WILKES-BARRE TWP. — The new solicitor for the Luzerne County Convention Center Authority hit the ground running on Wednesday when the board assigned two matters to get resolved.
Attorney Christopher Slusser, who was appointed at the board’s March meeting, was asked to handle the possible sale of a 5-to-7-acre parcel adjacent to the Mohegan Arena and also to negotiate with U-Haul to resolve the use of an access road off of Mundy Street.
In early January, the board heard a presentation from Sonny Singh of ONVB, regarding his request to purchase a parcel of land from the arena authority to build a second hotel.
Singh built a Residence Inn extended-stay hotel four years ago, and this parcel adjoins that site.
The board and staff at the arena said they have had a good relationship with Singh over the years.
In January, the board thanked Singh for his presentation and referred the matter to the Land Development Committee for review.
Board member John Pickering reported that Attorney Slusser has recommended that the authority get its own appraisal of the property before negotiating a sale price with Singh.
Board Chair Patrick Patte said that not many realtors do commercial land appraisals. He said the board will seek proposals from realtors that perform that work and report back at the next meeting.
Pickering and Slusser will meet to discuss the access road issue and report back at the board’s meeting in May. The authority has stated it hopes to get at least $1 million for the property.
The board also unanimously approved the contract — which includes a $35,000 per year retainer — with Slusser, who replaced Rosenn Jenkins & Greenwald, which held the position for 16 years.
Board member Donna Cupinski, who chaired the authority board for 16 years, praised RJ&G for its service to the authority, noting that the firm went “above and beyond” for the authority.
“It doesn’t always come down to an hourly rate,” Cupinski said.
Last month, the authority board hired the Slusser Law Firm, with offices in Hazleton and Kingston, at the hourly rate of $150-$250.
The only other bid submitted was from Rosenn Jenkins and Greenwald of Wilkes-Barre at an hourly rate of $250-$475, depending on the attorney assigned.
In other business, the board:
• Approved the final bill of $430,248.10 for the completed floor chiller replacement project.
• Heard ASM Global General Manager Steve Poremba report that the arena has hosted several sell-out or near-sell-out events, such as Monster Jam and Cirque du Soleil, and recently announced the booking of country music superstar Cole Swindell.
Poremba also reported that the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins will be in the Calder Cup playoffs. The arena will host four college commencement ceremonies and three high school graduations in May and June.