By Emily Younker
eyounker@joplinglobe.com
CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — Briarbrook resident Art Koller said Wednesday that he wouldn’t mind helping to pay for the purchase and subsequent renovation of the Briarbrook golf course and clubhouse, calling the property “a plus for Carl Junction.”
That scenario is outlined in a petition seeking to establish a community improvement district, or CID, in the subdivision, under which Briarbrook property owners would assess a tax on themselves to finance the purchase or lease of the golf course, clubhouse, tennis courts and swimming pool.
It’s the second of two scenarios — and possibly the likelier of the two, according to City Administrator Steve Lawver — under which the district’s board would acquire the property.
The other option assumes that the current owner, Equity Endeavors, headed by Joplin attorney Steve Hays, will give the property to the state in exchange for tax credits. The property then would be transferred to the city, which would lease it to the CID’s board.
‘Doubtful’ option
When asked Tuesday whether he thought the latter option seemed likely to go through, Lawver said: “In my professional opinion, it’s doubtful.”
The reason, Lawver said Wednesday, is that tax credits are becoming increasingly difficult to get. The city would have to apply to the Missouri Development Finance Board on behalf of Hays.
Lawver said a general emphasis on tax credits has shifted to job creation through programs such as the Quality Jobs Program, which awards tax credits to businesses supporting job growth.
Bob Miserez, executive director of the state finance board, said the board has approved several projects to receive tax credits in recent months, including projects for the St. Louis Central Library and for Wheeler Downtown Airport in Kansas City.
But he said the approval of a project doesn’t necessarily result in the issuance of tax credits. Up to $10 million in tax credits is available each year through the board, he said.
“In order to get the tax credit, the contribution has to be received,” he said.
Miserez said the board has not historically participated in a project directly related to a golf course.
Lawver said that doesn’t mean the project can’t be approved, “but it’s an extra stumbling block in there they have to get past,” he said.
Lawver also said he needs two appraisals of the property to proceed with the application for tax credits. Hays, the property’s owner, did not return a call seeking comment Wednesday.
Annual costs
Under the option involving the tax credits and lease, the owner of a home with a $100,000 market value would pay $66.50 per year in special assessments.
The second option for acquiring the property is for the CID’s board to negotiate a price, borrow the amount needed and then buy the property directly from the owner. The owner of a $100,000 home would pay $90.25 per year under that scenario.
The CID tax proceeds would go to pay off the debt and for maintenance.
Briarbrook resident Ervin Ducommun, who signed a petition in support of a CID, said he would opt for either scenario because a CID would be “so much better for our neighborhood.”
Toby Teeter, who helped lead the drive for a CID, said both options would adequately fund the purchase of the property.
“Either way, the CID would be a go, and it would proceed with the plan as laid out” in the petition, he said.
The petitions had to be signed by more than half of all property owners within the proposed district — about 460 — as well as by residents owning more than half of the assessed value of property in the district — about $15.8 million.
City Clerk Maribeth Matney said the petitions were signed by 492 homeowners and represented about $18.6 million in assessed valuation.
City Attorney Mike Talley on Tuesday addressed the question of whether Ward 3 council members Richard Zaccardelli and Mark Powers, who signed the petition, have a conflict of interest in the issue.
Talley said he doesn’t think they would be disqualified from attending the public hearing or voting on the CID. The reason there is no conflict of interest, he said, is that they would not receive benefits above what any Ward 3 resident would receive if the CID were established.
“They benefit just like any other member of the class under the CID,” he said. “Just as important is their obligation to represent the citizens of that ward, and it would be a real shame if they were not able to vote for their ward for an issue that affects them so deeply.”
In response to a question from Councilman Wayne Smith, Talley said the council has the discretion to vote either for or against a CID.
Background
The golf course and club property are essentially the centerpiece around which the Briarbrook residential subdivision has evolved. The property has changed hands many times since opening in 1968.
The business was purchased in 2002 after an owner went bankrupt. The new owners encountered financial trouble in 2007, and the property changed hands again, ultimately resting with the company associated with Hays.
Last April, Carl Junction voters rejected a plan that would have financed the purchase of the property by the city through a $2.7 million bond issue.
Just more than half of the voters endorsed the proposal, which failed because it required a 57.1 percent majority.
After the election, Hays said one option was selling the land to a developer, and he temporarily closed the clubhouse. He has since allowed the course to be operated by a group of Briarbrook residents who run and maintain the course. Essentially the same group came up with the proposals now being considered.
Public hearing
The city has scheduled a public hearing on the CID issue for 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 28, in the Jerry Stark Performing Arts Center at the Intermediate School building, West Allen Street and Broadway.
