Blunt unveils plan for Mo. downtowns

~ The program is about leveling the playing field between cities.

Gov. Matt Blunt came to Cape Girardeau Tuesday to unveil his initiative to help smaller communities secure funds for downtown revitalization.

Speaking in the plaza in front of the KFVS12 building, Blunt said help is needed in much of small-town Missouri, though not as urgently in Cape Girardeau, where urban renewal has long been a high priority.

"All too often as I travel across our state I am in once prosperous downtowns that now have very little economic activity and dilapidated buildings," Blunt said. "We want every Missouri downtown to be a prosperous place."

Blunt was flanked by Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, Mayor Jay Knudtson, John Mehner of the Chamber of Commerce and others for the announcement of the DREAM initiative.

DREAM, which stands for Downtown Revitalization Economic Assistance for Missouri, will not cost any more money, he said. Rather, it will help ensure tax credits, block grants and other forms of assistance are distributed to more towns statewide. The deadline for city applications is Aug. 1, and the six to 10 cities selected will be announced in September.

Cape Girardeau will likely apply, city officials said.

Blunt said smaller and medium-sized towns encounter barriers that prevent them from securing funds. These barriers include state bureaucracy, lack of local professional expertise and lack of a detailed plan for downtown redevelopment.

"This gives small towns the opportunity to enlist the services of professional urban planning consultants that they might not otherwise be able to attract," Kinder said.

DREAM will dispatch state experts to selected communities to help create comprehensive plans and move these cities to the front of the line for money from the Department of Economic Development, Missouri Housing Development Commission, and Missouri Development Finance Board. A dozen state subsidies will be incorporated in DREAM.

Blunt said the program, which will accept applicants of all sizes, is about leveling the playing field.

"St. Louis and Kansas City have tremendous resources that they can bring to bear in identifying programs and revenue sources and revenue streams," he said. "They have professional expertise for planning that a lot of our smaller and medium-sized communities just don't have."

Blunt said a vibrant and active downtown is not a luxury, but a key for communities to attract workers in the technology and science fields.

This, local officials said, is something Cape Girardeau has long known.

"We're probably a few steps ahead of the curve," Knudtson said. "But I think this is going to open the door to the things we don't necessarily know about, and as a result I think this is extremely exciting."

Tim Arbeiter of the Chamber of Commerce pointed to the Marquette, which received historical and redevelopment tax credits for its $6 million renovation, and the Southeast Missourian, which received historical tax credits for its more than $1 million rehabilitation project as examples of effectively using state funds.

Arbeiter said DREAM could help more people get into the redevelopment act. "Some of the property owners around want to use historical tax credits, but there is just somewhat of an ambiguity to how it's done," he said.

tgreaney@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 245

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View audio slideshow of Blunt's visit