites near National Labs,for instance Oak Ridge, the government allocated land for business or retail development and then took the land back when DOE decided that it really needed the land again.

Such an event would be disastrous for the Trinity Site Revitalization. At the other sites, the takeback was denied time and again until it took place.

The most recent story is about the government refusing to pay "property taxes."

Comments?

What is Trinity Site Revitalization Project?

The Trinity Site is the current location of County and School administration and warehouse buildings on the land across Trinity drive from the Mari-Mac shopping center and Block Buster Video. The project plan calls for relocation of existing maintenance functions to new construction on the Airport basin site behind DeColores and the relocation of administrative functions of both the Schools and County to other facilities.

Once these functions are relocated and the site cleared, the Trinity Site, combined with adjacent land transfer parcels, will comprise ~42.2 acres of land for a mixed use development which includes retail/entertainment, business/office and residential, (both affordable and market rate). A national developer, the Boyer Company, with a proven track record is currently designing a plan that includes regional retail anchors, smaller local and national retail establishments as well as restaurants and entertainment. This “Lifestyle Center”, built with environmentally friendly LEEDs standards, will also feature a canyon rim trail, pedestrian accessibility, a transit center and linkage to the existing downtown.

Trinity Site, Los Alamos County, LANS, and LANL

To me, retail development at Trinity Site is a critical part of making Los Alamos county back into a place that people will choose to move to. Without an economically viable, both to Boyer and to the county and school system, Trinity Site the county will continue to bleed gross receipts taxes to Espanola and Santa Fe.
Young families will not stay here if they can find jobs that are nearer to shopping.

There are more parts to this issue. For Trinity Site to be economically viable, the county and the Lab have to remain viable. There are strong rumors that more than 1,000 people will leave the Lab, one way or another, in the next few months. A driving force for this diminution in the Lab's work force is $200,000,000 in new costs without any compensating new income.

Has anyone analyzed the effects on Trinity Site of this potential decrease in the workforce, the retirement of older members of the current work force, and the projected movement of the work force from research and development to manufacturing.

I have initial Excel spreadsheets on this change but not serious analysis.

Thanks.

This blog and the other one

I think that all the current Trinity Site posts are now here. I will double check later.

For broader issues, see the other blog http://scienceatlanl.blogspot.com/

Cheers

The process for moving ahead with Trinity Site

The first step taken with this project was to prepare an economic feasibility study to determine whether the project could be completed, the estimated expenses and the projected income. This study, called the Trinity site Redevelopment Financial Analysis, was done by EPS (Economic and Planning Systems). In order to estimate possible revenue for a development, a hypothetical project that contains the basic types of retail establishments wanted in the development is created using the amount of acreage available to be developed and the allocation of the area to general retail categories. The consultants used a variety of formulas to create hypothetical stores at a certain square footage to use for analysis purposes. They then use these numbers to project lease and possible GRT income. These numbers are often given as examples when describing the project.



While the EPS study was being conducted, the County put out a Request for Qualifications, or RFQ, that indicated that interested parties could apply to be selected for the next step, the Request for Proposal or RFP which is an in-depth development proposal containing financial offers and site plans. Five companies replied to the RFQ process and one, the Boyer Company, was chosen to be able to submit a RFP. (They will be discussed in the section on the Boyer Company.)

At this point in time, the only binding decision made on this project has been to approve a preliminary Joint Powers Agreement between Schools and County and concurrence to move forward with a developer to submit their RFP to the County, Council and Schools on July 18. This RFP will contain the site plan and precise financial information that will then be carefully assessed and made public. There will be multiple opportunities for the community to give input to Boyer through open houses, surveys and other methods. If the financial offer is beneficial for the schools and county, Boyer’s negotiations with staff will result in a Development Agreement that will be voted on in late November by the School Board and County Council. Only if all parties agree to proceed will the project start.

IMPORTANT DATES (subject to modification):
• End of July/06-Proposal submitted from Boyer to Schools/County Council
• 7/06-12/06-Boyer conducts public meetings and design discussions with community
• Fall/06-Proposal review and negotiate Development and Lease Agreement (Boyer)
• Fall/06-Schematic Design for Maintenance Facilities presented to Schools/County Council
• Fall-Winter/06-Schools/ County Council consider Development and Lease Agreement (Boyer)
• Winter/07-Final Design presented for Maintenance Facilities to Schools/County Council
• Winter/07-Bid out Schools/County Maintenance Facilities for construction
• Spring/07-Schools/County consider award of construction of Maintenance Facilities
• Spring/07-Fall/08-Construction of Maintenance Facilities
• Late Fall/08-Late Fall/09-Boyer commences construction of Lifestyle Center on Trinity Site
• Winter/09-Grand Opening of Trinity Site Revitalization Project now a Lifestyle Center mixed use development.

Why do we need the Trinity Site Project

• Replace Dilapidated Infrastructure

A plan to turn the Trinity Site over to retail use has been discussed in one form or another for the past 40 years and is an integral part of the current Downtown Plan. The county and school facilities that sit on this property have long since outlived their useful lives. Many of these facilities consist of Quonset huts which are temporary buildings that have a normal lifespan of 15 years. These buildings are now dilapidated, beyond repair and approaching 60 years of age. These facilities must be replaced and the associated costs will need to be incurred in any event, so now is the opportune time to utilize this prime location for retail and development that will enhance our community. This project will also produce revenue upon completion which will pay for the new school and county facilities and provide a long term source of income for both entities.


• Increased Quality of Life and County Revenue Related to Increased Amenities and Retail Opportunities

The request of residents for more retail has been the number one response to annual surveys that for the last 10 years has assessed the needs of the community. Numerous studies have shown that Los Alamos has a 60-70% retail leakage from the community and only 11% of resident’s income is spent locally. This means that 89 cents out of every dollar spent is used to make purchases outside Los Alamos County. This money spent in neighboring communities provides revenue obtained from Gross Receipts Tax (GRT) that funds the services and infrastructure of those communities as opposed to that of Los Alamos.

This project will provide needed shopping opportunities, added shopping variety as well as reducing gas, travel and time that local residents expend to leave the community for shopping. An increase in local shopping translates into an increase in GRT that funds essential county services.

• Provides a Long Term Source of Revenue for Schools and County Through Lease Revenue as Well as GRT.




• Project Utilizes Transferred Land for Intended Purpose of Economic Revitalization.

This 42-acre parcel includes 2 adjacent parcels of DOE land that have been conveyed to the county and schools in lieu of the annual self-sufficiency payments the county had been receiving from the government. The two parcels involved—A-8 and A-11—are being conveyed by DOE for the sole purpose of economic development in order for Los Alamos to become self-sufficient and develop a sustainable economy. Our local and national elected officials have encouraged and supported all progress toward that goa

Who is the developer for Trinity Site and how were they picked.

The Boyer Company is one of the largest developers of commercial real estate in the Intermountain West. Boyer company, which has been in business for over 30 years, has an impeccable reputation and has significant experience in building mixed-use projects such as the Trinity Site Revitalization Project. The Boyer Company develops, builds, owns and manages its properties over a long period of time; it is in the best interest of both the company and the community that their developments are successful and meet the needs of the citizens. They have a 98% occupancy rate in all of their developments and have extensive references and financing available. They also have relationships with numerous retail, restaurant, corporate and business tenants.

The Boyer Company will be submitting their RFP to the County, Council and Schools on July 18. This RFP will contain the site plan and precise financial information that will then be carefully assessed and made public. There will be multiple opportunities for the community to give input to Boyer through open houses, surveys and other methods. If the financial offer is beneficial for the schools and county, Boyer’s negotiations with staff will result in a Development Agreement that will be voted on in September by the School Board and County Council.

If the Development Agreement is approved, Boyer Company could be investing anywhere from $80 million to $125 million dollars of their company’s money into the development and the community of Los Alamos. A complete list of retail affiliations follows on the next page. The choice of retailers will be made by Boyer Company only after careful consideration of the needs and input of the community. The retailers/tenants will then negotiate their lease agreements with Boyer and will have the final say in deciding to locate in Los Alamos.

List of current Boyer Retail Tenants (this list is illustrative only and is not intend to be a representation of Trinity Site Tenants) :

Abercrombie and Fitch
Albertson’s
All a Dollar
American Eagle
Anglers Inn
Ann Taylor
Banana Republic
Barnes and Noble
Basset Furniture
Bath and Body Works
Bed, Bath and Beyond
Best Buy
Bike, Board Blade
Blindside
Blockbuster Video
Brookstone
Cal Ranch Stores
Circuit City
Coldwater Creek
Consolidated theaters
Cost Co
Country Wide
Curves
Downeast Outfitters
European Connection
Eye Master
Famous Footwear
Fantastic Sams
Fashion Bug
Gap/Gap kids
General Nutrition
Gray Whale CD
Great Clips
Harmons Foods
Hi Fi Shop
Hobby Lobby
Hollywood Video
Horizon Paint
JC Penny
Jamba Juice
Kohls
Lane Bryant
Linens and Things
Little Ceasars Pizza
Lowes
Mervyns
Michaels
Office Depot
Office Max
Old Navy
Omni Serve
Payless Shoes
Petco
Petsmart
Pro Golf
Quiznos
Ross
Sally Beauty Supply
Seagull Book and Tap
Smiths
Staples
Supercuts
Target
TJ Max
Unitah Gas Fireplaces
Victorias Secret
Wal-Mart
Wild Oats

Partial List of Mixed Use Projects Completed by Boyer: (ranges from large city to small town.)

The Gateway-development consisting of 30 acres of development in downtown Salt Lake City. The property, a former rail yard, is a mixed use development anchored by approx. 650,000 sq. ft. of entertainment and retail with 800,000 sq. ft. of office space and 700 residential units.

Redstone (Park City) – small town with a 2000 population of 7,371 and a median family income of $77,137. Retail space and entertainment, 220,000 sq. ft., Office 30,000 sq. ft. (above retail) and 214 residential units built on 36 acres. Anchored by Bed, Bath and Beyond and Wild Oats.

Sugarhouse District- Salt Lake City, 180,000 sq. ft. mixed use development, anchored by Barnes and Noble, Wild Oats and Old Navy.

Quarry Bend, Sandy, Utah, comprised of retail, office, residential with public parks and open space, anchored by Wal-Mart and Lowe’s Home Improvement.

Comments on Trinity Site

Trinity site is a rare opportunity for Los Alamos to improve its retail atmosphere. Please comment well and often on the postings for Trinity Site.

Newman Article on Trinity Site

Newman Article on Trinity Site
County: Trinity site plan 'not favorable'

Darryl Newman, lareporter@lamonitor.com

Los Alamos County staff shared some criticisms of the site plan in store for the Trinity Place development after receiving an initial proposal from the Boyer Co. on June 27.

In two open houses sponsored by Boyer in early July, concepts described as "very preliminary" in nature, called for a two-story, 18,000 square foot anchor store at the center of the site to serve as the heart of the development. Parking was disbursed throughout the development and an underground parking lot was figured into the preliminary development concepts.

The open houses were meant to serve as a communications tool between the developers and the public.

The proposal currently depicts a one-story anchor store (138,000 square feet), located on the far west of the development along Knecht Street, with a large parking lot to the east. Restaurants and some retail remains along the canyon rim, which borders the area to the south.

A courtyard and plaza will run along the canyon through and around the retail and commercial lofts overlooking the canyon.

Assistant County Administrator Anthony Mortillaro, who is the lead county staff member on the Trinity Site redevelopment project, said Friday that he will air concerns that he has with the initial proposal as submitted by Boyer .

"Initially, the site plan and building layout are not favorable," Mortillaro said. "Maybe they need to explain why they changed that."

Boyer representatives did not return phone calls by the Monitor seeking comment, but wording in the proposal states, "Many comments were helpful and generated changes in our thinking which are reflected in the new site plan."

Copies of the Trinity Place proposal have been disbursed to the seven-member county council and the Los Alamos Board of Education.

Mortillaro will meet with a reconstituted committee on Aug. 21. Business at the meeting will include familiarizing the team with the proposal.

Afterward, the committee will meet with Boyer representatives to discuss a path forward, Mortillaro said.

"This is simply their initial proposal and there is still quite a bit of dialogue to take place in the process," he said. "We'll reach a plan that is acceptable to the county, to the public and to Boyer. The challenge lies within getting to that happy medium."

The Trinity RFP Advisory Committee consists of the following members: Denny Erickson, White Rock townsite resident representative; Lou Santoro, Los Alamos townsite resident and business owner, Gary Nicholds, Los Alamos Medical Center CEO, Bill Enloe, president of Los Alamos National Bank; Kevin Holsapple, executive director of the Los Alamos Commerce and Development Association and the Chamber of Commerce; George Chandler, county resident and attorney; Steve Lynne, chief financial officer for Los Alamos County; and Jan Van Prooyen, principal/associate director for operations at Los Alamos National Security.

A "festival plaza" has been included in the proposal that would "overlook the canyon and provide setting for public gathering space," the proposal states. A lower-level boardwalk, jogging and bike trail also will be included near the canyon rim.

The proposed Trinity Place will be composed of 243,350 square feet of retail, office and entertainment space.

Parking under the proposal will consist of 1,015 stalls. Boyer representatives explored the concept of an underground parking garage, but axed those plans because of high construction costs, according to the proposal.

The proposal also adduces traffic impacts and cites a traffic impact analysis prepared by Wilson & Company in November 2005 that recommends the construction of a traffic signal at the intersection of Trinity Drive and DP Road.

"We think lanes to keep traffic flowing along Trinity as well as a slip lane into a roundabout will help traffic considerably," the proposal states. "Traffic coming into Trinity Place as well as DP Road would be accessed from the roundabout." Additional traffic measures include the implementation of interior bus stops that would keep traffic flowing and bring more foot traffic to the area.

After Boyer receives final site plan approval, anticipated by December of this year, it has proposed the following timeline:

# December 2006 - Lease executed with the county and the school district.

# January 2007 - County and school district begin on new replacement facilities and Boyer. with a chosen housing partner, close on land Parcel A-8 and work on civil and architectural drawings for the residential area.

# February-March 2007- Finalize all drawings and obtain all entitlements for residential on A-8.

# April 2007- Begin construction on A-8 residential.

# March 2008 - First residential units available for move-in.

# June 2008- County and school district move to new facilities.

# September 2008- Begin site work on Trinity Place.

# September - October 2008- Complete construction and finalize A-8 residential.

# September 2009- Grand opening of Trinity Place.

Copies of the Trinity Place proposal are available for review at the Kan Du Center, located in the Municipal Building and also are available at the Mesa Public Library.

A follow up report on the Trinity Site proposal as submitted by Boyer Company is scheduled for Tuesday's Monitor.


The material above is copywritten by the Los Alamos Monitor. If this material should be listed only in part and with a hyperlink to the original, let me know and I will change it.

Another Newman article from the Monitor

Another Newman article from the Monitor
Revised Trinity plan coming

Darryl Newman, lareporter@lamonitor.com

Boyer Company representatives have cited various financial resources that it will tap into in moving forward with plans for constructing the Trinity Site mixed-use development.

The Boyer Co. will leverage a combination of its own equity with loans on the balance of the property, said Boyer Partner David Nielson.

"We have done this with various commercial lenders," Nielson said today by phone from company offices in Salt Lake City. "We won't have one particular lender we'll be working with until further down the road.

After that, we can go out to lenders and see who will give us the best interest rates, among other aspects."

Financially, the project is estimated to generate $2,587,534 in gross receipt taxes, as well as $1,199,090 in incremental property tax, according to Boyer's request for proposal to the county. In addition, land parcels A-8 and A-11 purchased from the school district will generate $5,286,145 in revenue to the school district.

Boyer and Los Alamos County will develop three separate lease agreements as part of an overall agreement, said Assistant County Administrator Anthony Mortillaro. There will be a lease agreement on the actual property to be leased, a sale agreement on land sales and a development agreement that covers the total area to be sold.

"We will be negotiating and there is still a lot of work to be done on it," Mortillaro said. "There will be a negotiating of the draft agreements that will eventually go through a modification process. We're giving ourselves plenty of time to do all of this."

The county will work with Boyer exclusively in developing lease agreements, Mortillaro said. Boyer will develop the Trinity Site on land that it will lease from the county.

Boyer will then lease retail and office space pads to individual retailers. Boyer also may construct its own buildings and lease the facility to retailers, Mortillaro said.

"The buildings that are leased will reflect the ground lease and the building lease to the retailer under just one lease rate," Mortillaro said. "The ground lease from the county will be solely to Boyer, who will reflect their lease rate to their tenants."

Nielson said Boyer has yet to finalize any plans with a retail giant to anchor the Trinity Place development. Candidates so far include Wal-Mart, Target and Smith's Marketplace.

A master site plan proposed by Boyer that was published in Sunday's Monitor will be obsolete by Wednesday, Nielson said.

"The site configuration has changed again and will change again later, as we look and see what the costs will be," Nielson said. "The new plan will look more like the first conceptual drawings."

Mortillaro said he is hopeful that the modified plan will more closely resemble what the county has envisioned for economic development on the site.

Boyer representatives, including Nielson, will be in Los Alamos on Saturday and will be available to answer questions from the public regarding the project. The representatives will present from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Municipal Building.

The Trinity Place development is an economic venture in place between Boyer Company and the Los Alamos County and the Los Alamos Public School District.

The site will be comprised of 155,500 square feet of retail, 34,700 square feet of commercial space and 53,150 square feet of mixed-use office, restaurant and entertainment space. Copies of the Trinity Place proposal are available for public review at the Kan Du Center, located in the Municipal Building and also are available at the Mesa Public Library.

Another thought from Andrea

Hello All, hope you had a good holiday weekend. There are some important new developments concerning the Trinity Site project that I wanted to update everyone on:

1. I have been told that Target is reluctant to come here because we are too small of a community. However, Wal-Mart really wants to build a store up here-it would be a super center with groceries. Smiths also wants to build a super center that would carry regular items, clothing, bedding, sports equip, kitchen and craft supplies, etc. That store would be a Smiths Marketplace. I will be meeting with the Boyer rep next week and would like to get a feel whether folks would like a Wal-Mart or another Smith’s, if Target definitely decides not to come. PLEASE EMAIL ME BACK WITH A VOTE----WAL-MART OR SMITH’S MARKETPLACE!

2. Also, there is an entertainment building in the plans-do you all want a Bowling Alley or a Performing Arts Center?

3. Boyer (the developer) will be in town at the Farmers Market this Thursday, Sept 7 in the morning and on Friday, Sept 8 in the eve at the Gordon’s concert. There will be a new site plan-please go and give your feedback.

4. Council will be voting on an ordinance to fund the project along with the Ski Hill bypass road at the meeting scheduled for Sept. 12. The School board will be voting on the joint powers agreement to continue with this project on the same night. Although the site plan is not done, the contract so far has Boyer Company paying the schools $1 million dollars a year in lease money for the land. It is very important that you let the Council and especially the School Board know you support this project.

5. My opinion-Although Target was the number one choice of stores in the survey, if they won’t come I feel that Wal-Mart would be the next choice. The overwhelming majority of folks who filled out the survey shopped at Wal-Mart already. If we want to generate the tax dollars we need to fund our community, we need to build stores that people will shop at. Other stores also tend to cluster more around a Wal-Mart than a Smiths, so we have a better chance at getting higher quality smaller stores and restaurants. Although the project may not be perfect, it is our last chance to get more tax money for our community and support for our schools. Our schools have the opportunity to get new facilities without spending a dime of current income and the promise of $1 million a year in income afterwards. Everyone’s support and input is needed to have the best possible outcome.

Latest comments from Andrea

Hi,

Thanks for responding to the retail questions and/or forwarding the email. This process is at a critical juncture and if we are to see any possibilities of retail in Los Alamos, certain steps need to happen. Whatever your retail preference might be (which I am forwarding all emails and votes to the developer), this project, the Trinity Site Redevelopment project ( the county and school land across the street from the Smith’s parking lot that will be cleared for the developer to build a mixed use development which includes retail, entertainment, housing, office, a canyon rim trail with boardwalk and community plaza), is the last opportunity to deve lop land in the downtown area for the types of shopping and entertainment opportunities we currently lack. If this project does not happen there will be no chance of a larger retailer coming to town. What follows is by no means the entire process but the immediate decisions that are being made.



According to Kevin Holsapple of the LACDC and member of the review committee, the first step is:

1. “ The School Board will be considering whether to keep their options open to stay involved in the project at their meeting on
September 12 (next Tuesday). As I understand it, they will be considering a revised joint
powers agreement with LA County. If they approve/accept, it will keep the school's portion of the property in the deal for now
although it will not bind them to whatever Boyer proposes – they would decide on that later based on the merits. If they reject, it
would effectively end consideration of the project for now as availability of the School lands are a key requirement.”

“Please urge the School Board members to keep their options open so we can see what Boyer will be able to come up with. Unless there is an immediate idea for other use of the land, there is no apparent downside to keeping options open.”

“Contact info for Board members and info about their meetings is at http://www.laschools.net/board-of-education.html”



Kevin explained this section so well that I took his quote. It is very important you either email your school board members or go to the meeting on Sept. 12, 7pm, Main Board room, School Administration bldg. (on the Trinity site) to express your support for this project.



The following are email addresses of the School Board Members:

Jim Anderson j.anderson@laschools.net
Loui Janecky loui.janecky@losalamos.com
Morrie Pongratz mpongratz@losalamos.com

Ken Johnson kfjohnson@lanl.gov
Alison Beckman alison@beckman.net
Steve Girrens spgirrens@cybermesa.com



2. The second step is that the County Council will be voting on an ordinance that will fund the bypass road to the Ski Hill and Jemez and the removal of county facilities off of the Trinity Site, from existing Gross Receipts Taxes. There will be no new tax increase to fund the Trinity Site Project. This vote will take place at the Council meeting also on September 12, next Tuesday. It is also very important you either email your Council or attend the Sept. 12 meeting, 7pm, Council Chambers, the Municipal Building at Ashley Pond. The Council email is council@lac.losalamos.nm.us
3. There will be other votes from both entities needed to proceed with the project throughout the planning stages with either the Council or the School Board having the option to back out of the project if it does not benefit them. At this stage, Boyer has offered the Schools $1 million per year for a long period (I think at least 50 years) in lease money to build retail on the land. The County would receive a large increase in Gross Receipts Taxes from the sale of goods in the new retail sector. While it will cost the County and Schools money to move off of the land, the schools will pay no money out of the current budget or future bond money for replacement facilities as the cost will be covered completely by the lease money from the developer. After the new facilities are paid off, the schools can use the extra $1 million per year for operating expenses and/or new schools.



It is important to show your support as there has been opposition to this project from 2 school board members (Loui Janecky and Allison Beckman). I have heard rumors that the United States Postal Service would like to have the school land for a distribution warehouse. Also, on the Council side, all current councilors are in favor but Council Candidates Bob Wells and Skip Dunn are actively trying to stop the project and have started a petition to bring it to referendum in hopes of defeat. They have been giving people incorrect information about the project in order to secure signatures. Bob Wells wrote an editorial this summer that expressed his desire to turn Trinity Site into a Trailer Park instead of a mixed use development.& nbsp; Would you rather have a warehouse, a trailer park or a retail and community plaza at the entrance to town on Trinity Drive across from Smiths? I have seen the latest site plan the developer has presented and it is beautiful. I encourage you to go to the Gordon’s Concert tonight to see the plan and talk to Boyer or to check the lobby of the Municipal Building by Ashley pond to see the posters when they will be up next week. I have extensive information on the project. If you would like more information please feel free to email me. Andrea Cunningham
andreangreg@comcast.net