Republic readies for housing explosion

Local developers are happy to oblige, making city leaders more aware than ever of the need to manage the growth without stifling it.

Dean Thompson, Republic city administrator, said the city’s 20 planned residential subdivisions, expected to be built in the next 10 years, will bring the city’s capacity to more than 20,000 residents – double its 2005 population.

The reason for the growth, he added, is much like that for other towns in the region – the high quality of life and low cost of living.

“Southwest Missouri is a very good place to raise a family and live, and it’s also a good place to retire,” Thompson said. “That’s what we’re seeing is people of all age groups, from young people to retirees.”

The cost of living in southwest Missouri is favorable – about 2.5 percent lower than costs in St. Louis or Kansas City, according to www.bankrate.com, an aggregator of financial rate information.

Residential explosion

The Census numbers tell the story: The population of the Greene County town grew 34 percent from 1990 to 2000, and it grew another 26 percent from 2000 to its 2005 level of just more than 10,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Jeff Casady of J&L Development has seen the growth firsthand. A longtime resident of Republic, he has developed or is developing seven different subdivisions in the community, including New Vista and Highland Meadows, which is now in its third phase.

Casady said the city’s commercial development, combined with geographic advantages, have led to increased demand for new residential areas.

“With the (Wal-Mart) Supercenter and Lowe’s, I think that’s bringing a few more people to Republic,” Casady said. “I also think it’s a little bit better laid-out city. It has easy access to I-44, James River and to Springfield, but then it’s still out in the country, too.”

Casady isn’t the only developer building in the area.

Jim McKee laid the infrastructure for White Oaks, a 134-lot, two-phase development on Highway P. He said all 134 lots have been sold to Dave Poppenga of Elegant Homes for development.

Poppenga, who is also president of Poppenga Concrete in Springfield, could not be reached for comment.

Meeting demand

Thompson said Republic can currently be classified as a bedroom community – but that is changing.

The shift is toward a heavier daytime population led by service businesses, such as restaurants and banks.

And as those service businesses grow, Thompson said, the demand increases for residential development.

Coming full circle, those developments increase demand for infrastructure improvements, a fact not lost on Thompson. He said the city’s goal is not to control growth, but rather to manage it.

“It’s extremely difficult to control growth. I don’t know if it’s really possible, short of issuing a building moratorium,” he said. “What you do is manage it, through the planning of future infrastructure. The difficult part of that is … investing that capital upfront, like a business would do, to make sure we don’t run into issues of crisis management because of growth.”

Part of the new infrastructure work needed comes from the town’s recent consolidation with Brookline; Thompson said Republic has spent $11.2 million for Brookline improvements, including a new well and water tower, new fire station, and sewer and water line extensions.

Keeping up with the expected growth takes planning, Thompson added, and Republic has tried to be proactive in that regard, basing its infrastructure plans on trends in population and commercial growth.

“Obviously it’s not exact – in some cases we hit it right on and in other places we don’t,” he said. “But the key is to have a plan and then adjust, rather than trying to change on the fly.”

Growth in Republic

The population of Republic has been increasing steadily for more than 15 years; the town now has 69 percent more people than in 1990, according to the U.S. Census Bureau:

1990 - 6,292

2000 - 8,438

2005 - 10,637

But that growth could be dwarfed by the plans over the next 10 years, according to figures from the city of Republic:

New Residential Development

Single Family Units/Lots No. of People

Under Construction 413 1,115

Platting 1,666 4,498

Future 2,619 7,071

Total Single Family 4,698 12,684

Multifamily Units/Lots No. of People

Under Construction 432 864

Platting 104 208

Future 56 112

Total Multiple Family 592 1,184

Total All Developments 5,290 13,868

At least 10 subdivisions of more than 15 units are currently under development, according to information from the city:

Development Name Units No. of People

Highland Meadows 169 456

Indian Trails 16 43

Liberty Place 33 89

Sandstone 54 146

Savannah Heights 22 59

South Oak Estates 18 49

Stanton Estates 29 78

Valley Park Estates 19 51

White Oaks, Phases II & III 134 362

Woodland Hills 54 146