By Christina Veiga
cveiga@MiamiHerald.com
Negotiations are again under way for the sale of Homestead’s long-abandoned bowling alley.
City council members last week picked iconic Miami company Bird Bowl from a field of three companies to begin negotiating a contract for the facility, located at 111 S. Homestead Blvd.
Bird Bowl, which has operated a bowling center in west Miami-Dade County for almost three decades, is proposing to buy the alley for $500,000 after a 60-day period of due diligence.
The property was appraised at $2.6 million, according to city documents.
“I’m still not happy at all with the offer of the purchase price,” said Councilman Stephen Shelley.
But Councilwoman Judy Waldman, a who works in real estate, cautioned the council against basing a purchase price on the appraised value. That’s because council members have restricted the land’s use to only allow a bowling alley.
Then Councilwoman Patricia Fairclough-McCormick asked Bird Bowl representatives: “Are you willing to go higher than $500,000 after your due diligence?”
Responded Sergio Rok, of Bird Bowl: “If, after my due diligence, there’s a reason for me to go higher, I will.”
According to the appraisal, there have been no recent sales of similar properties, so a comparable appraisal was impossible.
The city had been negotiating for about a year with another company, Kaufman and Sons, but called off the negotiations earlier this year. Kaufman and Sons had difficulty getting financing for the center with the restriction that it remain a bowling alley.
Bird Bowl has proposed a five-year deed restriction that would ensure the property remains a bowling alley for that period of time.
Mayor Steve Bateman suggested the buyer should agree to operate a bowling center on the land for at least 10 years. Council members worried that whoever buys the alley could do so at a fire-sale price and then flip the property for another use and a high profit.
“It’s a tough decision,” Bateman said.
City council members last week picked iconic Miami company Bird Bowl from a field of three companies to begin negotiating a contract for the facility, located at 111 S. Homestead Blvd.
Bird Bowl, which has operated a bowling center in west Miami-Dade County for almost three decades, is proposing to buy the alley for $500,000 after a 60-day period of due diligence.
The property was appraised at $2.6 million, according to city documents.
“I’m still not happy at all with the offer of the purchase price,” said Councilman Stephen Shelley.
But Councilwoman Judy Waldman, a who works in real estate, cautioned the council against basing a purchase price on the appraised value. That’s because council members have restricted the land’s use to only allow a bowling alley.
Then Councilwoman Patricia Fairclough-McCormick asked Bird Bowl representatives: “Are you willing to go higher than $500,000 after your due diligence?”
Responded Sergio Rok, of Bird Bowl: “If, after my due diligence, there’s a reason for me to go higher, I will.”
According to the appraisal, there have been no recent sales of similar properties, so a comparable appraisal was impossible.
The city had been negotiating for about a year with another company, Kaufman and Sons, but called off the negotiations earlier this year. Kaufman and Sons had difficulty getting financing for the center with the restriction that it remain a bowling alley.
Bird Bowl has proposed a five-year deed restriction that would ensure the property remains a bowling alley for that period of time.
Mayor Steve Bateman suggested the buyer should agree to operate a bowling center on the land for at least 10 years. Council members worried that whoever buys the alley could do so at a fire-sale price and then flip the property for another use and a high profit.
“It’s a tough decision,” Bateman said.
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/04/23/2765638/bird-bowl-steps-up-to-buy-run.html#storylink=cpy
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