Pelicans not 'scared away' by Shreveport council vote

A New Orleans Pelicans representative said Wednesday that the team won't be deterred from considering Shreveport even with the unanimous city council vote Tuesday against borrowing money to build an arena for the team.

Greg Bensel, senior vice president of communications for the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans, said the council vote "was clear." But he added that the vote would not affect the team's decision about what city to choose as home to the Pelicans' new minor league affiliate.

"We are still moving in the process," he wrote in an emailed statement. "Both the Saints and the Pelicans humbly appreciate all of the support we receive from Shreveport and remain always interested in the development, promotion and well-being of our state."

Bensel said the team values its market in Shreveport, which he called "part of our Saints and Pelicans family."

"The Pelicans and also the Saints were very excited with the potential of truly connecting with the Shreveport and the Northern Louisiana area with greater investment, staff and community outreach," he wrote in an emailed statement. "If another opportunity arises, we would be happy to re-engage with the community."

The Pelicans previously said Shreveport and Pensacola, Florida were the remaining finalists for its new G League team.

The Pelicans, a professional basketball team, and the Saints are owned by New Orleans billionaire Tom Benson.

The council vote

The city council voted 6-0 Tuesday against moving forward with the proposed Cross Bayou project.

The legislation on the agenda would not have committed the city council financially to building the proposed sports complex along the Cross Bayou corridor, but would have allowed the city to start the process of going after $30 million of needed revenue bonds to finance a sports complex and arena.

The sports complex had been billed as the "anchor" of a surrounding mixed-use development, pitched to include retail and residential spaces and privately financed by up to $139 million of funds from an out-of-state developer.

But both Councilmen Oliver Jenkins and Michael Corbin announced prior to the council vote on Tuesday that too much misinformation had surrounded the topic of the complex and that a "complete re-start" might give the project a better chance in the long-run.

Jenkins started his comments by confirming the mayor's responsibility to go after economic opportunities and that the prospect of an outside developer committing more than $100 million of private funds is significant.

But Jenkins also noted that misinformation, propagated mainly by social media, had "tainted the positives of this project across the city."

"This brings dollars into our downtown, and... one of the major challenges is an expanding city without an expanding taxbase. This is a fabulous opportunity for our city," he said. "But I can't do it under the current constraints because I don't think it can get a fair shake. I intend to vote against this and start the whole process again."

Corbin, whose comments on Monday appeared to suggest he was leaning toward voting "yes," said the amount of private leverage projected by the project would have been a close equal to the amount the city got for bonds in 2011.

But he added that the "thick fog" and misperception of details surrounding the project needed to be addressed.

"The citizens who have contacted me said they want to see infrastructure and streets repaired first. I think no one has said that this $28 million cannot be spent on streets. It's dedicated money," he said. "It's very clear that there is a thick fog over the details of this project.

"Let's reset this thing," he said. "i don't see at this point that this is moving the right way. I hope we don't scare Corporate Realty or the Pelicans away."

The council meeting ended around 8 p.m.

Councilman Jerry Bowman had stepped out of the chamber during the council vote on the revenue bond legislation. The other six council members' unanimous vote against moving forward with securing the bonds met with both applause and stunned silence from those present.

Prior to the vote, Mayor Ollie Tyler cited her business experience as a CEO and said opportunities like the Cross Bayou project "don't come along every day." Tyler is a former school superintendent.

"Since I've been in office, we've had limited resources. This team has worked around the clock to make a difference," she said. "Whenever I see an opportunity to improve this city, I have to take it. If you decide to vote no on this project, that's ok, but I have done my job."

Tyler also said, prior to the vote, that regardless of the council's decision she would continue to explore bringing economic opportunities to Shreveport.

Council members Stephanie Lynch and Willie Bradford, who co-sponsored a resolution against the Cross Bayou Project, both spoke adamantly against it Tuesday, stating their concern that any economic development generated by the project would not help Shreveport's poorest residents.

Lynch suggested that if Corporate Realty could come up with $139 million of private funds for the mixed-use development, then it should "shift some of that money around and absorb the cost" of building the complex.

"I don't think we can afford the public dollars that would be needed for this project," Lynch said.

Bradford also questioned the feasibility of the project's funding.

"I did not hear one business entity say, 'Put me down for a corporate sponsorship.' I did not hear from one member of the public, 'Put me down for season tickets,'" he said. "I cannot in good conscience move forward with this project."

Before the council voted, public comment on the issue stretched on for close to two hours. Forty-eight citizens spoke on the resolution addressing the issue of the council moving forward with securing bonds for the Cross Bayou project, according to the city clerk's office. Others chose not to speak at the meeting but had their opinions announced at the meeting by others.

Thirty-six of those who spoke expressed support for the resolution, while 18 spoke against it.

Those in favor cited a need to take risks on opportunities that could bring economic prosperity to the city, that the project would revitalize a blighted area along the Cross Bayou riverfront, that minority businesses would have increased opportunities and that an arena would provide more opportunities for sports events in general.

Those against said any economic opportunities generated by the project would not benefit the poorest areas or residents of Shreveport, that most of the jobs generated by the project would be temporary construction jobs and that crime and infrastructure needed more attention.

Tuesday, the Downtown Development Authority Board of Directors also voted to support the resolution allowing the city council to move forward with securing bonds for the Cross Bayou Project.

Executive Liz Swaine said at the council meeting Tuesday that the endorsement came with a couple important "caveats" — including that DDA hoped the city would continue to look into developing Cross Bayou regardless of the sports complex's outcome.

Both Bradford and Corbin said they appreciated the dialogue from the citizens and encouraged the public's engagement in governmental issues to continue.

"This is democracy at its best," Bradford said. "We need these types of dialogues to continue."

City, Pelicans, Corporate Realty

The City of Shreveport initially intended to use up to $30 million of revenue bonds and an estimated $27.1 million of funds from the Riverfront Development Fund to finance start up costs for constructing and operating the sports complex.

The city hopes to partner with Corporate Realty, a Birmingham, Alabama-based developer, in developing the mixed-use development attached to the complex. Corporate Realty has stated, at multiple meetings, that it's willing to front up to $139 million of private funds to make the mixed-use development a reality.

Corporate Realty offered the following statement Wednesday evening: "While we are disappointed with the city council's vote on the Cross Bayou project, we have seen projects like this have transformative effects in similar sized cities. We are committed to finding common ground in order to move this project forward."

The company also said, "We sincerely appreciate the support of so many progress minded individuals who believe in Shreveport and unlocking its full potential."

Bensel, the Pelicans spokesman, said the team is completely separate from the developer.

"We have no connection to Corporate Realty, nor their plans for the Cross (Bayou) development project," Bensel wrote in an email. "Our (Request for Proposal) was simple and that was to find a location for our G-League team. That was all."

Bensel added that over the summer Tyler, a contingent of city leaders, and Corporate Realty representatives had presented a joint vision to revitalize and invest in the downtown area and would use the Pelicans G-League team "as the catalyst to spur public and private investment."