Consultants for the Christian Broadcasting Network unveiled detailed plans Tuesday, announcing a 500-acre complex near Regent University that they say would rival MacArthur Center in Norfolk, Short Pump Town Center in Richmond and Town Center in Virginia Beach.
Public officials appear inclined to go along with it because (according to the VA Beach city manager) "...it would be a significant boost to the tax base for Virginia Beach and Chesapeake, and it would provide employment opportunities for the whole region..."
So is Mr. 2000 Lb bench press just giving the public that tax money? Not so fast! Anyone following suburban development knows that the cost of public infrastructure is enormous, especially to serve such "massive" sites. According to the article:
Paying for the road improvements is complicated. Chesapeake and Virginia Beach plan to use a financing tool called "a community development authority."The two cities would have to create the authority.
Then, the authority would take out about $85 million in bonds to pay for the projects. The authority would capture a portion of the increases in property taxes and other taxes from Blenheim Park and use it to pay off the bonds over a 30-year period.
The Washington Post ran an article on this type of financial structure being used in Loudoun back in May. There are some ominous signs in that discussion... "if Greenvest or homeowners default on the bonds, the county's credit rating could be at risk".
So what's happening here? Chesapeake and VA Beach are taking out a loan and putting their credit rating on the line for a primarily retail development. They get the loan back in property taxes, but the real winner is Pat Robertson. According to Lowell Morse, a consultant working for the project:
when the project is fully built, land leases for Blenheim Park could generate $15 million to $20 million annually for [CBN].In a statement, Roberts on said Blenheim Park "can become a significant part of a long-range endowment for CBN and Operation Blessing.... We plan to sell only a minimal amount of acreage and to lease the rest to provide what we hope is an inflation-proof source of supplemental income."
Do you live in Chesapeake or Virginia Beach? Call your city council and warn them about this dangerous and irresponsible plan.