English Village back on block; Developer may sell or he may develop, keeping options open

By John Rudolf

Today's News-Herald

LAKE HAVASU CITY - California developer Chris Read confirmed Feb. 20, that the English Village was indeed up for sale.

But he also insisted that a sale of the property is only one of several options he is considering and that he still plans on moving forward with development of the site.

"I'm not going to guarantee I'm not going to sell it," Read said. "I'm working on a development process. I want to see that property developed, and I would like to be the one who does it."

Read hired the commercial real estate firm CB Richard Ellis to investigate several options regarding the property in late 2007.

One of those options involved selling off a piece of the property to a hotel operator or another developer to build a hotel, or to find a partner for a joint venture.

Another option was selling the property outright.

"One of those options was, yes, that they might find a buyer," Read said. "My preference was not to sell. I have been proceeding with the plans for the English Village, and that hasn't stopped. What people need to understand is this is a huge project, and it takes a lot of research."

Instability in world financial markets due to the collapse of the subprime mortgage market had played a part in delays, Read said.

"There's been a crisis in the financial markets," he said. "Credit has just gone very tight, so that's part of the picture. That's why I was looking at different options."

Yet despite the market turmoil, Read still expressed confidence that the project could move forward, though when pressed for details, he could offer little in the way of specifics.

"I can't tell you exactly what's going to happen. I've been working on this project. It just takes time,” Read said. “I've been working on this project all along, and I will continue to work on it.”

Mayor Mark Nexsen, who said he had been caught unaware by the news that the property was listed for sale, was unsympathetic to Read's claims.

"Well, it's been well over a year since we've asked to see some progress, but we haven't seen any," Nexsen said. "If he has some plans to bring forward, let's see them."

Read has said he has no plans ready to submit, and could not say when any architectural renderings would be available.

According to Nexsen, Read has consistently failed to deliver on promises to unveil a design for the village site.

"He told me in January of 2007 that he would bring something to us in May," Nexsen said. "Here we are now February 2008, and neither (city manager) Richard (Kaffenberger) or I have seen any concrete plans."

On Feb. 13, upon learning that the property was up for sale, Kaffenberger wrote a sharply worded letter to Read criticizing the move, and threatening further action by the city concerning the dilapidated, abandoned structures on the site.

"Given the time a complicated sale such as the Village will take to negotiate, there is real concern that a redevelopment project may not be in the making in the near future," Kaffenberger wrote. "As a result, the condition of the Village will only continue to decline.

Kaffenberger continued, "I feel I have no choice but to direct staff to begin initiation of the process for the removal of the dangerous structures that pose a health, safety and welfare threat to our community."

But while Read said that he would still prefer to develop the Village himself, city leaders have said they are losing patience.

"We would love him to develop it, but let's get moving on it. What are we waiting for?" Nexsen said.