Lorain should not assess developer for improvements

The city of Lorain should follow Councilman-at-large Joe Koziura’s advice and not subsidize road and sewer improvements for a private developer on a housing project on Lorain’s west side.

Simply put, Koziura said the city does not have the cash to pay up front for Lorain Cornerstone Farms LLC, developers of the Cornerstone Farms subdivision on Kolbe and Jaeger roads.

On Oct. 16, Lorain City Council will consider revoking a Sept. 18 resolution of intent to improve Kolbe Road from Jaeger Road to 2,555 feet north for the housing project.

Cornerstone Farms plans 151 new home lots on almost 53 acres at the northeast corner of Jaeger and Kolbe roads.

Lorain Mayor Chase Ritenauer and Ward 8 Councilman Joshua Thornsberry, whose district the new development is in, however, say an assessment on the developer is a way to pay for public infrastructure work that Lorain needs to do even without the new subdivision.

The Oct. 16 resolution will follow several weeks of discussion about how to pay for roads, sewers, water lines and other public improvements for the new neighborhood.

Last month, Council stated its intention to assess Lorain Cornerstone Farms for up to $450,000 worth of work.

But Koziura says that amounts to the city financing improvements for the developer, instead of requiring the developer to pay for the work to get the project going.

Koziura told his fellow Council members earlier this month he is opposed to the city of Lorain assessing property for a private developer.

And Koziura asks a valid question: Why should the city pay for this; it has not done it for other projects in Lorain?

He makes it clear he is not against new development in Lorain generally or Cornerstone Farms specifically.

But, Koziura is adamant that the developer should pay for the road improvements, not the city.

He said just look at nearby communities that have had recent growth.

The cities of Avon, Avon Lake, North Ridgeville and Westlake did not subsidize road and sewer improvements and look at the vast number of housing starts and new businesses in recent years.

And those communities are still growing.

Koziura said, “People say well, we’re not Avon, we’re not Avon Lake, we’re not Westlake. Well dammit, so what? We’re Lorain and we have every right to do the same thing everybody else does.”

Thornsberry and Ritenauer argue the assessments are a way for Lorain to cover costs of infrastructure work that the city needs to do anyway.

Thornsberry went as far to compile project facts and figures he presented to Council.

Meanwhile, Koziura countered that “manifesto” was “smoke and mirrors” to obscure the fact the city of Lorain will not get much financial benefit from the new homes.

Ritenauer added the administration consulted the Law Department, and in terms of how to get those dollars, this was the way forward.

In Council deliberations, Ritenauer noted Lorain residents in the past have petitioned the city to improve streets, so the city used its borrowing power to pay for improvements.

Ritenauer added when houses went vacant or went into foreclosure, no one paid property taxes and the city had to subsidize the debt for some of those projects.

Cornerstone Farms is to be built in phases, but if a future resident does not pay the assessment, the city still must repay money the city borrowed for the improvements.

There are a lot of if’s on this project.

If Lorain subsidizes the improvements, it will have to borrow the money to pay for it.

But that money could be paid back over the life of the project.

If the developer paid for the work, the developer could get that money back later by charging more for the lots and homes in the new subdivision.

And, according to the city resolution, if the land for Cornerstone Farms goes undeveloped, the developer has made a personal guarantee to pay the city assessment.

Ritenauer points out that Koziura supported a zoning change for Cornerstone Farms. True, he did. But Koziura doesn’t want the city paying for the road and sewer improvements, which is what he says the developer should be doing.

Fiscally speaking, there’s nothing wrong with that.