@@facebook=
@@
WEST CARROLLTON — Miami Bend, a 600-acre, $110 million entertainment district proposed in West Carrollton, would include a 4,000-seat arena-event center and a 3,000-seat soccer arena, as well as a park centered on a whitewater course in the Great Miami River.
If approved by the Ohio Division of Liquor Control, the district — which calls for $48.2 million in public funding and $22 million from public-private partnerships — would also include up to 15 new businesses operating with special, low-cost liquor licenses available only in community entertainment districts.
Formation of community entertainment districts is seen as essential to recreation-based economic development in big Ohio cities including Dayton, and now smaller cities are taking that path.
Cities such as West Carrollton, looking for ways to grow their tax base, are forming entertainment districts so they can cater to new bars, restaurants and other businesses dependent on liquor sales.
Otherwise new liquor licenses are available only when a community’s population grows or existing businesses decide to put licenses up for sale, often for much more than new permits purchased from the state.
“We’ve got to be able to serve alcohol. That’s a big income stream,” said Mike Mossel, owner and president of the Dutch Lions soccer team, which is searching for a location and investors for a soccer stadium in the area, including Dayton and West Carrollton.
West Carrollton outlined its plan for Miami Bend in an application to state liquor officials. It would be the fourth community entertainment district in Montgomery County, assuming the state approves a district recently created by Miami Twp. at Austin Landing.
“We’re out (of permits),” West Carrollton City Manager Brad Townsend said.
Miami Bend
Another key to Miami Bend is the reopening of Exit 47, off Interstate 75, scheduled in October after $26 million in construction. The new diamond interchange and adjoining road network are expected to pave the way for a range of development around the exit and on roads leading into West Carrollton and a bending section of the Great Miami River.
The plan calls for a $22 million arena-event center and $4 million soccer stadium, both to be funded through a combination of public and private funding.
West Carrollton plans to use public funds to pay for $12.3 million on infrastructure, including water and sewer expansion and parking along the riverfront. Another $10 million in projects on the river or adjoining bike and pedestrian trail, also would be funded by the city or other public funds, according to the plan.
Businesses would invest $36.1 million in hotels, restaurants and retail, as well as a shopping center and office and residential developments, according to the plan.
West Carrollton plans to fund some of its share through a tax incremental financing district and hotel-motel tax already in place around the interchange. Other potential revenue sources include admission and lodging taxes and parking fees, Townsend said.
“It’s still going to require some private investment. That’s going to be the key. We’ll have to work on attracting that when the interchange is finished,” Townsend said.
Dave Stone with AECOM, a global consulting firm hired by West Carrollton, currently is gauging the feasibility of the event center, including economic and demographic analyses and discussions with area leaders and potential funders.
“He has received very positive feedback, but no one has stepped up and offered to pay for it yet,” Townsend said in an April 5 memo to West Carrollton City Council.
County officials declined to comment on financial support until the study is complete.
“This is an ambitious project. We look forward to seeing the results of the feasibility study,” said Cathy Petersen, communications coordinator for Montgomery County.
AECOM is expected to complete the $59,500 study in June.
Riverfront synergy
In addition, West Carrollton is working to develop a whitewater course, a riverfront park and hub along the Great Miami bike trail.
The riverfront plan is supported by other communities joined to promote riverfront economic development from Troy in Miami County to Hamilton in Butler County.
“Funders are liking to see collaboration,” said Katie Frank, downtown coordinator for the city of Miamisburg and a board member for Ohio’s Great Corridor Association.
Resources are limited
Dayton City Commissioner Nan Whaley congratulated West Carrollton on the riverfront portion of Miami Bend, but questioned whether the region could support the rest of plan.
“We do have a limited number of resources,” Whaley said, acknowledging Dayton also was talking with Mossel about bringing the Dutch soccer team to town. “For us it’s a question of resources, too.”
The state is currently reviewing applications for districts at Austin Landing, the new mixed-use development in southern Montgomery County, and Northside, a neighborhood in Hamilton County.
There are already two community entertainment districts in Dayton, encompassing the areas around the Fifth Third Field and the Dayton Convention Center and Victoria Theatre. So far, 11 of 30 permits have been issued for liquor sales in these districts.
In Greene County, 13 of 14 permits already have been issued in the entertainment district at The Greene Town Center. In Butler County, nine of 38 available licenses have been issued within districts formed around Jungle Jim’s market, the Voice of America and Towne Center districts.
“We do have to deal with the question of saturation,” Whaley said.
Regional leaders need to consider the implications of new developments on existing districts in Dayton and other communities, Whaley said.
More districts can form
Last month, Ohio lawmakers approved new provisions enabling smaller communities to form community entertainment districts. The law provides for issuance of one D5j permit for every five acres in the community entertainment district. The permits cost $2,344.
By including 600 acres, West Carrollton would qualify for 15 new permits, the maximum allowed by the law.
“We’re only going to have one shot to establish this,” Townsend said.
The proposed district extends from downtown West Carrollton along the Great Miami River east of I-75, near the city limits. The West Carrollton YMCA and Appleton Paper plant fall within the southern boundaries.
While still considering a move into downtown Dayton, the Dutch Lions already plan to build outdoor fields for their soccer academies outside West Carrollton High School, Mossel said.
Ideally the team wants its own stadium next to academy facilities. A fallback plan calls for renovation of the West Carrollton High School stadium for school sports and Dutch Lions games.
“It kind of depends on the investment dollars,” Mossel said in a phone interview from Holland. “Somebody’s got to step up first.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2261 or lbudd@DaytonDailyNews.com.
About the Author
