Would it upset you to know that the winning bidder had 90 days to deliver the City a finalized RFP and after almost a year they have not done so?
Many of you are aware that the City did not advertise the property properly and made no mention of the river front property going with the package deal.
That being said, many wonder if there's a special interest deal in place and quite frankly I can't blame them. Now I like Palmer Gillis and I believe he has served the citizens of Salisbury quite well as a former City Council Member as well as his visions and work within Downtown Salisbury.
He has a different kind of special interest, (you might say) and I happen to know of some additional things Palmer is considering for Salisbury and my hat is tipped to him for his vision and commitment. However, does that make the deal with the old Fire Station 16 a good deal for the taxpayers, absolutely not.
In my honest opinion, (and I am NOT interested in purchasing ANYTHING within the city of Salisbury) the City Council should unanimously shut down this deal immediately and reconsider their options once again.
Think about this for a minute. There's a whole new Council since the Fire Station was surplussed. Considering Palmer Gillis is in default by not delivering a RFP within the 90 days agreed upon via a legal contract, the deal is done and over with.
Start off fresh and either advertise it again, (with or without the river front property) and or sit on it for a while as it will not cost the City much at all to hold on to a valuable asset. Rent it, lease it, sell it, whatever you like. However, DON'T give it away for $100,000.00!
If any of you are buying the article in today's Daily Times about UMES still being interested in working out some kind of deal, well, I'm told its a load of crap but you know the Daily Times. If it suits their special interests they'll run with just about anything.
Now think about this for a minute Folks. IF UMES was so interested in the property, why not buy it themselves. Let's see, SU does it all the time. Why would the City be interested in a non profit taking over a building converted into a restaurant that will ultimately compete with Market Street Inn, Brew River and the other restaurant replacing Flavors? BECAUSE THEY'RE STUPID, THAT'S WHY!
This is a bad deal all the way around. Let UMES do this, (if they actually intend to do it) in their own neck of the woods and not in Salisbury. The deal STINKS. Do you believe they deserve to get going rate prices for a meal there when they get tax free status? If they DON'T get going rates for meals there because they can afford to deliver food for less because they don't have the overhead, what do you think will happen to the rest of the restaurants that HAVE invested millions of dollars into Downtown Salisbury?
Wake Up Salisbury. Do NOT allow your City Council to EXTEND the defaulted contract on the old Fire Station 16 and do it right this time.
17 comments:
We agree with you 100%. We already have SU and the Civic Center doing business and under cutting the local restaurants. We the taxpayers already bought the civic center, SU, its employees, equipment, and the land they sit on. Why do we need to compete with them. Same with UMES that is bought by the taxpayers and donations. Why should the restaurants take a hit from a business which is non profit at OUR firehouse.
City Coouncil do not extendd the defaulted contract. THINK!
Why not give it back to the people who payed for it in the first place. It would make a great skate house and the fun poles to slide up and down on. Plenty o' room for the homeless and bathrooms and kitchen maybe even. Yea, let a church or youth group run it and give it back to the public.
great comment 11:03 or possabilly even keep it until the market goes up. If you put $50,000 into it and sell it in 4 years at a good price $250,000 what are you loosing? I prefer to keep it with the City of Salisbury. There were people that lost their lives working for the Fire Department cared for Salisbury. Why not make it a community museum or something our kids can enjoy??? Think about it, once its gone we NEVER NEVER get it back!!!!
Ought to just leave it be. Then it can join the plaza, the old mall, Newtown, and Isabella Street as another eternal, dilapidated eyesore created by medaling council members and concerned citizens. They're doing such a good job of driving folks away.
No extension.
Get a developer with a real plan who's prepared to invest.
The UMES deal is just smoke & mirrors.
C'mon Debbie & Terry, do something right. No extension.
What's up with Christmas lights being stored on the old main apparatus floor?
All I know this is a bad deal for Salibury and only hurt local resaurants who are already having tough times in this economy. If you do not live up to a state, county, federal and even the city's RFP your bid is rejected and rebid. Looks to me Palmer is just buying time to look for a better deal to benefit him. I also understand there are plans for apartments on the second floor to be rented. Know the mayor and city is constantly fighting landlords now they maybe suypporting them if this is true.
Wake up folks, they are selling Salisbury right under our noses. they had to fight to keep the OLD police station, still don't know what happened to that. You know, I think it would be a great idea for the Lions Club or any other organization interested to hold an "Old Fashioned Fish Fry" this fall there. It would be great. I know the Red Men I believe used to do a fish fry. Let some of our local organization use this place to make some money for downtown. OMG, no, that would not do for some dumb reason.
I didnt think Salisbury had the right to sell property that was purchased with special grants from the state using taxpayers money???
If I don't fulfill my bid obligations, I lose out on the business and my name is mud. THis smells worse than the Wicomipoo River.
To the person who said the Civic Center undercuts the pricing of local caterers - trust me, they don't. I have been involved in the planning of several events. We moved from the Civic Center because it was too expensive. We get better deals and better service from private establishments.
In my honest opinion
As opposed to your dis-honest opinion?
September 22, 2011 5:48 PM
I'm not the one who you were addressing but I agree with you. The civic center has long been known to overcharge. That's probably why they don't get the business. Don't they operate in the red anyway? I don't think it has ever been managed profitably.
Would the recent departing employee had anything to do with the ads and procedures?
The civic center is "The Wicomico YOUTH and Civic Center. It is not supposes to make a profit. It is suppose to cater to the YOUTH .. I would ask why our youth need to attend their prom in another county and go to UMES. MONEY!
knock it down
PRMC could use more parking
who cares what it once was it is nothing now
KEEP IT! Put an engine and an ambulance in there in the event the bridge is up. Use it as a city service center, put an office in there for code compliance and an office for SPD so the downtown bike officer can keep a car and a bike and do paperwork.
Like Joe, I admire both Palmer and Brad Gillis for all they have done for Salisbury, However, in this case, they defaulted on the agreement made with the City. Becasue of that, the fire station should revert to the City and the whole process start again. That should be a cut-and-dry decision. Before putting the building up for sale again, the City Council should re-consider the whole deal. Several good suggestions have been made by the commenters above. I like the one about using it for a homeless shelter; after all, so many homeless hang around it anyway. As a historic building, it could be used as a museum. Let's hold on to this piece of our history. Please don't let another restaurant go there. We need to patronize the ones we already have downtown.
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