I guess those “many weekly calls from the governor with RFIs” aren’t cutting it. The LEDC has elected to list four lots from the 151-acre Business Pork on LoopNet:
US Hwy 183 – Lampasas Business Park
These four lots are actually listed for sale. Over the last 20 years, the LEDC has gone back and forth a few times about whether they would be renting these out or selling them.
At one point, Kathy Masonheimer projected the annual revenue from the Business Pork at $250,000 per year. From September 2014:
“The LEDC’s new debt service payment will be about $150,000 a year, Mrs. Masonheimer said. The economic development corporation projects annual revenue of about $250,000, which will leave approximately $100,000 for operating costs after making loan payments.”
Actual annual revenue 9 years later? Zero dollars.
The sum of the asking prices is over $15 million dollars – roughly twice what they have spent on purchasing and improving the land.
LOT #1 is $174,000 per acre
LOT #3 is $130,000 per acre
Lot #4 is $87,000 per acre
Lot #5 is $174,000 per acre
These prices seem completely insane to me, but what do I know. Maybe they are pricing it ridiculously high so they can cut the price in half later and look like they are giving a deal to someone.
It is also weird that one of the prospective tenants (or purchasers) might be Mike Cour’s Eco-Turd. It’s weird because Mike Cour owns about 200 acres a stone’s throw down the street from the biz pork which he tried (and failed) to unload at about $30,000 per acre a year or so ago.
So if he can’t sell his own property on 183 at $30,000 per acre [currently estimated at $25,000 per acre], why would his Eco-turd pay over $100,000 per acre a mile down the road? Makes zero sense to me.
There is also property right next door listed at about $50,000 per acre – which is odd, because LEDC president Talbert told us there was “no other commercial real estate in the area…our business park is it.”
Throw in the fact that the CRE market is shitting the bed right now, and the next 6-12 months should be very interesting.