GEORGE MITCHELL WANTS TO BUY GALVESTON PIERS 
Billionaire George Mitchell’s Mitchell Historic Properties has been leasing Piers 19-22 on the dock side of Galveston since 1993. The leases don’t expire until 2065, but he now wants to buy the properties from the city. Sitting on the piers: the Harbor House Hotel and Marina and a couple of Landry’s-owned restaurants. Mitchell claims he wants to make improvements to the docks that would make more development possible. The sale would require a city charter amendment and voter approval, which the company hopes would take place next May. [Galveston County Daily News] Photo: TripAdvisor
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Selling piers 19-22 to Mitchell Properties would be a brilliant move by the city. For at least three reasons. Let’s all vote for it.
First, we could collect the annual property tax for the city, which would be a huge benefit.
Second, once the property is private, we the citizens and taxpayers of Galveston can relax, knowing that the Port Authority would no longer be able to sabotage the city by capriciously changing the function of piers 19-22 to something not good for our city. Instead, through our city government, we the citizens (and the Mitchell family) would be in control, as we should be.
Third, were those piers private property, there would be incentive to develop them further into ever nicer and more prosperous properties (citizens’ permission allowing). Upscale development would in turn bring greater prosperity to all of us who are citizens of Galveston.
Casino Barges for the win.
Anything to keep Fertitta’s hands off it.
Amen – Miz Smith
I applaud the Mitchell’s extraordinary preservation efforts in Galveston over the years but do not want to lose the last publicly accessible downtown waterfront area and green space to real estate development. I live downtown and one of the appeals is the waterfront. Many communities have regretted their shortsightedness in not preserving their waterfronts.
I started a petition at http://www.gopetition.com/petition/38891.html over a year ago for those citizen’s wanting to preserve our vanishing waterfront.
Considering Mr. Mitchell has done more for the preservation of Galveston than anybody I can think of I support him and trust his judgment.
Trey: But what if he dies? Do you trust his kids?
I think that the City probably should sell it, however should require and enforce reasonable covenants and restrictions on its future use.
Just say no to another Kemah Boardwalk.