Former Mayor Coleen Seng’s attempt to get a new high-rise built downtown — for which the city bought and razed about half of a city block — appears to have hit a snag.

One key part of the project —an 18-story retirement home for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln alumni — is no longer in the works.

The city has been negotiating with a developer for 19 months, but business and city officials are saying privately the deal appears to be foundering.

In April 2007, after looking over proposals from three developers, city officials chose a $180 million blueprint pitched by Lincoln Synergy Group, a partnership between Lincoln developer Monte Froehlich and several out-of-town investors.

At the time, officials estimated it would take six to 18 months to work out a redevelopment agreement with the developer.

Now, 19 months into negotiations, Urban Development Director Dave Landis would not comment on the status of the project, saying any announcements are “not mine to make, create, announce.”

“Any decision-making would be above my pay grade,” he said last week.

The office above his pay grade — the mayor’s — also declined to comment.

But Froehlich said Monday the two sides were still working and would have an announcement soon. He said, as far as he knows, the project isn’t dead.

“I don’t know if the status has been determined,” he said. “We’re still working on it.”

Asked whether they’re working on an alternative plan, he said “not necessarily.”

“I’m really not at liberty to go into the details,” he said.

He said the economic turmoil is “certainly a component.”

“If you just look around the nation, there are not huge projects coming out of the ground or being announced,” he said.

Froehlich’s group proposed a 22-story building with a hotel, apartments, offices and retail space above a city parking garage on the block bounded by P, Q, 13th and 14th streets.

The developers also proposed an 18-story building that would house a retirement community linked to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on the block directly north, bounded by Q, R, 13th and 14th streets.

That portion of the project appears to be dead. The new director of the University of Nebraska Alumni Association, Diane Mendenhall, said, “At this point, we’re not involved in that or planning to move forward.”

Former Alumni Association director Ed Paquette had worked for several years — and looked at several sites — to create a unique home for alumni retirees. He abruptly left the association in September 2007.

Mendenhall said the decision to pull out of the project was made prior to her arrival this September, when the association reorganized and redirected its mission and determined the high-rise was “something that doesn’t fall within our umbrella of our intent to connect alumni back to the university.”

Lincoln Synergy’s proposal was four times more expensive than the other bid whose details were disclosed. Dial Realty Corp. of Omaha proposed a $45 million project that would include a 112-room Residence Inn by Marriott, 13 stories, 14 condos, a sports bar and entertainment complex. A smaller building would have had shops on the first floor and offices on the second and third floors occupied by Sinclair Hille architects.

A third bid came from developer John Q. Hammons — a Missouri hotelier who built the Embassy Suites downtown — but he didn’t submit a formal proposal.

The city has spent a considerable amount of money making way for the high-rise.

The city bought, demolished and paved over two restaurants and two theaters on the downtown block in 2007.

The former Douglas 3 theater at 13th and P streets was already vacant and the Star Ship 9 discount theater between 13th and 14th streets on Q Street was operating, although Douglas was already planning to close it. The city bought the two theaters for $3.2 million.

While Douglas was a willing seller, the owners of the Taste of China and Wasabi Japanese restaurants on the northeast corner of 14th and Q were reluctant.

The Taste of China owner didn’t want to move, the city couldn’t pay as much as the owner wanted and the City Council refused to authorize the use of eminent domain. The city finally took a roundabout approach to getting that property.

Froehlich bought the Taste of China for about $730,000 and the city paid him $430,000 (the maximum they could have paid the restaurant outright) for the right to demolish the restaurant. The plan was for Froehlich to sell the property to the high-rise developer for $300,000 — which, as it turned out, was himself.

So it’s unclear whether the city could be on the hook for that $300,000, too.

And that’s not counting demolition, paving and other associated costs.

Reach Deena Winter at 473-2642 or dwinter@journalstar.com.