Unrivaled Funding Deal Goes To Council

· Allow Lee Development to retain development rights for a project on the remainder of the property for 15 to 18 years, more than twice the usual time, while limiting planning board oversight of eventual plans.

· Waive a county requirement that up to 20 percent of the property be set aside as public-use space, customarily outdoor space. Instead, the deal would use the Live Nation building, about 14 percent, as the required public-use space for the undesigned, adjacent Lee project. The Live Nation building also would be considered the Lees' public amenity, avoiding a separate requirement for green space, landscaping or other enhancements negotiated between the builder and the planning board in exchange for greater density.

· Provide Live Nation with about $800,000 annually in tax breaks and an opportunity to profit from a sale of naming rights.

· Limit the county's leverage to change the deal, because the Lees would own the property until the building is constructed.

As with nonprofit groups the county is supporting, the county also would allow Live Nation to lease the venue to others and keep the rent money, estimated at $6,000 a night. Live Nation would provide about 36 more nights a year at a reduced rent to community groups, in the range of $1,200 a night, depending on market conditions. The county at times would use the hall at a reduced rental or for free. Live Nation would donate $30,000 annually to help pay for a downtown Silver Spring festival. "We are very committed to Fillmore Silver Spring," spokesman John Vlautin said.

"This is a really good deal for the county," said Leggett's top aide, Timothy Firestine, who formerly headed the county's finance department. The proposal is similar to a plan crafted during the administration of former county executive Douglas M. Duncan (D) to try to attract the Birchmere music hall to Silver Spring. That fell apart last year after five years of negotiations.

Nearby in the District, developer Douglas Jemal said he has been trying for a decade to get Live Nation to come to Washington. He said he hopes to entice a House of Blues, another Live Nation brand, to the Mount Vernon Square neighborhood.

"They are like Whole Foods. They change the whole environment in an area," Jemal said. He expects Live Nation to seek aid from the District government before any deal is finalized. "They don't come for nothing. Everybody wants them."

But the Silver Spring proposal has encountered some vocal critics. In July, the county planning board voted 5 to 0 to recommend against the land-use portion of the deal. Last week, a council staff lawyer raised similar concerns. Planning board chairman Royce Hanson called the proposal a "blank check" for the Lees, even though he would like to see Live Nation come to Silver Spring. Hanson also said that the Leggett administration's proposal would slow development in downtown Silver Spring, not stimulate it by allowing the Lees to retain density and traffic allocations but not use them for years. That could delay other developers until the Lees decide to build.