I think M&G is trying to salvage a bad investment. They originally were going to convert it into a work/residential development with approximately 30 units selling for about 250 to 300K each. The neighborhood was very receptive to that at the first zoning meeting, and M&G was going to return with a final proposal. I guess when the real estate market began to soften, they scrapped that idea, and they came back last year with a proposal for a middle/lower income rental development that included government subsidies/credits for the developer over 14 years or so as a means of recouping their investment down the line. The neighborhood turned thumbs down on that proposal (rightly so, in my opinion). The expectation was that M&G would return with another proposal. Apparently they have decided to bypass the FNA Zoning committee and develop these office studios.
The first problem I see is that there is no mention of on premises parking, which means that the tenants will be parking on York and the surrounding streets. At $399/month for a studio, and the size of the building, we're talking about a lot of tenants and a potential parking snafu. The second problem is that we don't know what the criteria are to become a tenant. $400/month is not a lot of money so who knows what kind of tenants or businesses will move in.
I think the FNA zoning committee may have to take a closer look at this development although I'm not sure what it can do about it.
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06-16-2008, 09:07 PM
