Work on the "other" medical mart...
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Cuyahoga County grants 1-month extension on medical mart site selection
January 01, 2009
Joe Guillen, Plain Dealer Reporter
One month after setting a Jan. 15 deadline for choosing a site for a proposed medical mart, Cuyahoga County commissioners have granted a one-month extension.
Commissioner Peter Lawson Jones said Wednesday that the county granted the extension at the request of Merchandise Mart Properties Inc., the Chicago company analyzing potential sites.
Commissioners already face criticism for the slow pace on the $1 billion project, which includes an accompanying convention center and is expected to capitalize on the region's strong health care industry.
Cleveland Clinic Chief Executive Toby Cosgrove and an executive at Forest City Enterprises, which owns property being considered for the mart, have urged county officials to speed up the selection process.
They fear a New York developer planning a larger showroom in Manhattan for medical companies will open first and possibly hurt the Cleveland project's chances of success.
The county has been waiting months for Merchandise Mart Properties, which will own and operate the mart, to study two downtown Cleveland sites: Tower City and the current Cleveland Convention Center.
Jones said the latest delay is not the commissioners' fault.
"We are all anxious in Northeast Ohio to see something done," Jones said. "But this is a very complex deal. There shouldn't be any concern about MMPI's commitment to this simply because they're devoting an extra month to getting it right."
A representative for MMPI could not be reached Wednesday for comment.
Cuyahoga County Republican Party Chairman Rob Frost said it's time the three Democratic commissioners show more leadership, rather than stand by and wait for MMPI to produce its report.
"The utter lack of leadership on the part of the county on this is breathtaking," Frost said Wednesday. "It appears the only thing they were able to accomplish is increasing the taxes and starting to collect the revenue."
County taxpayers are financing construction of the project through a quarter-cent sales tax increase that commissioners approved in 2007. The tax, which will be in place for 20 years, generated $42 million in its first full year.
Over the 20 years, the tax could raise $1 billion. The county intends to borrow money for the project and use the tax to pay off the debt.