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The Redevelopment Agency of the City of Fremont and development partner James Tong, Inc, have mutually agreed to terminate the Disposition and Development Agreement (DDA) that would have brought Centerville Market Place to town. The 58,000 square foot, restaurant anchored retail project with 110 townhome-style condominiums proposed for the corner of Fremont Boulevard and Thornton Avenue, was approved by the Redevelopment Agency Board in March of 2005. The project was intended to bring new life and vitality to Centerville's historic town center.
"We recognize all the hard work and good faith effort put into the proposed project by James Tong and his development team, and share his frustration over changing market conditions that make this project infeasible," said Fred Diaz, City Manager for the City of Fremont. "However, it is time to close the book on this proposal and look for a project better suited to current market conditions."
The DDA between the Agency and James Tong, Inc. was entered on March 22, 2005. Under this agreement, "If by November 20, 2006, the Developer and the Agency staff, each acting in its sole discretion, do not agree on a mutually acceptable Proposed Modified Scope of Development and Proposed Method of Financing for submission to the Board, then either party may terminate…"
"Fremont is my home," notes James Tong, Developer for the Centerville Market Place. "I wanted to bring a high quality mixed-use project to Fremont that we could all be proud of. Though it is clearly not the time or place for this project, I hope to work with the City again to see if we can find another design that might make more sense in today's market."
The Agency is interested in moving forward with a new project as soon as possible and will issue a new Request for Qualifications (RFQ) in December to find parties interested in exploring development options for the Centerville Unified Site. "This is an opportunity to get a fresh viewpoint on what can be created," said Mayor Bob Wasserman. "We will again involve the community in the process in order to find a high quality project we can all be proud of."
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