George Hawthorne hopes to persuade investors to back purchase
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Despite a lack of firm financing, Pensacola businessman George Hawthorne is confident he will make good on his $1 million offer to buy the old Brownsville Middle School.
Hawthorne, as CEO of Diversity Program Advisors Inc., signed a contract Jan. 17 with the School District to buy the abandoned school at 3700 W. Avery St.
With the goal of rejuvenating the crime-ridden Brownsville section of Pensacola, he hopes to turn the old school into a family resource center and to eventually sell some of the surrounding 8 acres of ball fields to Habitat for Humanity for a subdivision.
Hawthorne, who also is the majority owner of a construction company in Gulf Shores, Ala., said he's been talking to a number of local investors about contributing to the $1 million purchase price plus an additional $1 million to renovate the property.
He would not identify the potential investors or reveal if any have committed to help. He said his own company, located on North DeVilliers Street, would contribute a portion of the money, but he's not yet sure how much.
"I hope to pull that together in the next week to two-week period," he said. "I have to provide data and due diligence for people to make accurate decisions. I feel very confident about it at this point."
The School Board has delayed a vote on the contract from its Feb. 15 meeting until its March 15 meeting because the contract remains under legal review, Superintendent Malcolm Thomas said.
If the board approves the sale, Hawthorne will be expected to pay a $10,000 deposit immediately, according to the contract. The remaining $990,000 would be due within 30 days.
Thomas said he has not seen any specific funding sources for the purchase. But he said the method of coming up with the $1 million purchase price is an issue for Hawthorne, not the district.
"I hope he has the financial wherewithal to do what he's committing to do in the contract," Thomas said. "He approached us, he wanted to buy it, he has a plan and it's on paper.
"How he's structuring the deal, we don't get involved in that. I hope for the sake of the Brownsville community that it can happen the way he's describing."
Habitat for Humanity representative Dick Baker said the property would be an ideal location for Habitat homes so he, too, hopes the sale goes through.
Baker, a developer, was hired by Habitat on a short-term basis to help administer a $24 million grant from the national Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2.
Hawthorne's company, after buying the property, would hire contractors to develop the property into residential lots, Baker said. Habitat would then purchase the lots and build houses on them.
"We would be buying finalized, developed lots," he said. "If the financial plan he's putting together doesn't accomplish that, we wouldn't be buying lots. It's something he's got to handle. We sure hope it works because that's a wonderful location."
Studer said he would be willing to consider providing up to $200,000 if assets are pledged to ensure that the loan is paid back.
He also wrote that he would have to be "very comfortable" with the plan, "which would mean Pastor May's plans are part of the project."
In a return e-mail Tuesday, Hawthorne told Studer he was "getting major support" for the project and wanted to talk with him further about it.
He also said he'd talked with Gulf Coast Community Bank President Buzz Ritchie and told Ritchie that he might approach Studer about being "one of multiple guarantors in lieu of any cash."
Ritchie said Wednesday that Hawthorne wanted advice on seeking loans.
"My involvement will be trying to help him compile the right information bankers are going to need to review," Ritchie said. "But he's got a lot of paperwork to gather first. He'll need to put a loan package together."
Ritchie encouraged Hawthorne to go to several local banks to determine the best deal.
"I told him I thought if Habitat is going to buy those lots, there's a good chance there would be banks in town willing to loan him money," he said.
Hawthorne said he's convinced he can close the deal, but finding contributors is essential.
"I'm not giving up unless there's no community support," he said. "Financial and community support go hand-in-hand with a project of this magnitude. Without either one, it would make it very difficult for this project to maintain and sustain."
Church's lost opportunity
Behind the scenes, a bit of controversy is swirling around lingering hard feelings about a previous effort by the Friendship Missionary Baptist Church and its pastor, LuTimothy May, to buy the property.Ultimately unable to raise the money for the purchase, May and the church abandoned their efforts last year. Contentious negotiations and disputes with the School District over the price and condition of the property preceded that dropped effort.
May said Wednesday the needs in Brownsville remain great.
"We support anything good happening to the community, he said.
But May regards Hawthorne as something of a Johnny-come-lately because he wasn't a visible supporter when May and his church were trying to buy the property.
"He wasn't one of the ones who said 'Hey, let us stand with you,' " May said.
But May said, "Maybe that sparked him to try to do what he's doing now. Maybe he can take the torch and actualize it."
Hawthorne said he wants May and his church to work with him on the project. But May said he does not, at this point, know enough about it to be a key partner.
Seeking Studer's help
Heath care consultant Quint Studer, who already has invested millions of dollars in development of the Community Maritime Park and the nearby Belmont-DeVilliers neighborhood, said this week that he is one of those to whom Hawthorne turned for support. He has not yet made any commitments.E-mail correspondence between Hawthorne and Studer, provided by Studer, shows that Studer is interested in the project but is not yet ready to make a financial commitment.
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