PROVIDENCE – After initially balking at a reworked public financing deal for the Pawtucket soccer stadium project, R.I. Commerce Corp. appears ready to reconsider the proposal.
The Commerce board is slated to meet on July 25 to discuss and possibly vote on changing the state financing plan for the Tidewater Landing project. As first unveiled by R.I. Commerce Secretary Elizabeth Tanner at a press event on Thursday, the deal under consideration largely reflects the scheme put forth by Gov. Daniel J. McKee last month.
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McKee’s pitch: funnel all of the already-approved state bond money into the 10,000-seat soccer stadium, rather than spreading it out across the later phases of the project. At the time McKee introduced the idea at a June Commerce meeting, board members were wary, warning that the half-baked scheme could leave the state on the hook for millions of dollars of tax-increment financing with only an empty stadium to show for it.
The original plan was to use the $36.2 million in state bonds to help pay for public infrastructure across multiple phases of the project. The developer, Fortuitous Partners, would secure investors to cover the rest of the cost. But inflation and supply chain snafus drove up the price tag from $284 million to $344 million, with the stadium alone skyrocketing nearly 50% to $124 million. Project partners said they needed more public assistance upfront to complete the first-phase soccer stadium.
Since concerns were raised about the reworked financing deal in June, a working group including representatives from the city, governor’s office and the developer have been meeting behind the scenes to iron out the details and answer questions, said Matthew Sheaff, a spokesperson for McKee’s office.
“We’ve made some really good progress,” Tanner said Thursday.
Details of the latest financing proposal have not been made available, but mirror the same plan McKee proposed in June to shift all of the state funding to the first part of the project, according to Tanner. One change: all or some of the office space will instead be more housing, Tanner said.
The original mixed-use development called for 435 housing units along with retail and commercial space, an outdoor event plaza and a riverwalk connecting the two sides of the Seekonk River.
McKee previously said that shifting all of the state bonds to the first part of the project may require another $20 million in public financing, with that ask to be considered in the next legislative session.
But Tanner on Thursday said it was too early to tell whether more state funding would be needed later on, given the changing scope of the project.
State and city leaders have been bullish on the project, lauding its economic impact, including an estimated 2,500 construction jobs and 1,200 permanent jobs, as well as $130 million in annual GDP, according to 2019 data.
Tanner called it a “critical project for our city and our state,” and one that would “make Pawtucket a better place to live in.”
In an emailed statement Thursday, Lauren Greene, a spokesperson for Fortuitous Partners, said the developer will discuss “some positive changes, including additional housing and a clear commitment to the entirety of Phase 1” at the upcoming meeting.
In addition to the already approved $36.2 million TIF for the project, R.I. Commerce has authorized $10 million in net state tax credits for the project.
The R.I. Commerce board will meet on July 25 at 5 p.m. to consider and potentially vote on an updated state funding plan for the project.
(Update: Comment from McKee’s office updated in 5th paragraph)
Nancy Lavin is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Lavin@PBN.com.
With staff reports from Jacquelyn Voghel.
Waste of taxpayer dollars.