Understanding the issues of commercial development

The latest edition of B Magazine was published this week and took a look at development topics such as historic property redevelopment, housing options designed primarily for college students, workforce development and many issues real estate developers are faced with when they start a new project.

Here are a few takeaways -- which only scratch the surface:

The vacant Esquire Theater on Broadway is seen Feb. 20 in Cape Girardeau.Ben Matthews ~ bmatthews@semissourian.com

• After a prolonged period of high unemployment, employers are now faced with challenge of hiring qualified workers. A large number of baby boomers who have retired or will retire soon contributes to the challenge, according to one source. It's good news for workers, some of whom will be offered opportunities to return to school and earn necessary training. But employers will be challenged to figure out ways to effectively recruit and keep needed talent.
• The Southeast Missourian has reported on the possible development of the historic Esquire Theatre on Broadway. The City of Cape Girardeau is hopeful that with the assistance of a TIF (Tax Increment Financing) option, this project can go from a dream to reality. Jon K. Rust, in a special to B Magazine, interviewed Cara Naeger with the TAG development group on why this was an interesting property and what they hope to accomplish. The general idea is to have an event space that averages 1.5 events per week. While starting from scratch would likely be a much more straightforward option, Naeger believes there is a unique proposition to developing the Esquire Theatre. "You can't go out to I-55 and build the Esquire. When you tear down stuff like that, you know, you lose a piece of history."
• Developers are an ambitious bunch. They take risks and see things others may not at first glance. There's no guarantee of success, but their willingness to lead contributes to a growing economy. In this edition of B Magazine, Rex Rust interviewed Scott Rhodes and Jason Coalter. Both men focus on different niches of development, but some of the same principles apply. I encourage you to read the full interview, but one theme that stood out was customer service.

Business without good customer service is likely not set up for success. But what about customer service provided by municipalities to developers?

"I was raised to service people, and in all of our businesses we try to do that with a level of excellence," Coalter said. "When you go to a drive-through or a restaurant, how long are you going to wait for a cheeseburger? Respectfully, we should be the customer of our community in whatever municipality we're working in. And I think that's lost in some places. If I get slow service at a drive-through every time I go there, I'm going to stop going. Or I'm going to be mad every time I choose to go there, because I know what's coming."

The challenge in this scenario is that if you are committed to develop something in one particular municipality, there's not another competitor in the same market to force better customer service. Yet if municipalities want to grow and replace some of the lost sales tax revenue, it's important that processes be streamlined and leaders develop a customer service approach to working with developers.

You can read much more in the magazine or online at bmagazine.io. If you do not already receive the magazine, you can subscribe online or call us at (573) 388-3680.

Lucas Presson is the assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian and publisher of B Magazine.