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10 <br />EAST TO WEST <br />I'JEV ELOPMkN'i CORi•U(M'i'IUN <br />Memorandum <br />To: Jason Brown, County Administrator, Indian River County <br />From: Daniel A. Rosemond, CEO, East to West Development Corp. <br />CC: Chuck Halberg, President, Stuart & Shelby Development, Inc., Corey. O'Gorman, East to West Development <br />This memo serves as our formal response to the staff report dated April 4, 2022, regarding the redevelopment of <br />Gifford Gardens (RFP 2021014). We are extremely disappointed in the recommended action to reject our <br />Proposal. As noted in the staff report, ours was the only proposal submitted. And while it was acknowledged that, <br />"the proposal submitted met the baseline requirements for the project", the proposed housing prices would not be in the <br />public's best interest. We believe that rejecting the sole proposal, without providing an opportunity to thoroughly <br />discuss and negotiate the areas of concern, runs even more counter to the public's best interest. <br />As you are aware, the redevelopment of Gifford Gardens consisted of substantial infrastructure improvements, <br />in addition to the vertical construction. And while the $350,000 in ARP funds does alleviate some of the cost <br />burden, it doesn't eliminate it. This was an issue we raised with the AHAC when we proffered some alternatives <br />to reduce the total development costs. Additional ideas were outlined in a December 16, 2021 email to <br />Procurement Director Jennifer Hyde (see attached). The fact that our team never had the opportunity to <br />collectively explore options for addressing cost concerns with County Staff is not only a slight to the effort our <br />team invested in responding to the County's formal solicitation, but it also fails to advance the objective of <br />developing affordable housing on the former Gifford Gardens site. Further, if the committee will be discussing <br />an amended development program (townhomes, condominiums, apartments), as the sole proposer, we believe <br />these are alternatives that could have been afforded to our team without compromising the procurement process. <br />The development of affordable housing requires a concerted effort by all parties involved. Our team has been <br />beginning and has remained vigilant throughout the process as evidenced <br />nent. We urge the Commission to reconsider staff's recommendation and <br />negotiations with our team in hopes of reaching amicable terms. <br />700 US Highway One, Suite 1; Palm Beach Gardens, FL. 33408 <br />T: (305) 588-2638 W: etwdc.org <br />I LRP A _ <br />