The city has decided to reject both proposals it received for Saccarappa Park.

The decision leaves the future of the riverfront park in question. The downtown park has been at the center of controversy for two years since the city cleared the park to build the Riverwalk.

On Aug. 1, the city received just two proposals for the park – one to build a 30,000-square-foot office building and one to keep it as a park.

On Monday night, Mayor Bruce Chuluda said he has decided to reject both proposals and will not be bringing them before the City Council for review. “They didn’t meet my criteria,” said Chuluda.

One proposal came from Brown Redevelopment Corp. of Scarborough. The proposal, signed by Principal Terry Brown, called for a 30,000-square-foot building that would house stores, medical offices and condominiums.

Brown’s plan called for a building and adjoining parking lot to occupy 65 percent of the land, with the remaining 35 percent preserved as a park. The 35 percent figure was below the 40 percent figure recommended by the mayor’s economic development committee when it was coming up with a plan for the park.

Brown also offered to pay just $1 for the property. He explained at the time that he offered a low monetary figure because he planned on restoring and maintaining a portion of the land as public open space.

“Rather than offer monetary value for the land, we thought we’d do it with improvements,” he said. Brown did not supply the city with an exact plan for the scope of the improvements.

The second proposal offered slightly more cash to the city, but did nothing to develop the land. Former American Journal Editor Harry Foote and his wife, Anne, offered the city $1,000 for the land, with the provision that if they were awarded the land, the Footes would immediately give it back to the city under the condition it remain a park for 100 years.

Foote’s offer is similar to one he made in 2003 when the city was considering a proposal from a group led by former Mayor Ken Lefebvre to erect a 48,000-square-foot office building on the park. At that time, Foote offered $10,000 for the park, and also pledged to return it to the city to be used as a park for 100 years.

Foote said he reduced his offer because of the changes the city has made to the land since 2003. “There was a park there when we offered $10,000, and there isn’t one there now,” he said. “The cost of restoring what they destroyed is reflected in our price.”

Economic and Community Development Director Erik Carson said Monday night he has returned Foote’s $1,000 check that was included with his proposal. Carson said he would be sending a letter to Brown soon giving him notice that the city would not be accepting his proposal.

Now that the city has decided to reject the two proposals, Chuluda said he is not sure what the city will do next. “At this point, everything is on hold,” he said. “I need to evaluate what to do next.”

Chuluda said there is still interest in developing the park. He said shortly after bids closed at the beginning of August, other developers expressed interest in the park. Chuluda declined to name those developers.

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