The Austin City Council approved a grant for $225,000 to the Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) at its meeting Monday night.

The money is to be used by the HRA to buy Lot 15, adjacent to the west side of the Courtyard Apartments and a part of the Usem car dealership, if owner Tom Sherman agrees to the deal.

Finalization of the deal may require an executed agreement for the sale of another of Sherman's lots, Lot 19, which houses the rest of his dealership.

There have been talks with the county about purchasing Lot 19, however, Sherman said the deal with the HRA is not contingent on the sale of Lot 19. He also said the timing of the sale is up to him.

Sherman plans to relocate the business in Austin, but Third Ward council member Tracey Chamberlain wanted assurances of that, so he requested that a contingency be added to the agreement. The contingency would state Sherman must use the sale proceeds to reinvest in development of a new auto dealership.

Money for the purchase would come from the building fund, which is for development in Austin and comes from some of the interest off of other funds. The money may not be an issue if the HRA is successful in securing a grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, but the likelihood of that is still uncertain.

Approval passed by a 4-3 vote, with council member At-Large Wayne Goodnature and Second Ward council members Dick Pacholl and Pete Christopherson voting against.

Pacholl said he is upset because the city keeps buying property and then taking a loss on it later.

"We're always in the hole," he said. "That's what it looks like to me and I'm not satisfied with it."

First Ward Council Member Mickey Jorgenson said that is not true, because of gains the city makes on tax dollars.

Goodnature expressed, among other concerns, no guarantee of new jobs.

In other business, the council approved an engineer consultant agreement with Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc. (SEH) to design the taxiway for the airport.

The project would include a new parallel taxiway, hanger development access points and a new electrical power building. It is expected to cost between $1.5 to $1.75 million and will be 90 percent funded by a federal grant. The city will have to provide the other 10 percent.

The council approved the new building permit fee schedule by a 5-2 vote with Chamberlain and Goodnature voting against.

The new schedule puts costs at 25 percent of the 1994 model as of June 1. In January of 2004, the rates will go up to 50 percent of the 1994 model.

The reason for the gradual increase is that some construction companies have already made proposals and bids based on the old fee schedule, and this will give them a little time to adjust future projects before the full increase kicks in.

The council approved the sidewalk replacement project, which affects residents between Fourth and 12th streets NW from Oakland to Fourth Avenue NW.

Sidewalk repairs will be assessed to home-owners in this area and will likely cost between $110 and $125 per panel, depending on the size of the panel and the contractor bids. Residents can contact their own contractor if they would like. The deadline to do so is July 1.

Matt Merritt can be reached at 434-2214 or by email at matt.merritt@austindailyherald.com