OOCEA delays Deseret AAF purchase

[spuwho]

The OOCEA Toll Highway Board (Beachline) in their board meeting last night decided to defer for two weeks final vote on the agreement to purchase for $12 Million, more land from the Mormons (Deseret Ranch) to support AAF and "future expansion".

The Orlando Business Journal reports the status here:

http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/news/2013/07/24/oocea-to-finalize-12m-deal-with.html

The Orlando Sentinel here:

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-07-24/business/os-expressway-deseret-deal-20130724_1_all-aboard-florida-orlando-to-miami-train-authority-director-max-crumit

A copy of the Beachline purchase agreement with Deseret Ranch is available here:

https://www.oocea.com/Portals/0/2013%20board%20meetings/July%2024/Deseret%20Ranch%20Agr.pdf

[spuwho]

Interesting terms made by the seller (Deseret) to make this deal happen (in the PDF file)

1.) OCX, the Osceola Expressway Authority has to pipe up not less than $58 Million for an extension east into Deseret Property, property ROW acquisition to start asap.
2.) $38 Million into an escrow account by AAF "or other parties" to fund construction of parkway extension
3.) Include the eastern terminus of Osceola Parkway Extension into the Beachline Master Plan
4.) Build a intersection with the Beachline and Innovation Way where the cost to Deseret is no more than $10.5 Million
5) OOCEA or AAF cannot impede Deseret in any way on what they want to build on the surrounding properties
6.) Orlando and Orange County have to support an extension of the Urban Service Line to Turkey Creek
7.) AAF cannot take action against Deseret or try to modify it since the agreement is with OOCEA

No one on the board was objecting, but I would like to see what the OCX board thinks of this as they have to come up with the dollars to buy the ROW from Deseret now.

This also means that there will be a new "south ring" under greater Orlando and then turning north to intersect with the Beachline.

Anyone wanting to see what this agreement will fund go to:

http://www.osceola-parkway.com/

[thelakelander]

LOL at this.  What does this parkway extension have to do with AAF?  It's no where close to the Beach Line. Looks like these guys what a road through their worthless property at the expense of taxpayers.  In the end, they'll have a new arterial highway and a rail line going through their land.  Evidently, they are using this project as a way to cash in.

[spuwho]

LOL at this.  What does this parkway extension have to do with AAF?  It's no where close to the Beach Line. Looks like these guys what a road through their worthless property at the expense of taxpayers.  In the end, they'll have a new arterial highway and a rail line going through their land.  Evidently, they are using this project as a way to cash in.

At first I thought the same thing, someone (Deseret) is really holding up the Beachline and AAF for some serious ransom to let them get their additional land, but its that "or other parties" that stands out to me.  Than can mean, FECI, AAF, Flagler Development or some insignificant LLC Flagler sets up as an entity to develop land along the planned ROW of the highway. So in a sense everyone gets what they want. Deseret can make a master plan with a major arterial in the works. Flagler can have at the non-Deseret land from the Poinciana eastward, all the way around to the western edge.

Ultimately it becomes self-fulfilling. The roads are built, developers plan and build around it and some of it is skimmed off to fund OCX through the "other party" entity so it doesn't look like a railroad is subsidizing a toll road. It keeps AAF books looking better by not showing the contractual "expense" on their balance sheet.

As I noted in an earlier post, its a pretty big horse trade.

[tufsu1]

FYI....the first segments of the Poinciana Pkwy will be under construction this fall

[thelakelander]

Unless things have changed recently, isn't most of the land around the proposed Poinciana Parkway's proposed path environmentally sensitive?

[tufsu1]

^ no big deal...Wekiva is getting built, right?

[thelakelander]

I guess so.