VXI Wants More Time to Consider 20 Federal Place
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- No one bid on 20 Federal Place despite the city soliciting offers for the former six-story department store converted to offices. The city had set a minimum $2 million bid for the building. It acquired the property -- once Strouss’ department store redeveloped as the headquarters for the defunct Phar-Mor Inc. -- in 2005.
The sole correspondence submitted before Friday’s noon deadline was a request from Greg Ouimet, vice president of VXI Global Solutions LLC, requesting a 60-day extension “to properly complete our review and develop the best response, considering the financial operating position of the facility.”
In the letter, VXI also requested a change in the specs to include the adjacent parking lot at Commerce Street and Wick Avenue in the proposal. “Parking will be a crucial component to potential lessees and successfully leasing of the available office space,” Ouimet wrote.
Since opening its call center in 2009, VXI has expanded its operations to encompass more than 2½ floors of the building plus a first-floor recruitment center.
“We were hoping we would get some additional responses,” said Mayor John A. McNally. “So I think we’re going to go back, look at our initial RFP and see if there’s any changes that we want to make. It’s still my goal to sell the building.”
In discussions before Friday’s deadline, city Finance Director David Bozanich said developers raised concerns over access to parking and leases still in force. In the proposal, the city said it would make property available for parking at the Covelli Centre or the site of the former Wean building, undergoing demolition.
“Although they appreciated this, it wasn’t a firm commitment to provide that in a way that was satisfactory to people who would be spending $2 million on the building,” Bozanich said.
“If there was a resolution to the parking issue, I think we probably would have had more proposals,” he added.
Prospective owners also wanted time to analyze the existing leases and the intent of those tenants to renew.
McNally and Bozanich said they would consult City Council before determining what, if any, changes they might make to a subsequent request for proposals, whether reducing the minimum bid or affecting parking. McNally said he expects to decide within a couple of weeks whether to put out another request or “sit tight,” but iterated his preference to find a private owner.
He also hopes an appraisal of the property, now under way, will be completed later this month, in time for the next finance committee meeting of council.
Copyright 2014 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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