CAN COMMISSIONERS SWALLOW THIS ROTTEN DEAL

The medical mart/convention center deal is much worse than anyone knows.

Square Sanders & Dempsey’s managing partner Fred Nance gave a smooth, if shifty, accounting of what we can expect.

After he finished his presentation nearly the first thing out of his mouth when I started to question him that time was limited. I told him he took plenty of time, now it was our turn.

I’m not going to detail all he had to say here but just a couple of items.

He brought his financial advisor to the podium to explain to reporters that the County would borrow money, and then invest it and earn income for the County.

My immediate question, but don’t you also PAY interest when you borrow money? The bond borrowing would likely double the original $400 million cost (now $526 million). “Quite likely,” said the financial advisor, Tim Offtermatt, sports finance advisor for Wachovia Investments and a Gateway finance advisor, responded.

Nance then pulled him away, saying he would answer the question. His answer was if you buy a house at a price then pay the mortgage you still say the house was valued at the original price.

“But this is not a house,” I said to Nance. “It does mean that you are spending a billion dollars of public money, aren’t you? Aren’t you?”

Nance’s answer: “Over 20 years.” Yeah, but still a billion dollars.

I also asked Nance how many floors of the Higbee building MMPI would takes for its medical mart.

I was shocked when he said two floors, part of the first floor, now occupied by Greater Cleveland Partnership - sponsor of this site selection announced by Nance at Tower City - and a basement site.

Two floors? Where is the great economic impact of a medical mart on two floors at Public Square? The County will pay for the refurbishing of the space and Nance didn’t know the asbestos situation.

There’s plenty more and I’ll report it on Wednesday at site Cool Cleveland, Lakewood Buzz, the Cleveland Leader and What’s Up in Northeast Ohio.