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Hitting Two Birds with One Stone with Gateway North Garage Deal

Posted on May 9th, 2011

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A $21 million mutually beneficial offer by a casino developer to purchase the Gateway North parking garage was recently brought to the attention of Cleveland officials. The said area shall be developed in order to provide parking spaces for patrons of the casinos in Higbee building. Through an interview with their executives, Rock Ohio Ceasars—who is responsible for the casinos in Higbee—believe that an improved and faultless parking plan will not only secure the admiration and appreciation of the casino-going public; it will also boost business by providing space that could accommodate up to five million visitors per year. On a similar note, Cleveland officials consider the amount offered by Rock Ohio Caesars as a way to strengthen the city’s currently low budget, with taxes from construction to be used to pay off city debts.

According to Rock Ohio Ceasars, the Gateway North parking garage shall be integrated with the planned welcome center and valet parking operation located just across at High Street, a project that was announced early in the year, and was estimated to cost $10 million. In order to provide the needed 1,250 parking spaces during peak hours, the parking garage shall be connected to the center via “vehicle bridges”. In turn, visitors from the welcome center can access the Higbee casino through a pedestrian skywalk to be constructed over the Ontario and Prospect roads intersection. With Rock Gaming LLC partnering with Ceasars Entertainment Corp, new casinos are set to be established in both Cleveland and Cincinnati. Rock Gaming LLC’s Dan Gilbert in February said that his company shall begin phase one of the Cleveland casino in Higbee building. After a few years, a bigger one will be constructed in a 16-acre location on Huron Road.

Chris Warren, the city’s project point person and also Mayor Frank Jackson’s chief of regional development, remarks that the project shall benefit not just the casinos but other establishments located at the East Fourth Street entertainment district as well. Government officials see the center as an effective strategy to attract numerous people. These facilities will be open for both casino-goers, and for those intending to experience other establishments in the city. Casino guests will not be charged for parking, while the rest will be charged a parking fee based on normal market rates. Cleveland Councilman Joe Cimperman expressed his deep approval and of the proposed sale, which is quite different from his initial reaction when the developer initially presented the parking plan in March. Cimperman remarked that the sale will not hurt employment and, at the same time, get the city out of financially supporting a white elephant such as Gateway North.

Marcus Glover, general manager of the Horseshoe Casino Cleveland, emphasized the crucial role the Gateway North parking garage plays in making the casino a way to interconnect the city and other service establishments. He added that the quality, proximity and size of a parking area are important elements to ensure a casino’s success. Horseshoe Casino Cleveland is set to open in Higbee within the year. As Cleveland City Council is the approving authority for the sale, hearings have been scheduled for 09 May. Part of the factors that will be presented for the council’s consideration is how money from the sales shall empower the city to pay the bond debt incurred on the Gateway North garage construction. In turn, the remaining amount to be left after that, which Warren approximates at $4 million, shall be used to partially pay the debt on the Gateway East garage.

In addition, the city also requested that the estimated annual tax revenue from the welcome center project shall be used to renovate and further enhance Gateway East. Tax revenue is pegged to reach $130,000 per year, some of which shall go to the school district. Also, the proposal provides that the 1,300 square foot ground-floor public bike station in the Gateway North garage will not cease to exist, and will instead be leased to the city. All these requests and arrangements shall be for a period of eleven years, enough time for the city to maintain Gateway East without having to source out money from the general fund. However, this particular part of the proposal shall be tackled through a separate bill tentatively scheduled to be introduced come May 16.