A monetary incentive sent by the owners of the North Grand Mall, aiming to entice the city into changing its land use policy so it couldn’t allow a regional mall, was staunchly refused by Ames Mayor Ted Tedesco.

The owners of the North Grand Mall offered the city of Ames $1.5 million in exchange for an alteration to the city’s Land Use Policy Plan that would prohibit new large-scale retail development.

The offer from the Chicago-based L&H Real Estate Group came in a letter to the mayor, city council members, city manager and the city planning department Wednesday.

The letter asked that the Land Use Policy Plan be amended so the regional commercial zone at the interchange of Interstate 35 and Highway 30 be moved to the interchange of I-35 and 13th Street. The letter also asked for the interchange to then be changed to a non-retail commercial zone for industrial or office-research development.

Regional commercial is the zoning designation for large retail spaces. The mall proposed by Wolford Development Inc. falls into this zoning classification.

This action would take the Regional Commercial zone off the map entirely, leaving no developable land for competitors to North Grand Mall. If this concession was made, according to the letter, the L&H Group would contribute $1.5 million for infrastructure improvements at new non-retail sites across the city.

The offer was not well received by Tedesco and the Ames City Council.

“It is both unethical and illegal for the city council to make a favorable recommendation in exchange for a cash gift,” Tedesco said.

L&H Group representatives said they were surprised by the Tedesco’s staunch refusal to their offer, said Gerry Curciarello, a managing partner at the firm.

“We were very disheartened by the mayor’s reaction,” Curciarello said.

Curciarello said the group consulted with legal council on the letter before sending it.

He said he does not believe it would be illegal for Ames to make the requested concessions and accept the $1.5 million.

In the letter, L&H Group suggested a contract between themselves and the city which would ensure the group’s $1.5 million contribution as well as responsibility for any improvements made to the city infrastructure in the proposed expansion of North Grand Mall.

Tedesco said the council will not agree to any such contract, nor will it allow the L&H Group’s offer to influence its decisions on the rezoning of I-35 and 13th Street and the Wolford mall proposal.

“I feel embarrassed for the city of Ames, the City Council and all of its staff that such a letter was even sent,” he said. “It isn’t what the letter said, it’s the implication that we would even consider such an offer.”

The L&H Group plans to expand the existing North Grand Mall and has submitted traffic and regional market studies concerning that plan to the city, Curciarello said. The plans call for as much as doubling the mall’s current floor space, which would make North Grand Mall larger than the mall proposed by Wolford Development Inc.

Neither Tedesco or Curciarello would speculate on what will happen to the city and group’s relationship as a result of the offer.

“We will continue to be professional in our relations to the city and act in an honorable way,” Curciarello said.