Proposed taxing district aimed at beautification, safety for North Glenstone entrance to city

A group of North Glenstone Avenue business owners has proposed a special taxing district to pay for beautification and security at a key entrance point to the city of Springfield.

City Council heard a proposal for the North Glenstone Community Improvement District at its Feb. 2 meeting, with a vote set for Feb. 9. The meeting was originally scheduled for Jan. 26 but was postponed because of inclement weather.

The CID as proposed would have the power to impose a sales and use tax at a rate of 1% on all retail sales made in the district for which state law allows taxation. The additional CID sales tax would bring the taxation rate in the district to 9.1%.

Amanda Ohlensehlen, Springfield director of economic vitality and workforce development, told council the district is generally located along North Glenstone Avenue between Interstate 44 and East Turner Street, the intersection located a block south of Kearney Street.

The proposed district comprises 48 parcels with 33 property owners on 172 acres of land, Ohlensehlen said in the staff report on the measure. The properties comprise a mix of commercial uses, including retail, restaurants and hotels, she said.

Ohlensehlen said the proposal is for a political subdivision with a five-member board, four of whom can be real property or business owners in the district and the other a Springfield registered voter who does not have financial interest or involvement in any of the businesses in the district. The lifespan of the district is proposed for 27 years.

“Some of the projects that would be supported would be beautification projects, like landscaping, general cleaning and landscaping services, as well as right-of-way improvements, security services, such as security personnel, equipment or facilities, and professional service fees to facilitate any of these projects or security services,” she said.

Ohlensehlen said more than 50% of district property owners, measured both per capita and by assessed valuation, signed the petition to form the district, and the petition was determined to be valid by the city clerk’s office.

Hotel hub
North Glenstone Avenue is the site of multiple hotels serving Springfield, and hospitality industry leaders are represented among the petitioners. Notably, for 13 of the parcels, petitions were signed by hotelier Gordon Elliott, while petitions for six parcels were signed by Darren Harralson, listed on a document as chief operating officer of O’Reilly Hospitality LLC.

The proposed directors for the district are owner representatives Harralson; Bill Hobbs, director of hotel operations of Elliott Properties Ltd.; and Missy Handyside, general manager of Oasis Hotel & Convention Center, tapped for four-year terms; Gary Leonard, retired from Steak ‘n Shake franchise ownership, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting, for a two-year term; and Cameron Casad, attorney and city representative, for a two-year term.A five-year budget for the district was submitted with the council bill and shows projected sales tax revenues of $1.8 million-$2 million per year.

Year 1 revenue of $1.8 million would fund $1.6 million for security, $153,000 for beautification, and $50,000 each for professional costs and other services and improvements.

Business owners signing on were Value Properties of Springfield LLC with eight parcels; O’Reilly Hospitality LLC and Campus Inc. with three parcels each; EAS Investment Enterprises Inc. and Quality Lodging Prop Spfd LLC with two parcels each; and Coach House Properties LLC; Hog House LLC; C Store Land LLC; Greenstay Properties LLC; Anood Real Estate LLC; Diversity Commercial Investments LLC; RNR Investments LLC; Great Southern Bank; Wolverine Land Holdings LLC; Ohm TM Leadership Fund LLC; Glen-Kearney Development LLC; and UB Properties LLC, all with one parcel.

Among other businesses located in the proposed district are Kearney Street Aldi and Walmart stores.

An election to approve the district would be conducted among property owners in the district, Ohlensehlen said.

Ohlensehlen said this would be the 22nd CID in the city, and she acknowledged that security expenses are infrequently included in CID revenue purposes, though that use is also present in the Downtown Springfield CID.

Supporters comment
Representing property owners in the public hearing for the CID was Cory Collins, a partner in law firm Husch Blackwell LLP. Collins said the landowners are seeking to use the CID to accomplish some goals in the area.

“I’ve worked on a lot of CIDs, and I think out of the 22 in town, there will be a lot of them that are designed more around reimbursement to someone for expenses or infrastructure or other things,” he said. “This is completely and wholly, for lack of a better term, altruistic approach to it, because all the money is going to be used to improve this existing district.”

While many CIDs exist to pay for infrastructure improvements, this one looks to improve an entry point to the city, according to Collins.

“Goals are security and beautification to generally create a more safe atmosphere in the area, cleaning up, hopefully, to transition into creating a very nice area,” he said.

He added that the district is the first impression for many people arriving from Interstate 44.

“Folks that come to town, one of the first places they see is North Glenstone, and we would like to make it look even better than it does today,” he said.

He added that all of the money would be paid by those using goods and services in the district and poured back into improvements in the district.

“We view this as a general win-win,” he said.

Mark Hecquet, president and CEO of tourism bureau Visit Springfield, Missouri, spoke in favor of the initiative.

“As we all know, Glenstone Avenue is a gateway into our city,” he said.

Hecquet noted that on a daily basis, some 12,000 vehicles travel the route, amounting to 4.3 million visitors per year on the roadway.

“It is clearly one of Springfield’s front doors and a gateway from I-44 into our city,” he said.

He added that the corridor features 28 hotels, and 18 of those are clustered in the North Glenstone I-44 gateway; this includes two key convention and meeting hotels, the DoubleTree and the Oasis.

“Despite the strong lodging and entertainment offerings, the corridor suffers from aging landscape, inconsistent lighting and visible homelessness, creating a perception gap that impacts visitor confidence and hotel performance,” he said.

Hecquet added that the CID’s investments will ensure that the gateway will embody safety, vibrancy and community pride.

“This initiative will transform the corridor into a welcoming first impression for every visitor, supporting hotels, attractions and businesses while strengthening the sense of pride across our community,” he said.

The public hearing will continue in the Feb. 9 meeting due to an error in notifications to property owners by city staff. Ohlensehlen said notifications were not sent by certified mail because of a clerical error.