Council approves long-awaited College Station amendment

Springfield City Council on Dec. 11 approved the restated redevelopment agreement for the $12 million, downtown mixed-use development and $8.69 million parking facility.

It’s been a long planning process for Scott Tillman’s development, which comprises 158,000 square feet of retail, entertainment and office space – including a 14-screen movie theater – and a 390-space parking deck on the development’s south tract.

Original plans called for it to be open by now, but the project has been plagued by higher-than-expected parking deck bids, city-initiated design changes and delays on the adjacent parking deck for Heer’s Tower, which also was redesigned.

Even the final redevelopment agreement met with delays.

The bill was tabled at three previous meetings, a fact not unnoticed by City Manager Bob Cumley.

“I know you all wanted us to table this bill one more time, but we decided we couldn’t do it,” Cumley told council with a laugh. “I’m really happy to present this bill tonight – it’s been a long time coming.”

Councilwoman Shelia Wright summed up the situation.

“My youngest daughter was in high school when we started talking about this,” she said at the meeting. “She graduates college in May of 2008, and she was wondering whether or not she would have a chance to go down to the movies with her friends before she graduates.”

City Economic Development Director Mary Lilly Smith said it should be possible – the development’s new completion date is March 2008.

The updated schedule for the project calls for construction and infill of the theater – Hollywood Stadium 14 Cinemas, a Wallace Theater Holdings Inc. project – to begin in April and be completed by February 2008, along with the retail space north of College Street.

Also on the agenda

• Council considered an agreement with Georgia-based LaserCraft Inc. for the installation of automated red-light cameras at several Springfield intersections.

The $1.1 million project could add cameras at as many as 16 city intersections. The first to receive a camera would be the southbound approach at National Avenue and Battlefield Road.

If approved at council’s next meeting on Jan. 8, the first tickets could be sent by March or April, following a 30-day warning period, according to Assistant Director of Public Works Earl Newman.

• Council approved another new park for the Springfield-Greene County Park System. The new facility – a former CU property on Blackman Road – will be named the Dan Kinney Park and Family Center in honor of Kinney, who retired in January after 35 years with the department.

The park is the third property that CU has leased to the parks department under a memorandum of understanding passed by council in May.[[In-content Ad]]