Bolivar's Own Path

Since 2009, Bolivar officials and business owners have worked to attract visitors and investments downtown. Only now are they reaping the benefits, and it comes after turning down redevelopment advice from groups in Springfield and Branson.

Planning teams from Missouri Main Street Connection and Drury University were enlisted for ideas to promote growth downtown – and they came through – but community stakeholders led by the Downtown Bolivar Association have decided their own efforts to drive investment and activity to its urban core were sufficient.

Fired up
Justin Ballard, owner of Fired Up Pottery, said he’s seen a handful of companies open on the square this year. Two of them are in the building he owns, which is home to his 2-year-old pottery venture.

Ballard’s property on Business 83 at 112 S. Springfield Ave. is full with six businesses and four loft tenants after two commercial tenants – children’s consignment store Lindley Creek Boutique and the eclectic, craft-driven The Corner Shoppe – opened in January.

In addition, a recently opened Mary Kay office, a part-time massage therapist and a reopening pet store now greet square patrons, said Ballard, a founding member of the nearly 6-year-old Downtown Bolivar Association.

“There are not a lot of kids’ clothing options in Bolivar. There is Wal-Mart and that’s pretty much it,” he said, speaking to the need for Lindley Creek. “The other kids’ shop that was open closed about two years ago.”

That was around the time Ballard opened up shop, filling some of his own space with pottery wares.

“You could call it a self-preservation thing,” Ballard said.

The former photographer with the Bolivar Herald-Free Press said selling ceramics that customers could custom paint had low startup costs, roughly $5,000, and seemed to fit the artsy feel of his 130-year-old brick building.

Now, business owners say the area is thriving and could remain so if residents temper their angst about the ever-present traffic at the corner of highways 83 and 32. Cars routinely line up in front of the courthouse at the city’s busiest intersection, and Ballard said locals have been known to avoid the area, producing a love-hate relationship with their downtown.

Mixed response
Ballard opened up shop in late 2012, as the DBA was wrapping up efforts with Drury University design students to develop long-range plans for downtown improvements and beginning to work with the Missouri Main Street Connection to promote growth.

Drury students held a series of community meetings to learn about infrastructure obstacles downtown and ultimately proposed working with the Missouri Department of Transportation to possibly reroute its two main arterials to create more pedestrian spaces. The Drury plans centered on a vision for downtown in 2030.

Missouri Main Street worked with the DBA to form four committees dedicated to designing plans, identifying growth areas, promoting key events and keeping plans on track. According to MoMainStreet.org, the nonprofit organization has a four-point approach to developing downtowns and historic districts that involves organization, economic restructuring, design and promotion.

Ballard said those efforts were met with a mix of appreciation and indifference.

“Creating more pedestrian areas, we didn’t think that seemed feasible for Bolivar,” he said of the long-range infrastructure plan Drury developed.

While the traffic is loathed, stakeholders fear rerouting key corridors could send away customers. The community had been down that road before when Highway 13 was built around the outskirts of the city, Ballard said, and now much of that highway traffic skips town.

“We weren’t terribly thrilled with that idea,” he said.

By the time Missouri Main Street was on the scene, the DBA had been in place over three years working to gather community input and promote downtown.

DBA President Susan Sparks said Bolivar hasn’t realized tangible benefits from its association with Missouri Main Street.

“When you have an active chamber and downtown association, you know, we’ve become accustomed to doing things our way,” Sparks said.

Gayla Roten, state director for Branson-based Missouri Main Street, was unavailable for comment by press time.

Short steps
As far as visible impact, it seems the DBA’s revitalization has been modest. The group has installed trash cans and flowerpots around the square, established monthly “cruise-ins” where classic cars are invited to the square the third Saturday of each month, and in 2012, it returned the annual Country Days festival downtown.

Jennifer Stegner, owner of The Country Hearth and Tea Garden Cafe – 30-year fixtures on the east side of the square – has seen businesses open and close in recent years. She pointed to closures by Frog’s & Friends Children’s Shop and The Lily Pad Boutique. Last year’s courthouse renovations deterred drivers and customers from downtown, she said.

“That hurt us,” Stegner said.

While last year’s sales were flat at her stores, she said January revenues are up 10 percent from the start of 2014. With work crews gone, she said interest is renewing in downtown and driving up revenues.

Cheri Jones, owner of The Corner Shoppe, said she opened downtown on Jan. 29 as a venue for 54 independent crafters that fill its shelves. A former teacher turned craft enthusiast, Jones takes a 10 percent cut of sales plus a $10 monthly fee for shelf space.

She said the traffic downtown was a draw.

“I knew this was a good location for visibility. I found I was going down this street; one day, I counted six times going to Wal-Mart, going to pick up the kids,” Jones said.

She said she’s been pleased with the opening. After three days in business, she cut her first checks to vendors, and only three didn’t sell anything.

Ballard said after two years in business, he believes his company is starting to gain traction. His first full year generated $28,000 in revenue and the second year exceeded $35,000.   

Sparks said the goal of the DBA is to establish downtown as a place people want to visit. The businesses are the real draw.

“An association is just an association. We can gather together resources to make improvements, but we can’t make a business successful,” Sparks said. “We can create an environment where they can be successful.”