BY DAVE PARRO
While the 5.3-acre Bigelow Homes land donation to the East Aurora School District wasn't as good as originally promised, the board's decision Monday night to reject the deal basically lets the developer off the hook.
Even if the $1.15 million appraisal of the land is inflated, as some critics contend -- that was the number that came from an appraiser hired by the School District -- it's obvious the value would have still far exceeded the required $242,000 land-cash donation. But now that's all the district is likely to get.
A poor school district shouldn't just turn down hundreds of thousands of dollars. The tie vote that killed this deal hurts the district and only puts more money into Bigelow's pockets.
* UPDATE BELOW
The three dissidents on the School Board could have instead publicly criticized Bigelow for not living up to his promise but still did what's in the best interest of East Side students. Now the developer has an excuse for not honoring the deal orchestrated by Aurora Mayor Tom Weisner and can profit himself from the commercial parcel on Montgomery Road.
What exactly did rejecting this deal accomplish? Yes, Bigelow should have donated the full 8.3 acres promised in the deal that led to the demolition of the Hi-Lite 30 drive-in theater. But the smaller donation is still better than the alternative, as far as the School District is concerned. Now no one will be able to question Bigelow when he only does the minimum and gives the School District $242,000. It's obvious the developer wasn't going to increase his offer; East Aurora should take what it can get given its financial state.
This vote really amounts to little more than a very expensive political statement that hurts the students of the East Aurora School District.
UPDATE: AUG. 8
BY MIKE CETERA
School Board members now have had a chance to explain their votes. In short, it doesn't wash.
Juanita Wells: "I have no regrets. I know the School District needs money, but I do not want to be put into a position like that. I know we may not get the money now, but I couldn't take that chance."
Couldn’t take what chance? That the district would get more cash? No, no, we wouldn’t want to take such a risk.
Rayanne Carlson: "Everyone was in such a rush to get it done now, and we have two years before we'd even get (the land). Bigelow is offering $1 million in property when he only has to pay $242,000. I think if something looks too good to be true, it probably is."
This donation has been talked about non-stop for a year. It doesn't look too good to be true. It's actually less than was promised. But it's as good as it's going to get. The actions of the School Board may have cheated the district out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Is that a good example of looking out for the students? For the taxpayers?
Which Beacon staff member wrote the post? It's okay for the Beacon to write anonymous posts, but criticize others? Irony?
I find the post self-serving. The Beacon messed up by endorsing the whole Bigelow expansion in the first place and let all those lies and tricks get published. While OpenlineBlog (http://www.openlineblog.com) kept breaking these stories on the land scam, the Beacon sat quietly.
The Beacon again is failing. Andre Salles' article fails to ask for Tom Weisner and Bigelow to explain why they shouldn't be held their promise of 8.3 acres or $1.3 million.
The solution is for Bigelow to keep his land and instead write a $1.3 million check. The Beacon should join the rest of the community and OpenlineBlog.com in demanding that. Otherwise, every developer and elected official will learn a lesson that it's okay to deceive the public and destroy our assets like the drive-in theater for selfish greed and tactics.
Is the Beacon going to be part of the problem or part of the solution?
CETERA RESPONDS:
The byline was inadvertently left off the post. It has been fixed. We as a rule don't post anonymously on this blog.
As for calling for the mayor and the developer to keep their promise, the editorial board (on which both Dave and I sit) made that call a year ago.
That call was reiterated in a blog post last month.
Congratulations to all who voted for the ignorant, blind and unqualified school board members. Apparently ignorance IS bliss. I can't believe we've left the education of our children in the hands of people who obviously have no CLUE and no business in deciding what is better or worse for the school system. It's this level of incompetence and spite for Bigelow Homes that has burried this school district and sent the level of education of innocent kids to the toilet. Keep up the good work Dist. 131 School Board. At this rate our kids will be having classes under trees and 100 students per class because of lack of funds and brains by your part. We will NOT forget this gross negligence and will deal with you decisively when your terms of "Head of the Class" are over.
To the three School Board members that voted against the Proposal, I have one comment:
$1,000,000.00 - $240,000.00 = $760,000.00 Profit for the School District.
If they had been given the opportunity to attend a school in a decent school district themselves, they would understand simple math, profit and logic.
I applaud the three School Board members who had the courage to refuse to "rubber-stamp" Ms. Farnum. For way too long, the "old guard" members of the Board have functioned as a secretive club instead of an elected body accountable to the taxpayers.
Too much was unknown about this deal, and those board members were wise to be cautious. My brother is a real-estate lawyer, and he says that a "gift" like this can end up being more trouble than it's worth. By the time the district dealt with insurance issues, traffic flow, the fact that the land is prone to flooding, etc. it might have turned out to be a liability rather than an asset.
I agree that Bigelow should simply present a check for $1.3 million dollars to the district--honoring the original plan.
Looks like the school board did the right thing by turning down the land, by the time 2009 rolls around, the 5.2 arces will probably be down to .25 arces and that would be the detention pond. The school board should take the $242,000 now before the Mayor finds a way let Bigelow completely off the hook. Also, all work on the second housing addition should be halted until the parking situation is corrected in HomeTown, talk about a mess, no need to repeat it a second time.
I understand the D131 school board members wanting to be cautious on making decisions. What I find disturbing is that this issue has been on the books for over a year now. With the financial issues that D131 is facing I would have thought this donation would have been on the front burner. The D131 board on July 16th decided to delay the vote pending an appraisal and apparently more info. That made sense to me being that there are new board members and they may not be up to speed yet on this particular issue even though it's been talked about for a year. The appraisal was done which is good. But I have to wonder why the board members requesting more information were not able to get that done in the three weeks since they voted to delay. And apparently the disenting D131 board members also did not consider the long term ramifications of other contributors such as the Aurora East Education Foundation. I think Mr. Maysonet has made a valid point in suggesting that the D131 members who voted no should consider taking a Business 101 course.
Let's be clear. Bigelow and Weisner scammed the community and city council into destroying the drive-in theater under the basis that there would be 8.3 acres of LAND for a middle school, worth at LEAST $1.3 million.
The Beacon endorsed the foolish Bigelow expansion and killing of the drive-in theater and failed to report on the scam until it was obvious to EVERYONE and had been revealed on OpenlineBlog.com.
The three school board members who voted against blindly accepting one appraisal and trusting all this have plenty of reasons and a poor track record by Bigelow when it comes to honesty.
the Beacon should have the courage to demand the full $1.3 million as promised by Bigelow and Weisner.
It's amazing the analogy of some people who believe that the school system is better off with NO MONEY! They're probably the same group of geniuses who voted NOT to increase property taxes to make sure our kids have a chance at getting an education. The demolition of the rat infested drive-in was a blessing. I'll take houses over rodents anytime. Obvously the real estate lawyer has no clue since a retention pond is created to AVOID flooding and burden the city drainage system. Leave the design and construction to the experts. And if your concerned of the HomeTown parking situation, clean out your garage and donate to the poor.
I cannot believe the people that are still falling for this Land scam. First of all the school district is not going to receive a penny from the so called land donation until at least 2009, but I doubt that any money will come from the land donation. Second, Bigelow still has not defined exactly where this so called land is located, so technically there is no land to accept. Third, the school would not receive the land donation until Bigelow gets done with everything they want to do and can be used as leverage when (not if) Bigelow runs into problems. For those that suggested certain board members to take a Business 101 class, I suggest you take one yourself first, who in right mind would take a piece of land 2 to 3 years in the future and that the exact location and size has not been determined, over a cash payment of $242,000? If you want to gamble with money, take your own to the Aurora Casino and leave the school district money alone. With the history of Bigelow and the Mayor, the school district policy should be cash upfront, not a hollow promise years in the future. Looks like instead of Aurora having the oldest Drive-IN, Aurora will be known for having the longest running Scam, unbelievable!!!
FROM DAVE PARRO:
A point of clarification: Bigelow Homes would not pay the School District $242,000 in a lump sum. He would be required to pay the district on a quarterly basis over time as building permits are issued for HomeTown Farnsworth. Whether it be the land donation in 2009 or a cash payment, either way the district won't see its full donation immediately.
Good clarification on the quarterly payments, thank you... however, pay as he builds is still better than waiting for an unknown payment after all homes are built. There are so many ususable details with this Bigelow / Mayor land deal that I would not be surprise if it becomes a case study in a business book on how not to do business.
There is many speculations regarding this situation. First and foremost, I agree with Brandy C. in that things that are too good to be true are often not. (I also think it is narrow minded of the "business man" who is not donating to the Aurora Education Foundation anymore). This land was not to be given until 2009 then I ask "Why the rush??" In addition, the School District should focus on what it is supposed to do, and land development is not what they should be speculating in. That is what this deal is. Speculation on a piece of property and hoping it will sell sometime in the future. There is no buyer for this property, and thus NO $1.3 million. An appraisal is a best guess by one person, but no guarantee of future value. As mentioned on Openlineblog.com; many stores in the existing strip malls are vacant (and Subway just closed). This piece of land, from what I've been reading has NO corner access; which means that there is no way to enter this property unless it is by right turn only because it is too close to the light. The traffic at this intersection is terrible, and I'm quite confident the Village of Montgomery will expand this light to a full interchange, with turning lanes further limiting this development.
This piece of land is only valuable if the two other corner holders sell to the same developer because then you can have a full access point off of Farnsworth. However, the chances of that is slim to none. Many land speculators have bought corner properties hoping to flip it for a profit, and have yet to see any returns.
The school board was wise to be leery of developers bearing gifts. The school board is not a land developer. The prudent thing to do is for Perry Bigelow to sign an agreement to sell; which states "Upon the sale of said property, Bigelow LLC agrees to donate the proceeds to School District 131 if in the event the proceeds exceed the standard land cash payment of $242,000. In the event that the proceeds of this land do not exceed $242,000 then the developer will pay the land cash payment". This is the right thing to do; however, the developer won't do it because he's trying to get rid of a "WHITE ELEPHANT".
Here is a website that I think all will find interesting-ea131.blogspot.com-I went to it for the 1'st time in along while and found it updated. For everyone making comments, do you attend the board meetings to see if what is printed in the paper is what was stated, or has it been just a part of what was stated and therefore, not getting the whole entirity of the statement? It is so easy to make comments, be it good or bad, but if one does not go to the meetings at least once in awhile, it is hard to really know what is happening. In the board bits on D131 website you are only getting a very short version of what is said. Therefore, one is not getting the whole version of what has transpired at the meeting.