CANTLON’S CORNER: THE XL CENTER HAS A FUTURE 

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

HARTFORD, CT – The hulking giant on Asylum Street known as “The XL Center” has a future – in what form that will be, remains to be seen.

The just started special legislative session saw a proposal presented to capital fund the building for two more years. That process will start The XL Center’s road to salvation, or to perdition, beginning with the Finance committee.

CRDA Executive Director, Mike Freimuth, is more hopeful and optimistic than he was eight or nine months ago.

‘We have had two extremes, people who want an XL with all the bells and whistles, and those who want to line up the bulldozers on Asylum Street. There is a middle ground, so to speak, here. I think the close-the-building option if you can call it that, is a non-starter. People recognize all the housing work underway in-and-around the XL Center and future development plans in Hartford that are starting or in the developing phase would be harmed adversely by that move. We can’t go backward and just give up.”

The just started legislative special session Freimuth feels might yield some positive results based on his talks with Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) that a way forward is beginning.

“We believe there is a package of $20 million in each of the next two years that is the concept right now. Have we seen the paperwork or have an ironclad agreement on this? No. However, I remain hopeful something will come out of this process to advance this, the reboot of the XL forward,” remarked Freimuth.

A long-time legislative source thinks the amount can be satisfied.

“The number is more digestible than when they came before Finance several years ago. So it’s a good bet it will pass. However, nothing is in stone when it comes to large outlays, that is subject to some serious negotiating because fiscally things are still very tight.”

The other aspect of his optimism is some early discussions with private equity capital about some future investment arrangement with the XL Center after their initial foray fell flat with only one applicant, Oak Street Capital Realty of Chicago last summer. That offer was ultimately and formally rejected.

“We learned a lot from that process, and some of our initial discussions have given us some fresh perspective to try to make a proposal more along the lines of a business deal than a government deal. We have gotten a lot of questions on revenue streams, projections, price points, points of sale, and we have developed some good financial analysis to present, but we have some other work to do, particularly with UCONN returning to the Big East from the AAC conference and how that will impact future revenue,” Freimuth commented.

One of those new approaches is a new 13 page RFP for yet another market study?

On the surface, one’s eyes roll, yet another study? There have been nine studies, budget proposals, and analysis done, since 2014. As the current phrase of the day, how many bites of the apple do you get? The RFP was released officially on Monday, and questions of the RFP are to be submitted no later than August 5th, by 3:00 pm. Responses will be provided by August 7th, and final packets are to be returned by August 19th. Then, the RFP process will be closed.

Freimuth acknowledges the skeptics he has on this.

“It seems like more of the same, however, what we’re doing now is trying to reaffirm some original data. Add new pieces to the equation particularly UCONN’s conference switch and see how that shapes potential proposal-based. This line of inquiry came out of our preliminary talks with private investors and hopefully may make a renewed proposal process more palatable.

“We have to prioritize things in making this attractive to present and fill in the cracks, that we have to make this saleable to the private capital community,” Freimuth said.

Fill in the cracks may have been a Freudian slip, but the irony can’t be missed.

Despite all this work, the question arises to ask if the needle has moved in the legislature toward approving the project?

“I think that will be determined over this (special) session. I don’t have an answer to it at this point. I don’t have a crystal ball.

“I think when we get this RFP process completed, we can start in the fall with the private investment portion and will hopefully have the legislative component to tie in at that point. We have done a lot of financial analysis that the revenue generated by the building both directly in taxes to the city and state, plus the business revenue to restaurants and hotels would be greater than the necessary public subsidy that is going to be required to move this project forward,” said Freimuth.

While it seems some exegesis is developing in this six-and-a-half-plus year seemingly Quixotic effort, there have been many points of optimism and nadir’s it seems decisions are coming.

Will there be a half-a-pie to eat or a whole that can keep the XL Center sustained and viable?