An exclusive deal between the city and a developer on property in an area designated for slots shortchanges the city, according to one state delegate.
Jill Carter, D-Baltimore City, said the $20,000 contract for negotiating rights to the 11-acre Gateway South is suspicious.
“The fact that the city entered into the agreement and then heavily pushed for slots in that location raises suspicions.
“I think this demonstrates a bit of favoritism, and some of the problems inherent with the way the amendment allocates slots licenses,” Carter, who opposes slots, said.
City officials who brokered the deal called her criticism unfair.
“We don’t have a deal yet,” said Baltimore Development Corp. head Jay Brodie. “The developer was picked after a competitive process that included seven other firms.”
According to the Cormony Development LLC Web site, “Gateway South is a development opportunity that was offered by Baltimore City and was awarded to the Cormony Development team in December 2006 after a competitive RFQ and RFP process.”
The agreement, announced in March 2007, gives the Rockville company a year of exclusive negotiating rights to purchase the site on the middle branch of the Patapsco River in exchange for four $5,000 quarterly payments. It includes an option to renew for an unspecified number of 90-day terms. The slots referendum was approved by the General Assembly last year. If approved, it will allow 15,000 slot machines at five locations, including commercial property within a half-mile radius of Interstates 295 and 95 in South Baltimore.
The proposed $200 million waterfront project includes about 1 million square feet of retail, hotel, offices, sports and the Ray of Hope Center, a community center operated by Ravens star Ray Lewis, who is an equity partner in the deal.
Cormony director Samuel Polakoff said slots are not in his plans.
“We love the project, love the location. We want to move forward, but as unbelievable as it may sound, I have no idea of the impact slots are going to have on the project,” he said.
Ambiguous language in the referendum — including a requirement the slots site be at least a quarter-mile from a residence — makes it unclear if the Gateway South development would qualify for a slots license, Polakoff said.
“It’s very difficult to pinpoint if our location would meet that criteria.”
But Carter said the deal should be renegotiated if the slots referendum passes Nov. 4. “The city can and should get a better deal.”
