May 23, 2020
Mallory Herrmann
citydesk@lstribune.net
The city council has approved a new community improvement district (CID) to help fund the redevelopment of the Southside Plaza Shopping Center, located near Southwest Blue Parkway and Southwest Third Street.
Citing high vacancy rates despite low rental costs, the property owners say that basic maintenance, including painting and a new roof, and minor improvement projects as tenants move in or out have not been enough to boost their occupancy. And with a high-profile location within the 50 Highway Urban Renewal District, the city council is also eager to see visual improvements – and hopefully a boost in tax revenues.
The CID will generate a 1% sales tax to help fund about $4.7 million in improvements. The CID request is for $1.4 million, or 29% of the total project cost, to be recaptured by the developer over a period of up to 27 years. The CID is projected to generate approximately $80,000 during the first year.
The Southside Plaza has 18 retail units with a combined total of 54,378 square feet of leasable space, and the average age of the structures there is 54 years. At least five of the units, including two of the largest spaces, are currently vacant.
Chad Sneed, a partner with developer Brain Dev 3, LLC, said they’d lost more tenants over the last couple of months – noting that the shopping center’s conditions were a factor in those losses.
Brain Dev 3 has designed a new façade, pedestrian plaza, landscaping and parking to help improve the look of the center. New roofing, sidewalks, retaining walls and other repairs are also planned.
“I welcome the change,” Councilmember Diane Forte said, adding that she drives by the shopping center every day. “It’s desperately needed.”
But Councilmember Rob Binney wondered whether an opportunity for something bigger wasn’t being missed, asking the developer whether they had sought to expand the CID’s boundaries to include other neighboring businesses and questioning the value of the improvements themselves, particularly given the prominent location.
Chris Kline, on behalf of Husch Blackwell, said that Johnny Ray’s had been approached to be included, but that they weren’t prepared to fund the remaining 70% of the improvement costs that would not be covered by the CID.
“Unfortunately I think we’re settling a little bit, and I think if we were thinking bigger picture we could look at the transportation around there, look at the roadways and the sidewalks and it could all be connected,” he said. “I think we’re settling on quality.”
The council voted to approve the CID with only Binney voting against. All councilmembers were present via web conference for the May 19 session.
