In today's Trib, Allegheny County backs financing plan for transit project, Castle Shannon voted unanimously to support a TIF (Tax Increment Financing) to develop the Castle Shannon T stop by Ice Castle. From a traffic standpoint, this would be a traffic nightmare for the Kossman property.
We were talking about developing the air rights over the Mt. Lebanon T stop. I wonder if this will affect our plans. I believe we're asleep at the switch. Castle Shannon is moving forward while we talk about turfing Mellon field and going after tax appeals.
35 comments:
The *fish or cut bait* clock is running out for Kossman. Prospects for the L A Fitness project seemingly ended when L A Fitness bought out Bally's and began operating the Village Square site.
The Commonwealth reportedly saved the Kossman clock on their original office complex plan that went nowhere when when the Rendell admin. extended deadlines for previously approved development projects because of the severe recession ; however, the office complex had no interest when it was marketed in the boom prior to the recession. Anybody in great need for 40,000-80,000 SF of office space hereabouts ?
I well recall posing the question about the prospect of this Castle Shannon "T" development resulting in an absolute "F" (failing) traffic condition at and around the Castle Shannon/Mt. Lebanon Blvd's intersection if both the L A Fitness & "T" projects went forward. The Lebo traffic engineers response was in effect : we are considering only the L A Fitness project which is in Mt. Lebanon, and the "T" is in Castle Shannon and not an actual project...so we don't have to consider it". Oh yeah !
A "who's on first, what's on second" is coming to our playing field shortly. Any bets on the umpiring ?
Bill Lewis
And where we had environmentally useful trees sucking up CO2 and pumping out oxygen we now have an ugly vacant lot at an entrance to our upscale community.
Where's our green weenies now?
Oh that's gotta be good for home values!
Gffn Gd
Matt Santoni reminded me of the article he wrote back in February. Mt. Lebanon T station development could be 'big'
Matt also wrote that the commission discussion sessions have had the TRID (Transit Revitalization Investment District) preliminary engineering review on their list of future topics for quite some time (most recently Discussion Session Agenda), but it looks like it may finally come up next week.
Thanks for the information, Matt.
Elaine
Bill, I remember Raja saying that L A Fitness will never go in that space. Can homes go in there? Are they paying anything in taxes for that land?
Elaine
So let's review,
Ms. Linfante wants to pile on more debt for artificial turf and lights.
Mr. Brumfield doesn't want to find out why $800,000 in fines went uncollected.
Nobody, commissioners or school directors, wants to take on the issue of grossly underassessed properties.
We have about $3 million in recently purchased municipal property no one has a clue what should be done with it.
But... all these officials were quick to figure out a way to tax rainwater and charge students for parking.
Good thing they passed the sign amendment.
Do you think we could hang giant banners at all the Lebo access points... "THIS SPACE FOR LET!"
Gffn Gd
What we lost from the Kossman property...
"Trees absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen and that cleans the air.
One tree produces nearly 26 pounds of oxygen a year.
An acre of trees removes up to 2.6 tons of carbon dioxide a year.
Shade trees save energy by making buildings cooler in the summer — up to 20 degrees cooler.
Trees provide protection from downward fall of rain, sleet, and hail as well as reduce storm run-off and the possibility of flooding. They prevent erosion of the soil.
Trees provide food and shelter for wildlife.
Trees improve water quality by slowing and filtering rain water, as well as protecting aquifers and watersheds.
The death of one 70-year old tree would return over three tons of carbon to the atmosphere.
...and who's paying the Storm Water tax for this property?
I'm sure that's something they'll talk about "next year."
Maybe they can put in a pay-as-you-go soccer complex for all the little johnnies and suzies.
Wonder when the discussion sessions are going to start as to whether the YSA fulfilled their yearly obligation to pay $30,000 into the Joint Maintenance Agreement?
Shouldn't that happen before we go borrowing money for fields, Ms. Linfante?
WHERE ARE THE PROPERTY RECORDS FOR THIS PROPERTY???
Maddie Miller
Maddie,
I don't know!!! I looked on the Allegheny County website and saw other vacant property listed on Castle Shannon Blvd. in Mt.Lebanon.
Elaine
Elaine & Maddie,
Go to the County real estate assessment website...under Parcel Search enter the Parcel ID (Lot & Block No.) 191-E-222 and you will obtain the Kossman property under ownership name of PNC Bank National Assoc. plus a couple of individuals....but see who gets the tax mailings. It's the Kossman site !
Yep...the 5.27 acre parcel, valued at only $97,400 has a paid 2012 County tax of a whopping $543.13 !
Now, please tell us all what the 2013 reassessed value is.....
Bill Lewis
Bill, the reassessed value is $91,100!
Elaine
Do you think they would be willing to sell me those 5.27 acres to me for $91,100?
Elaine
the residential lots are all assessed about $60,000 per partial acre but the kossman property is assessed at $91,100 for over 5 acres remember that in your tax assessment appeal
batman
Son Paul and grandsons Curtis & Mark Kossman have proposed many different projects for the site, Elaine, since the senior Kossman bought it for a grandchildrens development project back in 1954 or so.
One project proposal prior to the dual office building fiasco was, I seem to recall, a 22-unit upscale townhouse condo deal....what killed it in the eyes of the then Muni was a Kossman insistance that a drugstore be sited at the entranceway into the property, which ruined it. Kossman would not budge, the Muni would not approve it and it became yet another failed proposal.
After the condo/drugstore, the Kossmans wanted to develop a large medical/dental office building with loads of parking spaces, which drove the Muni nuts because of traffic concerns even then...to the point that the following dual office building fiasco had a restriction in the Muni approval prohibiting any medical/dental office tenants.
Along the way, one wonders how the Muni rejected a medical office building development because of traffic concerns, but approved a big-box fitness center with even greater traffic generation...and refused to take into consideration a major traffic choking development possibility at a "T" station a mere 200 yards away ?
It's sorta scary around here sometimes.
Bill Lewis
Elaine, didn't the Parking Authority minutes you posted say the Parking Authority participated in a TRID?
Now the Municipal Discussion Agenda says:
"i. Review of TRID preliminary engineering (June 12)"
Did the Parking Authority turn over a TRID to the Municipality and we are going to review the engineering study in six days?
John Ewing
Raja said LA Fitness would never go there?
That's odd- since he voted to let them when he voted to re-zone the land specifically for them.
I had not heard of the various proposals. Wait, I take that back. I remember seeing graffiti on a sign which was against the future development. Hey, maybe someone from the muni did that. ;)
I wish Mt. Lebanon would reconsider going after under assessed properties. This is a perfect example where Lebo would have much to gain.
John, The minutes are here. http://www.mtlparkingauthority.com/boardmeetings/Minutes%2010.14.10.htm Frioni said the PA participated in the TRID. I don't know what to say about that.
Elaine
Yeah sure a commercial 5.25 acre lot on Castle Shannon Blvd. is worth only $91,000.
But our brilliant commissioners, guided by municipal employees, solicitor and hired financial advisors saw nothing wrong with paying $1,000,000 for the landlocked Twin Hills site and $1,500,000 for the McNeilly property.
What's funnier, is one of those rocket scientist wants us to send him to represent us in Harrisburg.
Where he spew nonsense like a current rep.: "I'm working hard in our state Capitol and at home to make government work for you and our community."
Guess who says that!
Isn't anyone fed up yet?
Baaaaaaaa! Yep two bags full
Elaine, are there any other minutes that show how much the Parking Authority gave away and to whom?
How did the Parking Authority give a TRID without Commission approval when they owe the Municipality a very large amount of money?
It appears aging jock David Ballfield isn't properly minding the store. Neither is Linfante.
Is it just my imagination or is the Muni starting to make the school board look good?
John Ewing
Here's a bit more history...some people say they don't like it, but they're usually the ones who don't want to learn from it.
The Parking Authority did have a role in the TRID project, but really in a minor way. Here's how.
Back in the 1980's, the Port Authority decided to build the LRT system, and their plans included elimination of the old trolley rails in "Uptown", the rail "loop" at Alfred St. & Washington Rd., and construction of the tunnel and rail system at the Lebo LRT station. There were homes along the western side of Shady Dr. E at one time, and following demolition a parking lot. PAT wanted to sell several land parcels to Lebo. Lebo could not legally buy/own land for development, so it had the Parking Authority purchase the PAT parcels : Parcel A is now the Public Safety Center. Parcel B is becoming in part a hotel (in a state of delayed construction), and with B were included "air rights" development over the LRT tracks and the land along Shady Dr. E and the LRT tracks to Alfred Street...this is earmarked for the TRID Project. Parcel C is now Clearview Commons, formerly "Andy's Loop", including the parking Lot behind, and Parcel C-Annex is a small vacant section between the Lot and the LRT tracks.
The Muni "loaned" the funds to the Authority for the purchase of the PAT parcels in a 10-year interest free loan. That loan was repaid in a variety of ways...but it took more like 15 years. The Authority retained ownership and responsibility for the upper or Washington Rd. portion of Parcel B until it was sold for the hotel project, and continued ownership of the "air rights" and lower Parcel B land along Shady Dr. E until the Muni acquired it. It was during this period that the Authority had a small role in the TRID Project...they had no "up or down" decision making authority on the Project because of provisions in Feb. 22, 1993 Operating and Financing Agreements with the Muni. They were merely observers. They were given a comlimentary liaison seat on the Economic Development Council (EDC) board largely because of off-street parking aspects of the TRID....the EDC has a leading role in the TRID Project. Frioni was the Authority rep on the EDC for awhile. He and his assistant Dawn Morrison.
So that's the rest of the story.
Bill Lewis
PS...the EDC recommended to the Commission that Zamagias be given extensions to the "buy back" provision in the sales agreement with Zamagias because the Parking Authority allegedly lacked $500,000 in funds to buy back the property based on advice from Frioni. At that time, the Authority had close to $1 million in net, unassigned free & clear cash...no one in the Muni checked on Authority financial statements they received monthly, usually late.
Bill Lewis
It appears from Lewis's expose there are big problems in the dealings of the parking authority than $800,000 in uncollected fines.
Could this be why ex-authority board member Brumfield isn't "concerned" with why the fines went uncollected?
Dawn Morrison, why is that name familiar?
Gffn Gd
PSS...If you check the County assessment website, you may likely see that the County still classifies the hotel site as non-taxable, owned by the Muni. I haven't checked in a couple of weeks. Kratsas bought the property in 2009 from the Parking Authority, I believe, and construction has been underway for 8 months or more.
It should be on the tax County roles, right ? Is it on the Muni & District's ? Someone may claim that it does not have to become taxable until construction begins....balderdash ! Take a gander at the Zamagias property purchased from the Authority years ago....it is and has been taxable and construction has never begun.
Is anyone really shocked to learn about $800,000 in uncollected Parking Authority traffic ticket fines ? If so, please tell us about it.
Bill Lewis
Morrison-
1. Worked for Tom Stevenson
2. Paid campaign staffer for Raja
3. Secretary under Raja of the Republican Mt. Lebanon Committee
BUT
Despite the obvious cronyism of her hire she likely had nothing to do with unpaid tickets.
Brumfield wasn't an authority board member until the entire old board was replaced right before the town took it over. Brumfield voted to dissolve the authority, former parking authority liaison Raja voted to keep it.
Why should Mr. Lewis have the responsibility to expose things like the hotel property not appearing to be on the tax rolls?
If it was purchased in 2009 by a private concern it was and is taxable whether improved or not.
No it's far simplier to spend $150, like the school district, to go after the individual home owner that's just trying to get a fair shake on their assessment.
If Mr. Lewis is incorrect in his facts it should be rather simple to expose his errors.
But, our politicos like Mr. Brumfield see no reason to follow upon the facts.
Like his statement that turfing Mellon will cost only $3,500/year to maintain. He's offered no documentation supporting that claim, yet he and Linfante will continue to push to float a bond to do it, taxpayers be damned.
Gffn Gd
Right, "Anonymous" ! Dave Brumfield was the Commission Liaison to the Parking Authority for only a few months until he saw how it was operating....when the Commission replaced the Authority board in July 2011, Dave & Commissioners only served in a board capacity until the end of December 2011. During that time the Muni was following a detailed "work plan" in preparation for assuming total responsibility for Parking on January 1, 2012.
Al Frioni, Raja and Joe D. did all they could to prevent the Muni takeover of the Parking Authority. The common thread there was purely political, not reasoned thinking and fact-based.
Bill Lewis
11:14 am- Mr. Lewis wrote: "Frioni was the [Parking] Authority rep on the EDC for awhile. He and his assistant Dawn Morrison."
So what were her job duties as Mr. Frioni's assistant?
Gofer? What did an authority assistant make in salary and pension?
It's not the little guy writing parking tickets or the maintenance crews raking fields that are the problem here. Its the deals and lack of record keeping.
A Washington Road property sold to a private concern in '09 still listed in 2012 as untaxable... why?
Bill, those three are the heavy hitters with the Mt. Lebanon Republican Committee. Dawn Morrison, as noted in a previous comment, is the secretary. That is why I didn't stand a chance to be endorsed. Looking back, that was the best thing that could have happened to me.
Elaine
Her job was to make up for the "shortcomings" of the ED- who reportedly had problems dealing with ... anyone. Including the person who preceded her in that position. You know- the position that was eliminated because it wasn't needed? Then it was "needed" because Raja "needed" to cover his republican committee friends? It was "needed" so badly that the position wasn't publicly advertised- just handed out like candy on Halloween. Then despite those functions being entirely duplicative with the public information, Raja "needed" to be sure the job wasn't eliminated.
Where's the Trib or Post on this one?
Or the Democratic Committee?
Elaine
I guess that is how he can say that he created jobs right here in Pittsburgh. Just like how he and his buddy, Joe D. Could say that they cut taxes. Yep, I saved sixteen dollars that year.
Elaine
I wonder do you think the municipality sends threatening letters and zoning citations to Kossman for a weed infested property?
Just wondering.
Anonymous @ 12:03 PM , June 8,
The Muni will not likely take any action on such a Code violation unless there is a formal complaint registered by a citizen to the Inspection Dept and/or Manager....how about you doing that for us, OK ?
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