Mayoral candidate accuses Bedford of sweetheart deal. Here’s the status of the project
A candidate for mayor in Bedford is spreading false information about a city owned property in a video on his campaign website.
Eric “Big Juicy” Love, one of three candidates for mayor, claims that that the city had sold an 18.5-acre property (formerly known as Campus West) at 2005 N. Industrial Blvd. for $7 million, less than the $9.5 million the city paid for it in 2021.
However, the City Council has not approved the property sale, and the land won’t be sold until developers submit site plans.
Love told the Star-Telegram that he did not talk to anyone with the city about the status of the property, but he contacted a developer who told him about the sale. Love did not name the developer.
Bedford bought the land so the city would have a say in the type of development after residents vehemently opposed more apartments in the city. Plans call for townhomes, restaurants and shops on the property, one of the few remaining vacant tracts of land in the city.
Love, 57, a private investigator and philanthropist, faces incumbent Dan Cogan, 36, a teacher, and former mayor Jim Griffin, 67, a retired network planner from Verizon, in the May 4 election. Early voting begins April 22.
Cogan criticized Love for the “unsubstantiated claims” about Campus West and that Bedford is not business friendly.