When developer Wendell Wood of United Land Corporation addressed the county Planning Commission at their July 10 meeting, he said that the client that would lease the 180,000 square feet of office space and the 120-unit apartment building would be the government, presumably on behalf of the adjacent National Ground Intelligence Center (NGIC).
C-VILLE did some digging and found out from Gina Gilliam, a public affairs officer at the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), that her organization issued a "solicitation for offers" in March 2007 for approximately 40,000 square feet of space for NGIC. Offers have been received, says Gilliam by e-mail, and a decision should be made by late summer. Glenn Wait, installation manager at NGIC, did not return calls to check NGIC’s interest in the other 140,000 square feet of office space that Wood also wants to build.
Wood suggested at the Planning Commission meeting that he was in a hurry and would not request a deferral. Is he possibly gunning for the office space contract? Calls to his office were not returned by press time. If he wants the contract, perhaps it would explain why he has said he’s willing to lose the apartments if they’re holding up the process (and if the county continues to expect cash proffers up front).
But Wood’s date with the Board of Supervisors is August 1, and he won’t be able to cut the apartments and still get immediate approval—the project would have to be re-advertised, creating a delay of at least another two months. Staff is recommending denial.
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