Monday, June 13, 2011

CentrePointe, Why Now?

The other day I indicated that I believe that the CentrePointe project will begin to move forward - sometime this year.  I know that many of you will say that the recovery has not come that far as yet, but I think that things are starting to break.

It has to do with the economic effort known as QE2, or a second round of quantitative easing.  This is a way of increasing the money supply and (in a manner of speaking) stimulating the economy.  This latest round is winding to a close at the end of the is month and some investor fear that capital may begin to flow away from the emerging markets and back to the safety and security of the American dollar.  That could be why the story that I was told featured a large Spanish equity trust and the desire of said trust to invest in American commercial development.  I wonder, are the Spanish moving their money before the coming restructuring of the Euro by the European Central Bank?

The figure that I heard was nearly $40 million in advance and the rest to follow.  That would be enough to start CentrePointe, no matter what the eventual project will look like.

For the next few weeks - the DDA and the planners of the Fourth of July have the block until the 10th I suspect - nothing will be apparent concerning impending construction.  I even doubt that this years Spotlight will be able to use the space, and frankly, I think that the Short St. corridor is the better location.  I am keeping my eye out for someplace to put the fill which needs to be removed (Oliver Lewis Way Phase II?) and the fleet of trucks to haul it.  The dry heat of August and September could make downtown Lexington quite dusty this year.

I think that the clock is ticking.

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