Suit to federal court: Four Seasons lawsuit against Hammons TIF project in Osage Beach moves from Camden County circuit

A court case originally filed in Camden County involving the John Q. Hammons project and the tax increment financing district approved by the city of Osage Beach has been transferred to federal court.
The lawsuit was filed by Four Seasons Marina Rentals Inc., after the city of Osage Beach approved a $3 million tax increment financing district for the $90 million-plus resort/hotel. The suit challenges the blighted designation that is required under Missouri state law in order to use a TIF for redevelopment.
The suit was filed on behalf of Four Seasons Marina Rentals, Inc. by the Curran and Sickal law firm of Osage Beach.
The move to federal court came after the attorneys for Four Seasons cited federal law. Four Seasons did subsequently file a motion asking the federal court to return the case to state court. That motion was denied.   
Federal Judge Nanette Kay Laughrey has set the case for trial in federal district court in Jefferson City, Mo., on June 1, 2009.   
Hammons had hoped to have the hotel/resort construction run concurrently with the Osage Beach Expressway project. Now, plans are to have the facility under construction by the summer of 2009 with completion no later than spring 2011.
The Hammons hotel/resort will transform the shoreline and the skyline on the Grand Glaize Arm of the lake as his 15-story, 320-room/suite Chateau Lake of the Ozarks begins to take shape.
The project will be located off Highway 54 and Passover Road, next to the Mungenast Yacht Club.
The location on the peninsula will give Hammons an opportunity to incorporate the waterfront into the project that will be surrounded by green space and buffer zones creating a setting that will appeal to visitors who want and expect quality.
Thirty acres of prime waterfront property, a market that will pull from major metropolitan areas of Missouri and neighboring states and the Osage Beach Expressway project were key factors in Hammons’ decision to build the project here at the lake.
Hammons has spent more than five years developing the plans for the project.
The Hammons holdings, based in Springfield, Mo., has opened three new hotels in the last 15 months and has six on the drawing board.