Desperate to reignite the magnetism that once enveloped the 7.3-acre entertainment compound, elected city officials voted 6-1 to give the creator of internationally-acclaimed boy bands, $1.5 million in loans. The money will be used to renovate the 100-year-old, 136,000-sf, three-story vacant Church Street Exchange building where Pearlman will move his 500-person global musical headquarters staff by December from its existing International Drive site.

On the $1.5 million loan, the former Flushing Queens, NY-native has 14 years to repay the money and will pay only the interest on the loan for the first four years. Pearlman is also getting 12 years of tax rebates with an estimated annual value of $60,000, starting in 2005 and based on a percentage of any increase in the property's assessed value resulting from his improvements.

The Orange County Property Appraiser's office valued Church Street Station in 1996 at $26 million. Last year, the property plummeted to a value of $10.6 million for tax purposes. If Pearlman and Church Street Station co-owner Robert L. Kling, president, FF South & Co., get the property back to its 1996 level, they will split the tax proceeds evenly. If they can only increase the value above the current assessment, they will receive a 35% cut in taxes.