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ST. LOUIS MISSOURI -- The Missouri Department Finance Board voted today to pitch in about $29.6 million for the development of Ballpark Village, after securing guarantees that the project would include 250 condominium units.
With the approval, city officials as well as St. Louis Cardinals leaders say groundbreaking for the $387 million retail, business and residential complex should occur late this fall or early winter. That timeline should allow for a large portion of the project to be completed by the time St. Louis hosts the Major League All-Star game in 2009.
Compared to a plan presented to the state last month, the deal brokered today is larger, both in terms of square footage and total public and private spending.
Perhaps most significantly, developers and the Cardinals are now committing to build 250 condos. As of last month, the residential units had been hoped for, but not included as part of the deal with the state.
"For those who want to live within a home run of home plate, that will happen," said Bill DeWitt III, a Cardinals vice president.
Before the condos and additional 36,000 square feet of retail space was added, the state had originally contemplated offering $26.8 million in subsidies. That figure grew by nearly $3 million once the new commitments were made.
Sallie Hemenway, of the Missouri Department of Economic Development, said the increase in state spending is well worth it, given the economic development that would come from the condo development.
"The increase in public investment is minimal compared to the return we expect to receive," she said.
"Adding this condo component is -- no pun intended -- a home run," said state finance board member Nelson Grumney Jr.
The state will fund only public infrastructure such as streets and utilities.
Under the plan, the state would help the city in the repayment of $29.6 million of public bonds. To do that, the state would hand over half of the new state sales and income taxes expected to be generated in Ballpark Village during the next 25 years.
The team's vision for Ballpark Village calls for six blocks of stores, restaurants and entertainment on the grounds of what was the old Busch Stadium. Plans include a Cardinals Hall of Fame, office space and themed restaurants, like an ESPN Zone or Hard Rock Café.
The finance board today also approved $1.3 million in tax credits to help finance a $14 million fundraising campaign to expand the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City.
Mark Bryant, president of the museum's board of directors, has said the project would convert a nearby vacant building into a baseball academy and learning center, where youths could use batting cages and develop math and science skills by calculating such things as the speed of a pitched baseball, swung bat or base runner. The new facility also would be rented for special events, such as parties and meetings.
Source: http://stltoday.com & Images from http://www.kmov.com