City officials on Wednesday granted an 18-month extension to a developer who has been trying to bring a Lowe’s or other big-box retailer to northwest Emporia.
Back in January 2009, the city commission granted a Planned Unit Development, or PUD, for the property at 24th Avenue and Industrial Road. D.J. Christie, through his company Christie Development Associates LLC and as manager of Emporia Investment Partners LLC, was working to develop a five-business retail complex on a 39.9-acre parcel of land. The anchor store was supposed to be a Lowe’s home improvement store.
The PUD granted by the city had an 18-month expiration, meaning construction had to start within 18 months unless the developer could show “good cause” why it hadn’t. On May 19, Christie requested another 18-month extension citing the economic downturn for delaying the project.
“In 2008, the Emporia housing market was down 85 percent for single-family dwellings over the previous year,” Christie wrote. “In 2009, single-family dwellings were down over 75 percent from 2007.
“Due to the significant decrease in new home growth, Lowe’s and other home-improvement stores are hesitant to move forward with development until new home growth resumes in Emporia.”
During Wednesday’s action meeting, Matt Pennington of D.J. Christie told commissioners that he believes the economy is beginning to rebound.
“I’ve seen a few more signs of life,” he said. “I’d like to think we’ve hit rock bottom.”
In fact, he said, Home Depot only had one new store planned this year, but has 25 on the table for next year.
“We plan to have a national retailer for that development by next spring,” Pennington told the board. “If not (Lowe’s) then another national home improvement retailer.”
The extension has the support of the Regional Development Association of East Central Kansas, Jeff Longbine told the board. Longbine is the city’s representative to the RDA.
The motion to extend the PUD passed unanimously, although Commissioner Julie Johnson expressed some reservations.
“I will vote for the motion although I have never been an advocate of this development in this place,” Johnson said. “This vote in no way means that 18 months down the road I would vote to extend it again depending on the economy.”
In other business, commissioners awarded a bid to APAC-KS Shears for the 2010 KLINK project which would resurface Kansas Highway 99 as it runs through Emporia in two places — from Kansas to Third avenues and from 12th Avenue to Interstate 35. Shears’ bid was $552,630.26, which is $14,578.26 over budget and $19,015.06 more than the city engineer’s estimate for the project.
One difficulty, commissioners were told, is that Shears is the only bidder on the job, a trend seen on the last three asphalt overlay projects that city has let for bids. The lack of competitive bids developed after commissioners accepted a higher bid from Shears for a job in May 2009 because it was a local contractor. The second contractor has not bid on any other Emporia projects.
“Construction was slow at the time,” Longbine said of the 2009 bid.
Selecting Shears on that job, he said, “put our local residents back to work. I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”
The KLINK project is shared with the Kansas Department of Transportation, which contributes $200,000 toward the job.
“I think this is a much-needed project, and I’d hate for us to miss out on an entire year of this program,” he said. “But I’m disappointed it’s $14,000 over budget and $19,000 over the engineer’s budget.”
Also during their meeting, commissioners:
• authorized signing an agreement to sell a one-acre tract of land in Woodland Park to Twelfth Avenue Baptist Church, whose property adjoins the tract. The agreement is contingent on the church receiving approval for a zoning change from public land to residential.
• passed an ordinance raising Municipal Court costs by $1. The State of Kansas already authorized the extra $1 fee. The city’s raise will have a pass-through effect and will not generate any money for city coffers.
dhcc66 (anonymous) says...
maybe i'm missing something, but where is the 352,000+ coming from when the budget is tight, so much so that they want to raise taxes and cut employees??
sounds like maybe we could pass on the overlay and start thinking about resuming normal spending on things like re-hiring employees so that the citizens of Emporia won't be shorted services.
July 8, 2010 at 2:40 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
With everyone being just pretty much broke. I to would like to know where the money is comming from.
July 8, 2010 at 2:51 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
jamesbordonaro (James Bordonaro) says...
I think 12th Street at the college west for a couple of blocks is in more need of repair than Hwy 99. I really hate going over all those pavement cuts as you pass the ESU Credit Union.
July 9, 2010 at 11:37 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Blue_Dog (anonymous) says...
City Engineer says the city can do it for $19,000 less. That's what the city engineers estimate is for. (It is an actual bid) and is required by law.
Let's have the city staff do the repairs.
On single bidder I have heard project plans are so poor quality that only APAC bids. because they know they can make more with the change orders. Maybe it's time for new people in the city engineers office.
July 9, 2010 at noon ( permalink | suggest removal )
neighbor (anonymous) says...
“We plan to have a national retailer for that development by next spring,” Pennington told the board. “If not (Lowe’s) then another national home improvement retailer.”
I believe that statement right there should confirm what alot of us already recognized. Lowes was never confirmed and contracted in the lst place, they were just a name dropped to get the city interest and involvement in the proposed project.
Gazette and City, this is not the Lowes Project getting an extension, this is a speculation mini mall getting an extension.
July 9, 2010 at 2:26 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
seriouslyfolks (anonymous) says...
We have businesses closing left and right which tells me that we can't really support the businesses that we have. If we get a new home improvement type of big box store it will hurt or kill the stores of this type we already have. The economy is still in the toilet, I'm sorry to break the news to those that weren't really affected by it, but it is. If you would do my check book or the checkbook of most any average citizen of this town you would understand better what is going on down here on Earth where us mortals live. People with money that push for things like this just don't seem to have a grasp on how bad things really are. There are some signs of improvement but they will come and go as the economy corrects it's self. Now is certainly not the time to pull a stunt like this and give our established businesses competition they really don't need. Very shortly pretty much everyone's insurance rates are going to be going up because of hcr and that will be less money the average Joe has to spend on home improvement projects which means that there will be less business for these stores to compete for. If a store like this comes here it will be "new and different" and people will go to it instead of Waters, Mark 2, and Sutherland's and I think one or more of them won't survive. I personally don't want to see that. There are people who have worked at these place for a good long while now and have established themselves with the companies and if the company goes under they have to start over some other place if they can find a job at all. I congratulate people that have money and don't ever have to worry about such things but I think you need to be informed that there are people who daily have to worry.
Shop established stores in Emporia first.
July 9, 2010 at 3:35 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
snow (anonymous) says...
Shop local.
The rest of it is just geared to making more money for the developers, and not to making the pie any bigger.
July 9, 2010 at 3:41 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
create (anonymous) says...
I believe snow is right on the nose. The developers make the money then leave town with their money. It doesn't stay here.
Yes, shop local. I support Water's Hardware and Mark II for the big stuff. I love Mark II. They cut a piece of wood for me exactly like I wanted and even sanded it off for me because they knew I was planning to use it as a mini ironing table for my quilt pieces. No biggies will ever give me that kind of service.
Shop local. Shop local. Shop local.
July 9, 2010 at 5:36 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
hottopics (anonymous) says...
I have spent a ton of money at Sutherlands the last two years. If they had it, I bought it. The rest came from Lowes and Home Depot. I do shop a lot on line but its because of the lack of options here. Our mall is a big disappointment.
July 9, 2010 at 10:56 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
This is really Christies, getting an extension to try and find someone or something in these depressed times to bite on their developement idea. And the economy is so fragile right now, no one can predict, with any conviction, exactly when the economy will rebound or if it will rebound to previous levels, at all, least of all a representitave of a developer . I hate to say it, but I do not see any way the economy will rebound, substantially in the next 18 months. And some of the high powered economists are saying that there may not be much improvement for 10 years and I am sure they know more than Matt Pennington or D.J. Christie .
I mean, one has to look at the job losses, the current job market, businesses closing and the Federal, State and local debt.
July 9, 2010 at 11:41 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
Shoot, even Walmart is feeling the crunch, by way of reduced sales. If a person quits or gets fired at the local Walmart, there will be noone hired to fill the vacant position at the present time, possibly never and there have been 4 or 5 people who have either quit or been fired in the past 2 or 3 months.
July 9, 2010 at 11:47 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
create (anonymous) says...
Yes, methusla, thanks for the news on that. I have heard that same thing and wondered about it. Their sales are down nationally and one of the ways they are combatting it is by introducing more and more of the Great Value store brands -- those white label ones. Another way is through reduced sales on some items.
I don't see how bringing in a Lowe's or any big package store is going to solve any kind of economic crunch at the present time. It will employ a few locally in the construction trades, but that developer brings its own people in too. In the end, how many shoppers will it take to support a store that large?
I agree with hottopics on the mall being a big disappointment. The national trend is toward strip malls, but look at Radio Shack. They were in that little strip mall there by Staples and they're gone now too.
July 10, 2010 at 7:54 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
create,
I got my information about Walmart from someone very close to me, who has worked for the local Walmart for over 20 years, and I or you could take their word to the bank.
July 10, 2010 at 9:16 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
So, if you go to the local Walmart and the shelves are not stocked or you cannot find any one to assist you or ask a question of or lack of open check out lanes ... the reason is, lack of personnel, except for higher management and this sector of Walmart Stores, especially the local Walmart is way over staffed with incompetent/uncaring " upper " management personnel . And most likely you will never see one of them anyway, even if you request to speak to one, either in person or on the phone . Walmart is becomming a management oriented store/business, instead of a customer/customer service/employee oriented store/business it was when Walmart was first founded/began . If it were not for the employees of Walmart and the customer service that was once prevailant at Walmart, Walmart would not have grown as big as it has. Perhaps Walmart has grown tooo big and has forgotten that it was started as a customer based business and treated their employees and employees with a lot more respect than it has in the past 5 to 10 years.
July 10, 2010 at 9:34 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
nks (anonymous) says...
I feel sick that I spent almost $40 at Walmart this morning. We have taken our grocery business to Aldi's and our personal care items are now bought at Walgreens/Dollar General. I had to go buy a few items like my case of pop (that has now gone up to $6) and a few other items I HAD to get there. I would say we went from spending over $300/month at Walmart to less than $75.
July 10, 2010 at 10:49 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )