Hall of Fame Village seeks financing for water park and hotel infrastructure
Hall of Fame Village developers are once again seeking financing to move forward with their 100-acre sports and entertainment complex.
HOF Village Newco, a subsidiary of the Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Co. that is developing the Canton complex, is working with the Stark County Port Authority and Canton City Council to secure financing that will generate roughly $12.5 million for the construction of street, water, stormwater and sanitary sewer improvements surrounding the village’s football-themed indoor water park and 180-room hotel.
The roadway and utility improvements will be located north of George Halas Way, east of Champions Gateway and south of Fulton Road NW.
Under an agreement, the port authority will issue special obligation development revenue bonds to finance the infrastructure construction.
The bonds will be repaid with money collected by a special assessment that will be added to the cost of activities at the water park and hotel. Some of the money to pay the bonds also will come from a portion of the additional property taxes generated at the village due to the improvements increasing the land’s value.
Canton City Council on Monday cleared the way for the port authority to issue the bonds. It approved the cooperative agreement and added the water park and hotel projects to an existing tax increment financing agreement from 2015.
Council is expected to set the special assessment amount at a future council meeting after port authority officials know the interest cost of the bonds.
Benjamin Lee, chief financial officer for Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Co., said he expects the financing to be completed around November.
Canton Mayor Thomas Bernabei emphasized that the city and city taxpayers have no liability for the port authority bonds or their repayment under the agreement. The newly constructed roads and utilities would be privately owned, and the city would not be responsible for their maintenance, Bernabei said.
City Council and the port authority have previously approved similar agreements when Hall of Fame developers were seeking financing for the infrastructure surrounding other components of the village that are south of George Halas Drive NW.
Reach Repository staff writer Kelli Weir at 330-580-8339 or kelli.weir@cantonrep.com.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: HOF Village seeks help to pay for roads, utilities around water park
