Development board to choose between two plans for the old First Baptist Church and Diamond's grocery block downtown

The Van Alstyne Community Development Corporation is set to pick a preferred developer Thursday, Nov. 5, for the downtown block that holds the former First Baptist Church and the old Diamond's grocery store.

The board owns the property and narrowed a request for qualifications to two finalists: Downtown Placemaking Partners and Lanterra Group, a Prosper-based developer and general contractor. Both pitch a mix of shops or offices with 11 fee-simple townhomes, according to a staff report in the meeting packet posted this week. The packet spells the second firm "Lantera" in places; its own proposal uses Lanterra.

The block sits between East Marshall Drive, South Preston Street, Fulton Street and Waco Street (Highway 5), about 1.32 acres across four parcels, Lanterra's proposal says. The church building covers 12,277 square feet at the northwest corner and the former grocery 16,744 square feet at the northeast corner.

Two approaches

Downtown Placemaking Partners would clear the church and build a two-story building of about 21,000 square feet along Marshall, with restaurants and retail on the ground floor and offices or flexible space upstairs, room for roughly six tenants. Its townhomes, on the south half of the block, would run two to three stories and 1,400 to 1,800 square feet each, with two-car garages. The plan also shows a landscaped walkway about 250 feet long through the middle of the block and about 75 parking spaces counting street spaces.

Lanterra Group would keep the church and turn it into a cafe, speakeasy and event venue. Its plan adds a retail building with about 9,000 square feet on the ground floor for uses such as a bookshop, casual dining and a bakery, with 8,000 square feet of offices or eight lofts above, plus a public green the city would maintain. Its commercial space totals about 29,300 square feet for roughly nine tenants.

What staff says

A 35-year fiscal analysis by the firm ZacTax found both projects would leave the city's general fund and utility fund in the black. Lanterra's plan shows the bigger return, about $6.74 million in combined net impact with offices upstairs, against $5.47 million for Downtown Placemaking Partners. Projected value at build-out is $9.9 million and $7.9 million.

Staff cautions that most of Lanterra's edge depends on renovating the church, which earlier environmental and cost studies for the corporation found would face major hurdles. Staff calls that reuse plan "exceptionally difficult" to achieve. The report says Lanterra has asked for significantly more incentives, which the analysis does not count, and that staff research found Downtown Placemaking Partners better capitalized.

Lanterra's own proposal puts the value of the city help it seeks, including the land, fee waivers, utility work and streetscape spending, at $2.5 million to $4 million.

The analysis estimates city costs of $37,567 over 35 years for the Placemaking plan and $217,695 for Lanterra's, most of it upkeep on the green. Police and fire costs were left out.

Several board members earlier leaned toward Downtown Placemaking Partners, the report says, but three new members join the board at this meeting, so the vote reopens the choice. Whichever firm is picked, the incentives, terms and clawbacks would still be negotiated.

The special called meeting starts at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 152 N. Main Drive.

Sources

cityofvanalstyne.civicweb.net

cityofvanalstyne.civicweb.net