A $62.5 million plan to build a new eight-story office tower atop an 11-level parking garage at Third and Broadway relies mostly on private investment. It looks like a well-made financing deal. Although it does raise some questions, especially since developer Eagle Realty Group has yet to sign a major tenant, Queen City Square would add a valuable new downtown asset, with 180,000 square feet of Class A office space and about 680 parking spaces - close to offices, Great American Ball Park, U.S. Bank Arena and Paul Brown Stadium.

This is not a case of another corporation asking for a fat public handout. The deal requires no upfront money from the city, and Eagle, a subsidiary of Western & Southern Financial Group, assumes most of the risk. Eagle is asking for council to contribute real estate tax increment revenue through the Port Authority to finance about $10 million of the cost of the parking garage. Eagle also asks that the city, upon construction, contribute $533,000 for sidewalks and other streetscape improvements.

"The city is not an equity investor," Mayor Charlie Luken said. "I think it's a real opportunity for the city."

"It's also a great use of the Port Authority as a development tool," said Port Authority President Tim Sharp. The port will use 75 percent of the annual tax increment revenue to issue 30-year bonds, which a Western & Southern affiliate will buy. The other 25 percent goes to Cincinnati School District. The port will own the building and lease it back to Eagle. Some may question diverting real estate revenues for 30 years, but it's just a vacant lot now, generating only about $54,000 a year in taxes.

Eagle and city officials project that the new office tower could house about 600 employees, and construction would support another 110 direct full-time jobs. Officials view the planned tower, already approved by the Urban Design Review Board, as a "world-class headquarters building." Such a tenant would be an ideal catch. But Eagle had trouble recruiting anchor tenants at Fifth & Race. One less desirable outcome would be if the new office tower only pulled tenants from existing downtown buildings and did not add new outside jobs to city earnings tax rolls.

Eagle hopes for a council vote next Wednesday. The economy is rebounding, but it could take 18 months or more for Eagle to get this fresh office product built. The developer says it's phase one of a two-tower project. Council should look it over carefully, especially for developing guidelines to evaluate development deals, but there's a lot to like about this one.