A decision handed down by the Camden County Circuit Court has vindicated the city of Osage Beach and its decision for a $3.5 million Tax Increment Financing district for developer John Q. Hammons to build a proposed $100 million-plus resort-hotel facility on the Grand Glaize Arm of Lake of the Ozarks.
The city and Hammons have been tied up in court for more than two years in a lawsuit brought by Four Seasons Marina Rentals and Four Seasons Lakesites, LLC. The suit brought plans for the project to a halt.
Senior Judge B.C. Drumm Jr. filed the decision late Monday afternoon, ending months of speculation over whether the court would side with the city or the Four Seasons entities.
The decision upheld the constitutionality of the city’s ordinance approving the TIF. Drumm’s decision gives the city the right to move forward with the TIF.
The judge ordered that Four Seasons Marina Rentals pay court costs rendered during the proceedings.
The plaintiff has the right to appeal the decision to the Missouri Court of Appeals.
John Q. Hammons could not be reached for comment, nor could Osage Beach Mayor Penny Lions.
Hammons had indicated that despite the extended legal battle over the TIF, he still plans to build the facility. He had planned to open the facility this spring.
How we got here
The approval of a $3.5-million Tax Increment Financing district by the city of Osage Beach for the John Q. Hammons project triggered the lawsuit challenging the legality of the decision.
The suit was filed in December 2007, just days after Four Seasons Marina Rentals purchased property in Camden County and within two days of the Osage Beach Board of Aldermen’s approving the Tax Increment Financing district.
The original suit was filed by Four Seasons Marina Rentals, Inc. Four Seasons Lakesites, LLC., later joined the suit. Among the issues the suit challenged was the use of the blighted designation as a criteria for the approval of a TIF.
The suit was filed in Camden County but was later transferred to the federal level. The day the trial was set to begin in Jefferson City, the judge scheduled to hear the case remanded it back to circuit, saying the federal court did not have jurisdiction.
Once the case was re-filed in circuit court, Four Seasons Marina Rentals requested a change of venue due to the coverage in the Lake Sun and petitioned the court to have the case heard by a jury.
The case was scheduled to go to trial in September but got bumped to Oct. 5. It was later moved to Dec. 14.
The Missouri Supreme and Appeals courts declined to order a change of venue or force the court to have a jury hear the case.
A subsequent ruling by the circuit court in favor of the city denied Four Seasons’ challenge to the composition and validity of the TIF Commission, and the due process challenge to the Missouri TIF Act premised on the TIF Act’s alleged unconstitutional redirection of property taxes.
The case was taken under advisement after a four-day trial in December. Legal representatives were given until Jan. 18 to file their final documents.
A 10-day extension was granted by the judge at the request of Curran, who was out of the country when the final documents were due.
Numbers to know
30 Acres on the Grand Glaize Arm of the lake
18-20 Months from groundbreaking to opening
250-275 Equivalent full-time staff
$22 million First year sales
$1.5 million annually in sales tax
$378,000 Projected first year receipts for Tri-County Lodging Association
Contact this reporter at joyce.miller@lakesunonline.com
