For every old story about Downtown St. Joseph's glory days, there's another about the failed efforts to bring those days back.
Last week, city Planning and Community Development Director Clint Thompson explained how tax increment financing could help move the area forward.
Mr. Thompson told the TIF Commission about the first phase of the project, which would offer a financial incentive for property owners who wanted to improve their building facade within a Downtown Entertainment District. The commission ultimately approved the plan, but not without a few questions.
What makes this plan any different?
Former Mayor Larry Stobbs remembered multiple forms of "urban renewal" that included closed streets, parking meters, even a few that dealt with facades.
"We did everything but send Clint down there to drive nails and put up paint, and not a single person took advantage of it," Mr. Stobbs said.
Casey Myers operated a Ford dealership Downtown when the area was still thriving. When he saw St. Joseph's commerce shift eastward, he pulled up stakes and moved to a location near East Hills Shopping Center.
From Mr. Myers' point of view, Downtown is gone and never coming back. He told the TIF Commission a traffic bottleneck on Frederick Avenue causes one of Downtown's worst problems: There's no easy way to get there.
"If I had Warren Buffett's money, I wouldn't put 15 cents into Downtown until you make it accessible," Mr. Myers said.
He suggested the city eliminate all parking along Frederick and add a center turn lane before spending money Downtown.
Current Mayor Ken Shearin was involved in Downtown long before he took office. He has owned several businesses and was a charter member of the Coleman Hawkins Jazz Society, which sponsors two annual music festivals and the Mardi Gras parade Downtown.
"I've gone through seven cans of paint trying to get the stripe off this skunk Downtown," Mr. Shearin said.
The mayor favors the TIF, as long as the entertainment contains more than just bars. He wants to see the Missouri Theater and Allied Arts Council involved to create a "Coleman Hawkins Arts & Entertainment District." The TIF plan includes St. Joseph's fine arts institutions, but no plans are in place to name the district after the city's famous jazz musician.
Representatives of the St. Joseph Downtown Partnership, St. Joseph Area Chamber of Commerce and several Downtown businesses attended the commission's hearing last week to praise the TIF. They know Downtown revitalization won't be easy. They just want another shot.
Mr. Thompson admitted that a TIF was not an instant, cure-all solution for Downtown.
"TIF isn't a magic wand," Mr. Thompson said. "If this is approved, we aren't going to have people lined up for TIF applications. It's just another tool the city can use. We have to try."
Clinton Thomas can be reached at clintonthomas@npgco.com.
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Ems_Mom says...
In an ideal world it would be nice to have a area downtown. In reality, no one is ever going to go down there except to visit a few select businesses- to get a haircut, a pizza or visit an attorney. It's filthy, it smells and there are too many derelicts to count that run around down there. Get out while you can!
April 26, 2009 at 7:58 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
dalearch says...
My wife and I stopped in St. Joe last night to eat dinner at Boudreaux's. As usual it was great. We got there at 5:20 and they were very busy. They were packed by 5:45. One of the schools had their prom last night, but that accounted for only about half of the patrons.
They are one of the few bright spots left in downtown. I'll be glad when they can re-open here in KC.
April 26, 2009 at 8:14 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
bs64507 says...
They need to make it a true entertainment district. Felix St. is already almost a bar district anyway.
April 26, 2009 at 8:22 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
heritage_sarahhochschwender says...
on felix. fosters. empty store front. the candy shop ( tatoo parlor). bliss ( great hair salon). dentist. empty? stjo trunk. downtown business. snakebite, deli, felix street pub, the shaft. another tat parlor. also downtown is delicious? a bakery. maybe someone should open a comfortable cafe seating cinema with food, specializing in local artists one night a week, and audience participation night with oldies like the sound of music/rocky horror show.
there Are other business in felix street. there have to be shops which would be open in the evening also, like a nice silver jewelry/tshirt/natural fibers clothing store. or a tapas bar ( thats food) i hope that jalapeno's on edmund will start serving food until later than nine, but i think there is some kind of a restriction on a city hall level. i wish the deli, the bakery, and the kirkpatrick would keep later hours along with the local artists gallery.
April 26, 2009 at 9:49 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
dalearch says...
heritage:
You mentioned Jalapeno's. If you like good Mexican food you should try Jose Pepper's or Cactus Grill the next time you're here in the KC Metro. They are owned by the same people and have very similar menus.
April 26, 2009 at 10:44 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
apmastrangelo says...
The downtown transformation will continue to happen with the only remaining question being whether this is going to happen quickly, providing greater benefits to the city during a difficult period, or in slower stages with the community not taking advantage of the gift sitting at its doorstep.
April 26, 2009 at 10:51 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Trixie says...
Let's stop thinking re-this and re-that about downtown. It would be better to focus on the future and on creating, developing, enhancing, etc. a challenging area of St. Joseph. Who really cares what downtown "was", what is really interesting is what it can be. From this day forward let it be Downtown Development.
Speaking of "was", people who used to be involved with downtown and couldn't make it work for themselves should step aside and let someone with fresh, new ideas take over.
April 26, 2009 at 11:43 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
heritage_sarahhochschwender says...
dale, i think the joetown one is owned by a local family who expanded from their trailer parked over near the garden of eatin' .
the real name is "El Jalapeno". is that franchise?
never mind the food is authentic, delicious, and a full bar.
April 26, 2009 at 1:53 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
dalearch says...
heritage:
There is a chain of restaurants down here called Jalapeno's. I thought maybe they had opened one in St. Joe.
Jose Pepper's and Cactus Grill beat these Jalapeno's by a mile.
April 26, 2009 at 2:10 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
goobentrot says...
Those who are really familiar with St. Joe just look at the neighborhoods surrounding downtown for many blocks in all directions. In my opinion spending more money downtown other than maintenance would be like planting a garden in the middle of the city dump.
April 26, 2009 at 2:30 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
wildwest says...
This article is well written. In my view, I agree, the TIF is a tool, not a cure all. This was one main reason I came around to supporting the school initiative, while not perfect, the initiative was a tool to help progress foward, not a cure all. All of these tools should be in place along with many others. Again I go back to the "curb appeal" factor. We want new people to come here, live, work, play, etc, well it is going to take more then just new schools, it is going to take fixing it all as a community. Apple, your idea in a previous post about the trolleys, museums, etc, was an excellent one. I agree with that philsophy, alot of potential and opportunity out there, but there is nothing at the present time driving that. The trolley thing would be great, but we need to have organizations and the community embrace and support it, much like Atchison where their system is supported by several organizations to make it work. Same with the museum idea. How many museums do we have and how many different organizations do we have running them? In my view there is a huge potential of creating a "Smithsonian of the Midwest" by combining resources. We have to find and implement solutions to make things work and progress. We need to get past the hard core mindsets out there that are negative and work towards a common mission and plan. If as a community we are truly serious about this, and by community I mean everyone, every organization, group, etc, should be working together to find common ground and a bold mission plan to move forward on all fronts.
April 26, 2009 at 3:08 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
heritage_sarahhochschwender says...
dale........ i try as hard as i can not to eat at franchise restaurants, and spend any dollars i possible can downtown/fredrick.
the chile'colorado at El J is rockin'good.
April 26, 2009 at 5:33 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
238er says...
you know one of the interesting quirks is that if you take a building with a fair market value of 1,000,000 and convert it from commercial to residential then the assessed value falls. Commercial is assessed at 33% of FMV and residential at 19% of FMV so the building's new FMV would need to be 1.75 million. Problem is that the necessary rents (without any tax credits) at the market value are not sufficient per square foot to cash flow the building.
April 26, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
JAFO says...
i agree with making an entertainment district out of downtown. threre are a multitude of good buildings that are either vacant, partialy vacant, or being converted into apartments. the only problem i see is that there have been so many failed attempts at revitalizing downtown. if the city is serious about a revitalization project, they might be wise to look at what kc has done in the power and light district. they have taken a somewhat delapitated part of town, and turned it into something that people all over the region flock to. despite some of the controversy surrounding dress codes and what not, it really is something special. st joe could have something like that, but i doubt our city leaders could pull off a project like this without outside help. good luck.
April 26, 2009 at 11:24 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
apmastrangelo says...
apple - You can continue to beat the dead horse of the bond and levy issues but if you wish to see something become productive on that matter it is suggested supporters require the board to move forward by recognizing and correcting the mistakes made.
As for your questions concerning "TIF" funds, you might review my comments at various times concerning this subject. To be a bit more concise; the TIF process is far different than bond and levy matters in that there are requirements to be met before matching funds become available. Even with that said I have not agreed with several of the decisions made in the use of this program as many of the choices have accomplished nothing but create shifts in the business profiles.
In case you are getting to ask, I have not applied or used the TIF program in any form.
April 27, 2009 at 3:39 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
238er says...
jafo,
Power and light is sucking wind financially. It is not covering its bonds and the city is on the hook for them. I'm not sure that is a good place to look. A better place is the Old Market in Omaha. Mostly privately owned without big tax breaks.
April 27, 2009 at 5:02 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
apmastrangelo says...
apple - It is not my intention to go around in circles with you on the subject of the bond/levy issues versus downtown but there is a profound difference between the two matters that you do not seem willing to accept.
Investors enjoy a personal prerogative to be as bold or conservative as they wish with their choices for in the end it is their money at risk.
In the case of TIF moneys there exists an accepted protocol as established by a governing body. If you feel the requirements should be strengthened or changed, those concerns should be addressed to the commission.
April 28, 2009 at 4:53 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
yougottabekiddingme says...
apple - the posts are back up, you just can't add anymore to them. I have to say that I am very glad you disclosed that you failed to return a video. Good to know that you are human too.
April 29, 2009 at 5:19 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
apmastrangelo says...
apple - Thanks for the response and I had seen your past @ 1702 before it was removed and did not see any reason for their action.
April 29, 2009 at 6:07 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
JLK says...
My husband and I were in Weston a few weeks ago and had a very nice chat with a woman who helps run the museum and has done a lot to revitalize the town. She said that she has come to St. Joe in the past to suggest ideas and drum up interest in downtown. Guess what? No one cared--her words. She wholeheartedly believes that downtown St. Joe can be turned around just as Weston was. I've been around here since 1992 and I've never understood why the Chamber of Commerce and tourism board boast so much about the history of Jesse James and the Pony Express plus all the wonderful architecure, yet the city just keeps falling apart year after year. I honestly had to laugh when I visited the St. Joseph Visitors online site....all of these "awesome" things to see and do. Who are they kidding? I'd be ticked if I was from out of town and planned a vacation to St. Joe to see all of the historical sites based on that website. Ok...the museums are great and there's a lot of neat architecture, but please....who wants to drive around dirty streets and take pictures of old, empty, neglected buildings? And what are they supposed to do while they're here? Most of the neat little shops have closed. St. Joe could be so much more and if Weston can support itself on tourism, why can't downtown? I for one would be happy to help and volunteer to revitalize downtown. Where do I start?
April 29, 2009 at 9:30 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )