Five Rivers: Vote on extension provides way out

According to the Sunday Northwestern coverage of the continuing P.T. Barnum Resort saga, "city staff is backing off initial pronouncements that [developer Tom] Doig met the city's demand for financing documentation and that the project could move forward with the vote of the council." City manager Dick Wollangk does not believe that a September 20th groundbreaking is likely, and he says that the council would have to vote to extend the deadline.

If such a vote takes place, it would take place in the context of the council having knowledge that:

• The choice of "direct pay" (more taxpayer risk) vs. the "pay as you go" (less taxpayer risk) subsidy options is at the discretion of the developer who, not surprisingly, wants direct pay.
• The Wall Street Journal quoted a lodging analyst who called condo-hotels "a complicated and risk filled asset class that lack a long-term track record." (You would hope that Oshkosh elected officials would want to see a track record of success for such developments before going forward--otherwise we risk being "guinea pigs for this guy.")
• Based on reporting in the Northwestern, it is now clear that the developer did not come even close to having a viable financing plan secured by the May 31st deadline.
• City staff apparently interprets the "term sheet" as not giving the council a vote on the yet to be inked developer agreement. (How could any elected official continue to support a project in which he or she has effectively been disenfranchised?)
  

Given all of the above, it is difficult to imagine how any member of the council could vote for another extension. They should vote NO on any proposed extension and finally pull the plug on this project.