AGENDA #5b

MEMORANDUM

TO:	Roger Stancil, Town Manager
FROM:	Dwight Bassett, Economic Development Officer
SUBJECT:	Sommerhill Gallery
DATE:	April 28, 2008

I began meeting with Joe Roland of Somerhill Gallery and having phone conversations with Phil Szostak after the Council meeting on February 18, 2008. I specifically met with Joe to discuss his needs and options beginning on February 21, 2008.  Joe had already begun considering other locations including Durham before I first met with him. I felt my efforts were to help in offering locations for Chapel Hill and to encourage him to stay in Chapel Hill.

Joe looked at and considered three specific properties in Chapel Hill and was referred to numerous others that could not meet his needs.  Joe was looking for at least 9,000SF, would have preferred a building that had a strong presence, from a design perspective and that the location is accessible to I-40.  He also had concerns about rental rates and looking only at locations that he felt Somerhill could afford.  He looked at buildings in different parts of Chapel Hill, including the downtown, the Southern Village area and the area near his present location at Eastgate.

I talked with Federal Realty to see if there were any options for Somerhill Gallery at Eastgate and discovered that there were none. I believe in hindsight, that there wasn’t enough property selection for Somerhill to consider in relocating in Chapel Hill and that there were specific needs that could not be accommodated with our existing inventory.

Please call me if you need more specific information regarding the locations that were considered.