City Beat: Council approves Springfield Plaza CID, ends Hy-Vee district

One community improvement district was established in west Springfield and another was eliminated on the south side through back-to-back unanimous votes at the Oct. 12 Springfield City Council meeting.

Council approved a bill to create a CID for the $78.5 million retail and office complex at the western edge of town dubbed Springfield Plaza. That vote came immediately after council shut down the 4-year-old CID at West Battlefield and South Kansas Avenue for West Des Moines, Iowa-based grocery chain Hy-Vee Inc. The moves keep the number of CIDs in Springfield steady at nine.

The Springfield Plaza Real Estate LLC developers – led by commercial real estate brokers Tom Rankin and Jeff Childs – now can assess a half-cent sales tax to help cover nearly $10 million in infrastructure costs.

At council’s Sept. 28 public hearing, Rankin said the developers had spent $1.8 million on infrastructure for the 96-acre Springfield Plaza, which is southwest of West Bypass and Sunshine Street behind the Wal-Mart Supercenter at 3520 W. Sunshine St.

Councilwoman Kristi Fulnecky pointed to the project’s economic impact in advance of her vote.

“Springfield Plaza will be important to growth on the west side, and this could potentially bring hundreds of jobs to Springfield and millions of dollars in sales tax revenue,” she said.

Plans call for 150,000 square feet of retail space, and Rankin estimates those operations could generate $30 million-$40 million in annual sales.

With CID terms capped at 50 years, administrators are approved to collect up to 1 cent in additional sales taxes for infrastructure reimbursement. Rankin has said he anticipates the CID – working in conjunction with a 2-year-old tax increment financing district – to be in place for up to 18 years and to collect only a half-cent tax.

Four miles southeast of Springfield Plaza, council pulled the plug on the Hy-Vee CID that reimbursed the grocer roughly $600,000 for infrastructure improvements since it went into effect in 2010. Part of the improvements was a new stoplight in front of the store at Kansas Avenue and Battlefield and an extension of Montclair Street to the south.

The half-cent taxing district was established with a life of 14 years, said Springfield Planning and Development Director Mary Lilly Smith.

Around town, Springfield has eight other CIDs stretching from the Airport Plaza district at the corner of West Kearney Street and North West Bypass to the Shoppes at James River on East Republic Road near South Glenstone Avenue.

Most are set up to reimburse private-development infrastructure, such as the James River Commons CID. Established in 2005, the 1-cent tax is set up for 30 years or until the bonds issued for projects are repaid.

But the Convention and Entertainment CID stands out as more complex. It was established in 2001 with a life of 50 years to pay for the Springfield Exposition Center and parking garage improvements. Its revenue sources include 25 cents on all admission tickets to the Springfield Cardinals and $54 per $100 in assessed value in annual property taxes within the district. Other CIDs are at College Station, Commercial Street, downtown Springfield and at West Bypass and Chestnut Expressway.

University housing
Council approved plans for more center city student housing that could add 174 bedroom units to the market and an estimated $700,000 in property tax abatements.

Magers Properties III LLC submitted the plan, which comprises four parcels on 2 acres along the north and south sides of the 600 block of East Madison Street and the west side of the 800 block of South Holland Avenue. Magers Properties plans to demolish four multifamily residential structures, a single-family residence and a leasing office, according to information in the bill. Known for the multiphase $30 million, 800-bed Bear Village underway, developer Bryan Magers intends to build three apartment buildings on the properties. The properties are within a 50-year-old blighted district just west of Missouri State University and are eligible for 100 percent property tax abatements on improvements for 10 years.

Council voted 6-3 in favor of the plans, with Phyllis Ferguson, Craig Hosmer and Mike Schilling standing opposed.

Battlefield retail
Council unanimously passed a bill to rezone 2.75 acres at 1031 E. Battlefield Road to general retail from an office district.

Across the street from OakStar Bank, Courtyard Office Center tenants have included Apollo Hair Replacements and Benefits by Design Inc.

Property owner Samuel Woestman, through Curbow Inc., told Springfield Business Journal in late September the office property had been for sale for years, and he applied for rezoning to better position the center to sell.

Woestman did not return calls for comment after the zoning change.

The over 50,000-square-foot property was listed with Rhett Smillie Real Estate LLC for $10 per square foot in 2013, but it is not currently listed on RhettSmillie.com. Smillie said the center is under contract with an undisclosed party.

The property has a 2015 taxable appraised value of $1.99 million, according to Greene County assessor records.

According to information in the bill, 21 nearby property owners were contacted about the rezoning before it came to council, and none objected.