City grants Motown a 7-month extension

Two months after the deadline passed for Motown Technology & Sports Facility Inc. to provide proof of financing for a $300-million sports and entertainment complex in Vandalia, the Vandalia City Council gave the group seven more months to provide that proof.

The council approved that extension in a 6-1 vote after hearing that Motown has received a letter of intent for the financing of a $300-million sports and entertainment facility that would be built on the city’s west side.

In presenting the request for the extension, Motown Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Bardwell presented representatives of various companies who have signed on as partners for the project, including a Chicago company that is working to secure Motown’s financing.

Bardwell said that Motown’s inability to meet the original deadline for proof of financing (Oct. 1) was largely due to a sagging economy.

But he also acknowledged that Motown was mistakenly working on many development issues before working to finalize the financial aspect of the project.

“I don’t have to tell anyone in this room, or the media, or anyone else, that the economy has been very difficult in terms of financing and companies receiving credit to finance their projects and get banking financing,” Bardwell said.

“It has been very difficult to do that, but we have still managed to move forward and to assemble this team,” he said, adding that many of the companies who were announced on Monday had acquired sponsorships for the project in addition to being partners in it.

In documents presented to the council on Monday, Motown asked the council to extend the deadline for proof of financing until May 7 of next year. During his presentation, Bardwell asked for an additional month, meaning that Motown would have to provide that proof by June 7.

The extension, he said, “will allow us the proper time to complete the feasibility study.”

That feasibility study is part of the work that’s needed in order to secure funding.

Motown has hired Jeffrey J. Tandoc of Tandoc Enterprises in Chicago to work with lenders in securing the financing.

Tandoc said on Monday that he had “received sufficient documentation to issue to him (Bardwell) a letter of intent to fund the project.”

Tandoc said that in order for that to happen, Motown must now submit the results of a marketing and feasibility study; “a commercial appraisal of the property, as completed”; “and a few other financial matters that need to be attended to.”

Bardwell said that Motown has hired Hundin Strategic Partners of Chicago to perform the feasibility study.

“We kind of did it the reverse way for the first development agreement, not having that (feasibility study) in place to meet the October 1 deadline,” Bardwell said.

“But now, I think that we’re on the ball. We’ve managed to bring in Select Contracts, a world-class developer group that manages leisure facilities around the world, as well as the United States,” he said.

Bardwell said that Motown has also brought in a “world-class hotel operator” (Wyndham Hotel Group), and noted the continued participation of Komé Industries, “a wholly-owned subsidiary of Motown Technology” that had an order to manufacture 6,000 specialty bicycles for a Beijing company.

“They want to be able to manufacture those bikes here in Vandalia, and possibly work with the city to be able to get a jump start in bringing that operation here” while Motown continues to work on securing financing, Bardwell said.

Dante Roberts Sr. of Komé said after the meeting that the company would begin accepting applications for jobs through its Web site, www.neatbikes.com, and through the city.

Roberts said during his presentation that the company wants to employee up to 200 people, with salaries ranging from $9-$12 an hour. He also said that Komé has initiated a search for temporary facilities in Vandalia.

Bardwell emphasized that the hiccup in Motown’s plans should not leave the impression that the group is any less enthused about Vandalia than it was when signing the original agreement with the city in May.

“We are very, very serious about Vandalia. We’re very serious about bringing this project to fruition,” he said.

Bardwell said Vandalia’s director of economic development and tourism, JoAnn Givens, “has been very, very helpful in working with us, pushing us where we needed to be pushed to.

“The commitment is still here,” Bardwell said.

The amendment to the agreement was approved in a 6-1 vote, with Alderman Mike Hobler casting the lone dissenting vote. Bret Brosman, Larry Bennett, Jerry Swarm, Lisa McNutt, Larry Cable and Dean Black voted for the amendment, and Chad Feldpouch was not present for the meeting.

Hobler told Bardwell that he still believes that Motown has put the cart before the horse.

Hobler first asked whether Motown is pursuing similar projects in other communities.

Bardwell said, “Actually, Vandalia is one. We’re looking at another, and that project is not really being considered as being the first. Vandalia is being considered the first.

“We feel that Vandalia now has the opportunity to be the first, and we not just shopping you guys to look at other states,” Bardwell said.

Hobler’s question was in reference to Motown approaching officials in Clark County, Ky., about a similar project in Winchester. That project is mentioned in the amendment approved by the council.

According to the Winchester Sun in Winchester, Ky., Motown also missed the deadline to provide proof of funding this summer, and governmental officials there sent to Motown a list of 20 questions pertaining to funding.

A reporter for that newspaper told The Leader-Union that there was unaware of any recent discussions pertaining to the Motown project in that community.

Hobler said he believes that Wyndham Hotel Group can put a hotel in any community it wishes, and that he sees the bicycle-manufacturing facility as a good idea.

“The rest of this seems like a pipe dream,” Hobler said.

“This feasibility study should have been done a long time ago,” he said, adding that the city is holding a marketable piece of ground for Motown.

“We’re sitting on this ground,” he said. “Everybody’s playing catch-up; somebody dropped the ball here.”

When Bardwell did not respond to Hobler’s comments, Cable asked Bardwell if “you have anything lined up, as far as funds go, or are you completely blank on funding.”

Bardwell replied, “Yes,” then turned to Tandoc, who again noted that he had issued a letter of intent for funding.

Bardwell then noted that Motown had brought a $17,500 check to reimburse the city for a traffic study it had performed on the western edge of the city. “We haven’t been dragging our feet totally,” he said.

Hobler again said he couldn’t support a project until Motown provides proof of funding.

“I’d like to buy a diamond mine, but I haven’t got financing, either,” Hobler said.

In response, Bardwell said, “Look at the economic times we’ve had. Most people would think we’re insane to even try to attempt to do something this large in these economic times.

“We still believe, with creative financing and the team that we’ve assembled, that we have a reasonable chance, a very good, reasonable chance, to move forward and to make this happen.

“Hopefully, the next time we are in front of this body, we will have some celebrating to do,” Bardwell said.