People in the News

When Lance Reeves purchased Ebbet's Field sports bar and restaurant more than two years ago, he had heard the whispers about Jordan Valley Park.

The preliminary talk surrounded an ice rink, civic park and baseball field. The latter struck a chord.

Ebbet's Field and Jordan Valley Park's Hammons Field, now under construction, share a common denominator: baseball. "It's a huge plus because we're a baseball-themed restaurant," Reeves said.

Reeves expects home games to draw a good crowd to his place. At 1027 E. Walnut St., Ebbet's is within walking distance of the ballpark site.

"When I purchased Ebbet's, I knew that I had a good business and if these other things were to come in, it could only help improve things," Reeves said.

The only finished product of the development so far the ice park has improved Reeves' business by a conservative 3 percent to 5 percent, he said. The bigger impact may be to come.

Nicola Gilardi, owner/chef of Gilardi's Ristorante, 820 E. Walnut St., also expects to benefit from proximity to the park.

Gilardi hopes for a flow of patrons similar to what he gets from the Juanita K. Hammons Hall theater crowd that come in before performances for dinner or after for dessert.

Gilardi and Reeves both have plans to expand their facilities to accommodate the expected increase in foot traffic.

"It will increase my business. It will also increase every business in downtown," Gilardi added. "It should be a positive effect."

Not for every business, according to Jack Taylor, owner of lunchtime diner Taylor's Drive In. The restaurant is right in the thick of things at the corner of Trafficway and Kimbrough, but Taylor is not in favor of the Jordan Valley Park plans.

He said he has seen no increase in business since the ice park opened. And worse, sales have dropped at least 25 percent from last year, he said.

"I have been in business for 47 years and I never had a bad year until this," Taylor said. "So far, it's cost me over $100,000 in income."

He blames the city-forced relocation of nearby businesses for his diminishing sales; businesses like Thompson Cadillac, Tri-States Service laundry company and Da Bryan Coach Builders. "That was customers every day," he said. "That was a big dent."

Taylor said that if it wasn't for the parking space he leases to the Shrine Mosque and American Legion for their bingo nights, "We'd be out of business."

The Shrine Mosque also has some reservations about the new facilities. Officials there are unsure of the impact the new arena might have on their operations. The arena will be a few doors down on St. Louis Street.

"We've had several discussions whether it will be good or bad for us," said Shrine Mosque Administrator Tom Morris. "With more square footage to rent downtown, the initial thought would be that it would hurt us. On the other hand, our square footage is going to be less expensive."

The Shrine Mosque holds 10 to 12 concerts a year, plus the circus, wedding receptions and private parties. The money generated pays for the building's operational fees, Morris said. The building, which can seat up to 3,200, rents for $2,400 a day for concerts. Wedding receptions start at $500, Morris said.

While the new arena may attract the larger, high-dollar events, Morris thinks the Shrine Mosque can retain its niche of concerts.

Although some businesses aren't experiencing immediate advantages from the early developments, Realtors in the area said the real impact will come later. They suspect property values will continue to increase as demand for the area rises.

According to Sam Freeman, owner/broker of Center City Development Co., activity in the downtown market during the last six to eight months has equaled that of the previous five years.

"It has caused the property values to almost double in the last five years," Freeman said, which is leading to a lot of speculation and excitement with both sellers and buyers.

CJR Commercial Group broker Galen Pellham, said it boils down to a simple supply-and-demand issue.

"As people call me looking for buildings in downtown Springfield, there are fewer and fewer buildings available because most of them have been bought and renovated and leased out," he said. "Springfield has a very limited supply, consequently the price has gone up and will continue to go up in value because there are more buyers than there are buildings."

However, Mark Harrell of Plaza Realty thinks the demand has not yet reached its full potential.

"There are some exciting things happening, but we are the Show Me' state," Harrell said. "When everybody gets to walk it, visit it, (and) sit in the seats, I think we're going to see some real enhancement of value and demand."