Mayor: Sears Grand was result of hard negotiations

Two years of "hard negotiations" between Cape Girardeau officials and Sears, Roebuck and Co. came to fruition Monday when the retailing giant opened its new 149,000-square-foot Sears Grand.

"I've got some real emotion tied to that deal," said Mayor Jay Knudtson. "The city worked very, very closely with them from the beginning. It's not just another retailer."

Knudtson said there were lengthy discussions, which were underscored with a sense of urgency because of the Sears Grand concept -- a much larger shopping center with better presentation as well as new offerings such as a plant nursery, a snack bar and limited grocery items.

The Cape Girardeau Sears Grand is just the sixth of its kind in the country.

The city and county even provided some concessions, including a development agreement to reimburse Sears' cost for its parking lot, a large culvert and other drainage improvements.

According to the agreement, the city will use sales-tax revenue generated by the new Sears store to repay Sears for the work, which cost $2.71 million. But it will only use revenue greater than what Sears already generated at the old store.

For example, Sears produced roughly $64,000 each quarter in sales tax revenue for the city and $16,000 for the county. Seventy-five percent of sales-tax revenue above what Sears generated will be used to reimburse Sears' cost for the work, according to city attorney Eric Cunningham.

"That way, we don't lose sales tax we were already getting," he said.

Sears, in addition, agreed to pay for some landscaping on Interstate 55 at mile marker 96. According to the city engineering department, Sears is spending about $10,000 for the city to put in a new irrigation system, plant some roses and put up a "Growing together" sign.

"It's a very efficient way to support a project," Knudtson said. "Oftentimes, large companies need some help filling the gap on certain things. Some cities are even paying some of these large retailers to come to their city. We saw this as fiscally responsible."

While the old store on William saw sales of about $11 million to $12 million, Knudtson said, the new store is expected to see sales of $25 million to $30 million.

But the city is protected either way, he said. Even if Sears Grand isn't successful, and Knudtson said he has no doubt it will be, then the city will come out ahead.

"Should they be unsuccessful, the city is still left with a major development that could become a very marketable project," he said.

A store like Sears Grand also helps solidify Cape Girardeau as a regional hub, he said. He believes the unique store will draw in people from outside the area who will also shop in other stores and eat in local restaurants.

"There's a special little asterisks with this store," he said. "I'm extremely proud of what we've done here."

While Sears would not release the cost of the building, some estimate the deal to be worth somewhere between $10 million and $11 million.

Sears opened at 8 a.m. Monday. On Monday morning, only a few customers milled about the store.

"It think it looks great," said Randy Clifton of Cape Girardeau. "It's kind of a copy of Wal-Mart, though. I just hope they can keep their prices competitive. But I like that it's big. The aisles are a lot bigger."

The new Sears features a revised layout. There are also a few new categories for Sears, including pantry items, consumables, entertainment media like CDs and DVDs and books and magazines.

Apparel still takes center stage, though, occupying a circular display in the store's center, intersecting with the wide aisle running the length of the store, which management refers to as the "boulevard."

The circular display features apparel from each segment: juniors, women's, men's and boys, with the remainder of each category across the aisle from its corresponding presentation.

Sears spokeswoman Lisa Gibbons said that there are a few more Sears Grand scheduled to be open by the end of the year, but that there are no more in the immediate future after the end of the year.

The old store employed less than 100. The new Sears Grand employs 240, said manager Jason Harvey.

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137