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Kevin Johnson wears a mask while at a discussion of the sale.
Still waiting for the deal to close nearly a year later on the sale of Jefferson County’s Ford Park Entertainment Complex, county commissioners and Judge Jeff Branick are set to meet Oct. 26 – again – regarding the next step in a business transaction that has lingered more than seven months past its contractually agreed deadline.
Despite a “motivated” buyer and a fast-tracked bid process in 2020, the reins to Ford Park are still in limbo as buyer Port Arthur Renaissance Development Group, led by Kevin Johnson, continues to offer excuses instead of a check for the property. Now, with a new annual budget for the county in effect as of Oct. 1, officials are preparing for the possibility of having to fund the venue indefinitely.
In July, County Attorney Kathleen Kennedy penned a demand letter to the delinquent purchaser, pursuing that Johnson et al pony up in excess of $600,000 for added expenses Jefferson County taxpayers had incurred on a property that was supposed to be in the possession of the winning bid buyer as of March 2021.
From March 3 through July 31, the county records show, taxpayers paid $626,896 for Ford Park operations. According to Kennedy’s letter, those costs “should have been the responsibility of Renaissance Development.”
Kennedy demanded Renaissance reimburse Jefferson County these costs no later than July 30, 2021. “In addition,” the county attorney postured, “Jefferson County demands Renaissance provide a new closing date for the sale of this property no later than July 22, 2021.”
Upon Johnson’s reply asking Kennedy to show her work, the county supplied cash requests made for the operation of Ford Park from March through July. With the exception of May income, every other month posted expenditures over profits in the six figures.
In receipt of the put up or quit correspondence, Johnson again put off closing on the property for another month – Aug. 31, he said, “before close of business if not (sooner).”
By the end of August, Kennedy advised, the group would be indebted to taxpayers an additional $800,824 on top of the complex’s purchase price for the county covering Ford Park operating expenses while waiting past the agreed closing date for the sale to finalize. Additionally, the county had to approve paying for repairs to the Ford Park Pavilion on Aug. 10, a $15,000 expense that will also be added to the buyer’s bill, County Judge Branick said he was assured.
But, alas, Aug. 31 was not to be the closing deadline, either. Then September came and went – also, without payment for the overdo financial transaction, and with no set timeline of when the funding was to come.
With an Oct. 1 new fiscal year on the horizon for the county, officials have worked up a budget that now includes taxpayers funding Ford Park indefinitely.
According to the 2021 budget presented by County Auditor Patrick Swain, Ford Park will receive more than $1 million in funding from the county’s Special Purpose Funding and Hotel/Motel Occupancy Tax (HOT) proceeds.
Special Purpose Funding, totaling over $3.6 million budgeted for the new fiscal year, is used to account for expenditures that are non-operational in nature or do not specifically belong to a department. It consists of contingency appropriations and “transfers out.” This budget year, the following transfers are budgeted: Ford Park - $1,425,767, “to provide for improvements and operational expenditures,” and county match for grant funds - $1,319,595. Contingency appropriations are budgeted at $900,000.
The budget also noted that, “The Hotel Occupancy Tax Fund will continue to fund the operations and improvements to Ford Park” from the 2% hotel occupancy tax collected from Jefferson County hotels. “This tax enables the County to enhance tourism in the area by funding a variety of events and projects,” which will also include the operational cost of the Ben J. Rogers Regional Visitors’ Center. For the 2021 year, the county has approved an estimated $1.4 million in HOT tax collection, and $1.2 million in expenditures.
An account balance history of money transfers made to Ford Park from the county coffers shows in excess of $100,000 in monthly subsidies in addition to the bond payments still owing on the multi-million-dollar property. For the time being, County Judge Branick has no way of knowing when the taxpayers will cease footing the bill for the property that the elected official thought was sold in November 2020.
“Last Tuesday, before Commissioner’s Court, I got an email from Kevin Johnson telling me things were moving along well,” Branick said of an Oct. 12 communication with the derelict purchaser. “He said I would hear back that week.
“I did not hear anything.”
A week later, Oct. 19, Branick reached out to the Renaissance front man again.
“Things are going really, really well,” Branick said he was advised.
In an email sent to Branick on Oct. 19, Johnson wrote to Branick with an “update.”
“We are in meetings reviewing multiple offers,” Johnson advised, not specifically detailing any of the alleged offers. “We are in such a better position going forward… better position than previous offers… it’s all good.
“We know timing is of the essence.
“Again, we hope to have timeline sometime soon.”
How “soon” is soon enough to fulfill a contractual obligation owed to the county taxpayers since March? Branick couldn’t say, but did say that commissioners are set to contemplate that very question during an executive session to be held with County Attorney Kennedy on Oct. 26.
“We’re going to discuss whether we’re OK with it,” Branick said. “That’s where we’re at.
“We’re going to have to get to the point where commissioners court says ‘Enough is enough,’ or we’re willing to wait – and I don’t know where we’re at with that.”