The Board of Trustees unanimously supported (6-0 with Trustee Dodd recusing himself) the campus housing pre-development agreement between the Napa Valley Community College District and the Martin Group. Trustee Dodd recused himself as the law firm he works for provides legal support to The Martin Group. Sean Absher of Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, the District's legal counsel, walked the Board through the pre-development agreement, which engages The Martin Group to collaborate with the District in the selection of the third-party design, engineering, construction, and other professionals necessary for the planning, design, engineering, permitting, environmental review, financing, construction, and overall development of the project.
Phase I is anticipated to take 90 days and The Martin Group will pay all costs during that time (their investment will be reimbursed by the 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that is eventually selected to finance the project). The nonprofit will own the development and issue tax-exempt revenue bonds (these are not local bonds and will have no impact on local taxpayers). The only financial risk to the College is if the project does not move forward after Phase I; then the District will be responsible for reimbursing costs up to $50,000. Phase 2 is expected to begin in December 2019 with construction anticipated to start in summer 2021.
