Strange Bedfellows

 Baltimore County’s gain was Baltimore City’s loss in the most recent rankings of Best Municipal Golf Courses in the country from Golfweek Magazine.

Greystone Golf Course, in White Hall, was new to the top 50, checking in at number 28. The course, managed by the county Revenue Authority, was the only public course from Maryland to make the list.

The 2009 and 2008 lists were among the topics of discussion at Thursday’s meeting of the Baltimore County Revenue Authority board.

Last year, Mount Pleasant Golf Course, in Baltimore, was the only course in the state on the list, coming in at No. 12.

That ranking surprised some members of the board who made a few jokes at the expense of the city course.

“For hold-ups, armed robberies,” quipped board Chairman Hannan Sibel. (more…)

The Baltimore County Revenue Authority publicly supported a Senate bill that would require a public hearing before the quasi-governmental agency can close, sell or transfer facilities. But, that support doesn’t mean there weren’t concerns.

Don Hutchinson, a current board member and former state senator and county executive, wondered aloud during the board’s March 26 meeting if hearings “cause complications with communicating with the county.” (more…)

The public lost out when the quasi-public county Revenue Authority board awarded a $5,500 severance payment to Nevins and Associates at its Dec. 4 meeting.

The five-member board voted unanimously to close the meeting at the request of Hanan Sibel, the board’s chairman, who said he wished to discuss a “matter pertaining to compensation and personnel.” That’s one of 14 exemptions recognized by the state Open Meetings Act.

The act is designed to ensure that public officials do the people’s business in the open. (more…)

What happens to the theater at Towson Circle III when it closes for good?

It’s true, ground hasn’t even been broken on the Heritage-Cordish project that includes a county-subsidized and county-operated parking garage, but members of the Baltimore County Revenue Authority board are thinking of the future.

Under the agreement with the authority, Heritage can convert the space so long as it meets zoning requirements and generates at least 70 percent of the parking the theater would have, George Hale told the board in response to a question asked by Hannan Sibel.

The agreement prevents Heritage or a future owner from converting the theater into operations that would be less profitable for the garage, such as a self-storage business.

“As a practical matter, what we all know is that the theater ultimately will close,”Donald Hutchinson said during the board’s Sept. 25 meeting.

Hale and others agreed.

“A lot of them don’t make it as long as they think they are going to make it,” Sibel said.

“On the other hand, they are a pretty good anchor for an investment property,” Hutchinson said.

Heritage was in discussions with up to three theater operators. That number is now down to one. The term of the lease could be 10 to 20 years, Hale told the board.

“And the length of our relationship with Heritage is?” Hutchinson asked.

“Kind of perpetual,” Hale replied.

“It’s like a marriage, only we can’t get a divorce,” Pittler added.

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If the Baltimore County Revenue Authority transfers the Gunpowder Falls Golf Course, it won’t be because they got a better deal on a related amusement tax reduction.

Les Pittler, an attorney and member of of the authority’s board, said he had an informal conversation with Fred Homan, the county administrative officer, about agreeing to increase the period in which the county would not collect amusement taxes from the authority from three years to four.

“That really isn’t on the table,” Pittler told the board at it’s Sept. 25 meeting.

“It’s never off the table until the deal is done,” countered Hannan Sibel, the board’s chairman.

“It’s off the table,” Pittler said. “I’m not sure why, but my guess is Fred considered the proposal that was sent to him as ‘the proposal’ and he has told me he is in agreement with that and that’s what it will be.”

Pittler added that the county “is not adding any funds to the agreement.”

Last month, the county and the authority agreed, in principle at least, to a three-year moratorium on the collection of amusement taxes from the authority plus eight more years of payments at half the current rate, or about $2.6 million.

The authority bought the Kingsville course in 2004 for about $2.1 million in cash. Since then, the quasi-governmental agency spent $1 million or so on improvements. Not everyone on the authority’s board thought the amusement tax agreement was the best deal.

“We’re willing to cooperate with the county if that park is important and necessary. We’re going to work hard to work it out with them,” Sibel said last month. “I don’t think we can afford to give it away.”

Then, Sibel and other board members hoped the initial deal was a jumping off point for more negotiations. Last week, they learned Homan is not budging from the deal as proposed.

Pittler told Sibel and the rest of the board last week that he believed the county’s offer was final.

“I told (Homan) as far as I was concerned, as one person, that I would be in favor of moving forward” with the agreement, Pittler said.