Cape Girardeau businessman proposes redevelopment project; seeks taxing district to fund improvements

A Cape Girardeau businessman plans to redevelop a 10-acre tract of commercial buildings and parking lots in the Town Plaza shopping area, and construct outdoor entertainment attractions such as miniature golf, according to a development plan submitted to city staff.

Anand Patel, president of Cape Dogwood Redevelopment Corp., has submitted a petition to city government to establish a tax-funded community improvement district (CID) to help fund the project, city officials said.

The project is expected to cost $2 million, according to information filed with the city.

Patel recently purchased the property, city officials said.

If the CID is established, shoppers in the taxing district would pay an additional 1 percent sales tax, city clerk Gayle Conrad said in an agenda report to the city council.

The district would be established for a maximum of 25 years, according to the petition.

The council is expected to approve a resolution Monday that would set a March 5 public hearing on the proposed district and the development plan.

After a local government establishes a community improvement district, developers are allowed to enact sales taxes, sometimes with a vote of a single property owner/developer and without input from affected commercial tenants who must pass the extra taxes on to their stores� customers.

In addition to the CID, Patel also is requesting a partial abatement of property taxes for the next 10 years. Under state law governing such redevelopment efforts, the developer would only pay property taxes based on the assessed value of the land before improvements for that period of time, according to documents filed at city hall.

�Effectively, the property owner will pay $36,000 in taxes each year for 10 years and any tax amount over $36,000 will be abated,� Conrad wrote in the agenda report.

The proposed development covers an area that extends from Independence Street on the north to Merriwether Street on the south, and east to west from Sheridan Drive to just west of South Plaza Way.

The site houses numerous businesses including Dollar General, The Book Rack, Garden Gate, Fashion Nails and Rhymer�s on the Plaza. The license bureau also is housed in the commercial area.

The commercial area is adjacent to the existing Town Plaza Community Improvement District, which was established more than a decade ago. The owners of the commercial buildings in the Town Plaza taxing district are not associated with the current redevelopment project.

According to the Cape Dogwood Development plan, the area now targeted for redevelopment has �languished.� The plan reports that �many of the buildings and parking lots in the redevelopment area are dilapidated or deteriorating.�

A study by the Southeast Regional Planning and Economic Development Commission concluded the area is �blighted,� a condition required to establish a CID.

The regional planning commission said the �extraordinary cost to revitalize� the area is not economically feasible without incentives such as the CID.

The property contains seven buildings, constructed between 1952 and 1971 and encompassing more than 100,000 square feet, according to a planning document filed with the city.

A blight analysis submitted to city staff found several of the existing commercial spaces are too small or lack the visibility and access needed to attract modern retail tenants.

�As a result, many of the tenant spaces in these buildings are vacant,� according to the study. Heating, air conditioning, wiring and plumbing systems need to be modernized or replaced, the study said.

Some windows were broken and boarded up. Ceiling tiles showed evidence of water damage in some buildings, according to the report.

Six of the seven buildings will be renovated. The northern most building on the property, bordering Independence Street, would be demolished, the plan said.

Some existing businesses, including those in the building to be demolished, will have to relocate to accommodate construction, according to the plan. �These businesses have been given or will receive offers to relocate within the redevelopment area,� the plan states.

The first phase of the project would include renovation of The Venue building for �family entertainment-oriented uses� and facade and structural improvements to other commercial buildings. Construction is expected to take about 12 months after the development plan is approved.

The second phase would include demolition work, improvements to parking areas and construction of outdoor �family entertainment� attractions, according to the development plan. The second phase is expected to begin this fall or spring 2019 and take about 18 months to complete.

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641

Pertinent address:

Town Plaza, Cape Girardeau, Mo.