ECUA site buyer faces DUI charge
Wiese to be arraigned in Escambia court Monday
By Nate Monroe
nmonroe@pnj.com
The Texas developer who is on track to purchase the 19-acre ECUA property on Main Street for $7.6 million is to be arraigned Monday in an Escambia County courtroom on a drunken driving charge he received July 8.
The Escambia County Utilities Authority board on Thursday voted 4-1 to approve the $7.6 million offer on the downtown property — considered a key facet of the city’s redevelopment efforts — from Aaron Wiese, president of Houstonbased HT Land Co.
The decision came despite concerns from ECUA board member Lois Benson and some city officials over what they said was a lack of information about Wiese’s development track record and future plans for the land.