5/17/13

I have just learned that Mr. Pomerleau and Mr. Winters have, today, reached a mutually acceptable agreement, and Mr. Pomerleau is now REALLY dropping the appeal.

………………………………………………………………………………………………….

It’s been more than a month since real estate mogul Ernie Pomerleau took out a full-page ad in the Messenger, ‘excusefying’ for his impulse to challenge the permit of local ACE Hardware retailer, Gordon Winters, and announcing his intention to withdraw his appeal.  

The ad followed several days of indignant letters and comment by community members, who assembled in large numbers at a City Council meeting to demonstrate their support for Mr. Winters’ project.

Now, Pomerleau Real Estate has reneged on that very public position and continues to pursue the appeal.  

According to Michelle Monroe of the Messenger, who attempted to contact Mr. Pomerleau earlier in the week, his office said he was out of the country but checking his messages.  No comment was forthcoming from Mr. Pomerleau by the time the story of the ongoing appeal was filed on Friday, so we can only speculate on his rationale for the about-face.

According to Mr. Winters, after the splashy announcement that the appeal would be withdrawn, he was asked to sign a release; presumably, quid-pro-quo for Pomerleau dropping his appeal.  That release represented a blanket commitment by Mr. Winters not to challenge anything that Pomerleau Real Estate might in future seek a permit to do to their St. Albans properties.  Unsurprisingly, Mr. Winters refused and his attorney suggested a much more limited release that would proscribe him from frivolously appealing minor alterations to the adjacent Pommerleau property.

That apparently was unsatisfactory to Mr. Pomerleau, whose attorney proceeded with his appeal and requested mediation; but it remains unclear what issues the mediator would be attempting to resolve.

The appeal suggests that Mr. Pomerleau’s property will be harmed in some way by storm water runoff from the ACE Hardware siting; but that property is situated upstream from the proposed new store.  In fact, the ACE development is actually decreasing impervious surface on that site, and further improving the wastewater profile with catch basins that will represent a net reduction of run-off from the parking area.

The appeal also complains that pedestrian walkways that will make ACE Hardware easily accessible to downtown foot traffic will harm the Pomerleau parking lot; and that the retailer’s signage, which has not yet even been determined in the ACE plan (and in any case will only be visible from the rear of the extreme south end of the St. Albans Shopping Center) will harm his business.

Mr. Pomerleau’s appeal may delay the project, thereby harming the interests not only of Mr. Winters, but also of the taxpayers of St. Albans.  However, it seems unlikely to  succeed, and will give the appearance of extreme frivolity on the appellant’s part…an impression that a developer who routinely engages in the permit process should be reluctant to give.

Furthermore, those taxpayers have already demonstrated their hostility to Mr. Pomerleau’s tactics and he is unlikely to win friends and influence the good people of St. Albans in this manner.   It is therefore very difficult to understand why Mr. Pomerleau, an otherwise savvy businessman, would choose this course.

I have heard rumblings of discontent with the City for a lack of transparency in the TIF distribution process from some business owners and private citizens; and I get the impression that Mr. Pomerleau’s influence is exacerbating already existing discontent with the process.

It therefore seems likely that Mr. Winter’s ACE project is falling victim to political issues having more to do with ham-handed management of delicate relationships on the part of  city manager Dominic Cloud  than  with the project itself.  As the site currently is underutilized, over-paved and rather unattractive, it seems reasonable to assume that the well-planned and architecturally appropriate ACE building would only serve to enhance the value of Mr. Pomerleau’s holdings.

Though undeniably very talented and a great asset to the City;  Mr. Cloud has a habit of acting and speaking impulsively, which has more than once gotten the City into hot water, even while technically being able to claim the high-ground.

This has certainly contributed to worsening the already dysfunctional relationship with the Town; and just recently raised the unnecessary specter of property seizure by right of ’eminent domain’ in a dispute over the planned City parking lot.  

All of which is no excuse for Mr. Pomerleau’s performance vis-a-vis ACE Hardware, but it would be unfair to say that the City is above reproach here.

While we recognize that time is of the essence when it comes to TIF opportunity, and that a certain amount of discretion is required to pursue real estate deals serving the public interest without creating a TIF feeding frenzy;  there are a few loyal and long-serving downtown merchants who may feel disenfranchised by the process and it is crucial to the success of downtown revitalization that all the stakeholders feel valued and have ample opportunity to contribute the wisdom of their experience to that process.  

Mr. Cloud would be well-advised to open up the process a little bit and work toward a culture of trust and empowerment.  Most of all, he might honor the wisdom of the old carpenter’s rule: “Measure twice.  Cut once.”

…And, as for Ernie Pomerleau?  Come on, Mr. Pommerleau – get over it!  You know full-well that you’ve enjoyed the upside of the sweet deal far more frequently than the other guy!  It suits you ill to be mean-spirited and petty over a public project that you know will benefit the downtown as a whole.