Potential developers of Rupp lot being asked: Where’s the parking?

Lexington Center Corp. wants more information about five proposals to develop the High Street parking lot across from Rupp Arena.

John Farris, president of Commonwealth Economics, told the Lexington Center Corp. board Thursday that a key part of any development of the lot would be replacement of parking for the complex.

“We still have some questions about how they were going to resolve the parking issue,” Farris said. The group will send letters to the interested developers asking for more detailed information about parking and potential revenue from parking. The Lexington Center complex — Rupp Arena and the attached convention center — depends on revenue from parking. Farris also cited the need more detailed information about how Lexington Center would be paid for ground leases for any potential development.

After the responses are received, Farris said they will be evaluated and possibly followed up with in-person interviews.

“We will have more clarification at the next board meeting,” Farris said. The next scheduled meeting would be in late May.

The board decided last fall to issue a request for proposals to develop the nearly 20-acre High Street lot as part of a much larger effort to raise money for a proposed $250 million renovation of the convention center. In March, the group announced five developers responded to the request.

The High Street lot is about 17.5 acres and is bordered by Lexington Center Drive, Maxwell Street and Poplar Alley. It is one of the largest tracts of undeveloped land in the core of downtown Lexington.

A new downtown baseball stadium for the Lexington Legends is among the proposals. The stadium is part of a $200 million project that would also include a hotel, three parking garages and mixed-use developments with retail stores on the first floors and residential units on the upper floors. The project was submitted by Grand Slam Development. Phil Holoubek is the master developer and principal partner in Grand Slam Development. Holoubek was the only developer to speak on the record about his proposal.

Other developers who submitted proposals were Langley Properties, the Webb Companies, Stark Enterprises of Cleveland and Flaherty & Collins Properties of Indianapolis. Those developers did not release additional information about their proposals. The Herald-Leader requested the information under the state’s Open Records Act. Lexington Center denied the request and said it does not have to release the documents because under state law those proposals contain proprietary financial information and are exempt from disclosure.

This story was originally published April 20, 2017 at 1:02 PM with the headline "Potential developers of Rupp lot being asked: Where’s the parking?."