City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: SEPTEMBER 6, 2022
FROM: COUNCILMEMBER RONALD O FIERRO WARDS: ALL
SUBJECT: FORMATION OF PROJECT SUBCO MMITTEE FOR RIVERSIDE ALIVE PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP (P3) AND MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT
ISSUE: Create a subcommittee to provide a focu sed environment for regular meetings and updates and a feedback loop of elected officials, city staff and project developers to ensure that the project meets timeline goals.
RECOMMENDATION:
That the Economic Development, Placemaki ng and Branding/Marketing Committee form a P3 Project Subcommittee with the purpos e of meeting regularly with st aff, city consultants, legal counsel, and the project developers to assure the continued progress of the Riverside Alive project.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION:
The Economic Development, Placemaking and Branding/Marketing Committee met on August 18, 2022, with Chair Ronaldo Fierro and Member Steve Hemenway present to consider this item.
After discussion, the Committee voted to advance this recommendation to the full City Council for consideration.
BACKGROUND:
In May of 2019, the City Council: 1) selected the joint development proposal from the Greens Group and Griffin Swinerton to design, finance and construct a mixed-use hotel, residential, commercial, office, convention center expansion, public event plaza, and new public parking garage project; 2) directed staff to negotiate a Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA) with the Greens Group for the private portion of the Property; and 3) directed staff to negotiate a Lease and Lease-Back Agreement with Griffin Swinerton for expansion of the Convention Center and construction of a public event plaza and new public parking garage.
In September of 2019, the City Council approved separate Exclusive Negotiation Agreement’s with the Greens Group and Griffin Swinerton with a term of 24 months (to September 21, 2021) with one 6-month option to extend (to March 22, 2022).
On October 12, 2021, staff provided the City Council with an update on the Riverside Alive project and shared several development options for the private development portion of the project (e.g., hotels, office, multi-family residential, etc.). At the conclusion of staff’s Project Subcommittee Formation Page 2
presentation, the City Council reaffirmed their desire for the Riverside Alive project as originally proposed.
On March 22, 2022, the City Council approved extensions to the Exclusive Negotiation Agreement’s with the Greens Group and Griffin Swinerton.
On April 21, 2022, the Economic Development, Placemaking and Branding/Marketing Committee received and filed an update on the public-private partnership (P3) primer from Griffin Swinerton for the public development portion of the Riverside Alive Project.
The Staff report stated that a Purchase and Sale Agreement with Greens Group and a Pre- Development Agreement with Griffin Swinerton were expected to be presented to the City Council in June or July of 2022. This has yet to come before the City Council.
DISCUSSION:
As re-affirmed in October 2021 and at the April 2022 Economic Development, Placemaking, Branding/Marketing Committee meeting – the timely completion of the Riverside Alive Public Private Partnership Project is a mission-critical priority for the City Council.
Riverside Alive is the first Public Private Partnership (P3) development project that the City of Riverside has initiated, and open communication is important to our shared success.
Due to the City’s purchasing resolution, City Council Members are unable to speak or meet directly with the project’s development team about project details. This makes it difficult for City Council Members to keep track of the progression of the project or hear the perspective of the development team.
To remedy this issue, it is recommended that this Committee form a project subcommittee with the charge meetings with and receiving updates from the City staff, legal and business advisors, and the private development team on the progress of the P3 project.
Name Membership T
ype of Body Meetin g Frequency
P3 Project
Subcommittee
Members of the
Economic
Development,
Placemaking and
Branding/Marketing
Committee
Non-Brown Act,
agenda published
publicly, and minutes
recorded.
Once or twice a
month, depending on
need and availability
of group.
If approved, the working group would begin meeting immediately. The subcommittee will not provide official or formal recommendations, but will instead hear updates, input, and feedback from all involved in the project. This will ensure communication is flowing to the elected body in an effort of ensuring timely completion of this ambitious and impactful project.
Authorized by:
_________________________________
RONALDO FIERRO, Chair
Economic Development, Placemaking and Branding/Marketing Committee