Springfield leaders and Heer's developer Kevin McGowan are hoping to put the finishing touches on plans for the much-delayed renovation of the landmark building.
A Jan. 21 meeting revisited possible financial incentives and the steps needed before construction could begin.
"This was just to refresh everyone, reconvene and at least try to start the process to put together the timetable to close," McGowan said in a phone conversation immediately following the meeting.
The next big deadline the Heer's project comes up against is Feb. 5 - the date McGowan's St. Louis-based development company Blue Urban LLCs is to apply for a $12 million loan from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said Louise Whall, director of public information for the city of Springfield. Blue Urban also is working on a pro forma, which will likely mean another meeting with city leaders when that's completed, she said.
"There will be more meetings here over the next two weeks ... but for right now, we were just going over the plan a little bit, seeing where we are, nothing new," McGowan said, hinting at more significant news coming in a couple of weeks.
There has been some progress on the Heer's project recently. On Jan. 15, final construction drawings were submitted to the city. The plans will need to be approved by the city before permitting can begin and financing can be finalized, McGowan said, noting the approval process could take a couple of weeks.
"Building Development Services takes the lead (on reviewing the drawings)," Whall said, adding that other departments such as Fire and Public Works also may review drawings and recommend changes. "From there, it's kind of a give-and-take process."
Subcontractor bids submitted to St. Louis-based general contractor HBD Construction Inc. in early December provided more accurate cost estimates for the drawings, McGowan said. Approximately 200 companies entered bids for subcontract work on the Heer's building by a Dec. 9 deadline.
Roughly 65 percent of the submitted bids came from Springfield area companies, with the rest coming from outside the immediate region, including businesses in St. Louis, Kansas City, northern Arkansas and Lake of the Ozarks, said Brian Kowert Sr., chief operations officer of HBD.
"Many of (the subcontractors) know they've been selected. They just have not been given the official notice," Kowert said, estimating more than 80 percent of the subcontract work will be awarded to Springfield-area companies.
McGowan said the official word on those bids won't be given until financing is in place, which is on hold until the city approves the drawings.
"The project itself has to be consistent with the (financing) applied for," said Mike MacPherson, a principal planner for the city.
McGowan said hard construction costs were expected to be slightly less than $16 million, giving a rough estimate of $25 million for the whole project.
"I was the only one that thought we could get this at $16 million, and when it came in at $15 million and change, we were all surprised," he said.
He said he would pursue federal, state and local financial incentives to help with project costs, including tax credits and abatements.
Nearly half of the funding would come from the HUD loan, which McGowan was invited to apply for in July. He said finishing touches are being put on the HUD paperwork, which will be submitted in early February.
He also expects to pursue city incentives, though McGowan said he hadn't yet asked the city for approval on specific programs.
"I would expect that ... in short order, the plan and everything we need to move forward will be in place, and then we'll take that to City Council and whoever needs to bless it," he said.
After several delays in the project's construction start date - initial expectations after McGowan purchased the building from the city for $3 million in November 2007 were that construction would begin in June 2008 -- McGowan is reluctant to provide another estimate.
"Maybe it will happen in a couple of weeks," he said. "In my mind, that's what it is, but you'll probably need to ask Springfield that, too."Read more about the Heer's development in the Jan. 25 issue of SBJ.
This installment of Springfield Business Journal’s Architects & Engineers Project Report showcases 26 endeavors by area design and engineering professionals.
