Here’s what we know for sure: Campustown developer David Joseph already has another tenant lined up to replace Save-a-Lot, and it’s not a grocery store. Other than that, no one will comment for the record. So the question on everyone’s mind is, “who will the new tenant be?”
Over on Billy’s blog, one commenter suggests it will be an Ashley Furniture store. But in WEEK-TV’s news coverage, the manager of the Save-a-Lot tells a different story:
The Save-A-Lot store manager says the building won’t be empty for long, and he is hearing that it could be replaced with a Bradley bookstore.
I have heard Bradley rumored as a possible tenant from several sources — although they don’t all agree on what exactly Bradley will do with it. Possible uses run the gamut from a bookstore, as WEEK suggests, to offices, to an education center. I wrote to Bradley’s public relations rep — former Journal Star editor Shelley Epstein — but my inquiries have not been answered. Read into that what you will he’s out of town and unable to answer me until he gets back Sunday or Monday.
If the rumors are true and Bradley is going to be Campustown’s largest tenant, is that good or bad for the West Bluff? Let’s weigh the pros and cons.
Pros
- Bradley would be a stabilizing presence in Campustown. Presumably, security would be increased, which will make the area safer.
- Since Bradley isn’t buying the space, but rather leasing it, the city will continue to collect property tax revenue. And since the Campustown TIF ended this year, the property taxes will go back to the local governments again, and the city’s portion will go into the general fund.
- More students and/or employees of Bradley going to school and/or working at Campustown may increase business for the remaining retail stores and restaurants.
Cons
- The city will lose sales tax revenue. If the store is converted to an office or education center, no sales tax revenue at all will be collected. If it’s converted to a new Bradley bookstore, the old bookstore would likely close, so there would be a net loss in commercial square footage, which translates to a net loss in sales tax revenue.
- A quality commercial anchor would better serve the West Bluff. As Campustown was originally conceived, a grocery store was supposed to provide basic infrastructure to the West Bluff that would be convenient for residents and an attractive amenity for people considering a move into the neighborhood. Thompson’s/Sullivan’s were excellent tenants toward furthering that vision, but Save-a-Lot (being a low-end grocer) sent a different message. While acknowledging that Save-a-Lot was a poor choice for a commercial anchor, the way to improve Campustown would be to bring in a better grocer, not convert retail space to institutional.
From the city’s standpoint, there’s no question that the cons outweigh the pros. They’re going to lose money. Sales tax is the city’s bread and butter. In an effort to keep property taxes low, the city has been piling up sales taxes and fees to cover the rising costs of public works, public safety, and developer incentives.
It’s not as if the city couldn’t absorb the loss of Save-a-Lot’s tax revenue by itself. But this isn’t an isolated incident. There seems to be somewhat of a trend in retail outlets and residential properties being taken over by non-tax-producing entities. For example, the old K’s Merchandise was taken over by OSF. The old Damon’s restaurant in Riverfront Village was taken over by Heartland Partnership. The old Leath Furniture was converted to a church. And huge swaths of land and houses that used to be on the property tax rolls have been taken over by District 150 for various building projects — or, in the case of the Prospect road properties, expensive blunders. In the case of District 150, taxpayers get hit with a double-whammy: we have to pay millions to acquire the properties, plus we lose the revenue they produced. The city can’t sustain such a trend without compensating growth.
From a neighborhood standpoint, the problem with Campustown has always been crime. The place has a reputation for being unsafe, and until that changes, you’ll have a hard time getting tenants to locate there and you’ll have a hard time getting patrons for those tenants. If Bradley’s presence were to reduce crime in Campustown, I think most residents would see it as a net gain for the West Bluff. Conversely, if Save-a-Lot is gone (and, despite its faults, the store was serving the needs of some lower-income West Bluff residents) and there is no increase in safety in return, that will certainly be a net loss for the area.
“read into that what you will”
I read into that that it is the week between two major holidays during a month-long period when place is closed. I highly doubt there is a conspiracy afoot, here. Most likely just a vacation.
Now, onto the content of your article.
I don’t get your beef with any of these things.
You point out Thompson/Sullivan Foods were “excellent tenants” who no longer operated there. Why? They went out of business. How “excellent” is that?
Loss of commercial square footage? Like there isn’t a surplus of this these days?
This sure seems like a nitpick, to me. There is plenty of empty buildings around.
Property tax losses? Maybe, but do you prefer vacant buildings? At least the buildings are occupied. At least folks are being employed in those buildings. How much revenue was being generated from these vacant buildings?
…and are you telling me there isn’t a surplus of housing in Peoria, especially places like the East Bluff (Glen Oak School)? I lived in that neighborhood. Drove by my old house just last week – where now there are two houses between it and the new school grounds. I know that at least one crack-house was bulldozed for that project. Another (right across the street from the grounds) was abandoned (elderly neighbors of mine passed away) and burned out, but has been rehabbed since the school project started and looks pretty nice.
While D150 does not have a reputation for anything close to genius, (see houses purchased on Prospect) the Glen Oak project is a case of breaking eggs to make an omelet.
As such, CJ, this post doesn’t seem to pass the litmus test. It seems more like a gigantic, short-sighted whine than the reasoned, researched posts you usually present us. Things change and this just seems to be a rant against change more than anything.
“From a neighborhood standpoint, the problem with Campustown has always been crime.”
I guess I have never noticed this crime element that seems to have taken over campustown.
I am curious why Thompsons didnt make it the first time if it was an ideal anchor? Previous grocery stores have all left that spot so I wonder if it really is the best place to locate a grocery store? Sounds like a Cub food scheme in a different bluff.
Thompson’s was sold the Sullivans. Sullivan’s decided to pull the plug on their Peoria stores in a knee-jerk reaction to the opening of the Mid-Town Plaza Cub. The store did solid business and had strong neighborhood support. Unfortunately, most West Bluffers and BU students took their business elsewhere when Sav-a-Lot opened. Instead of doing due diligence and finding a comparable retailer, Joseph took the easy way out and went with whatever came along.
I can’t imagine BU would put a bookstore in the huge space – it’s much larger than the current space. They might relocate offices there while Westlake undergoes renovation, but that would be pretty inconvenient for everyone. I think the West Bluff would be better off with a high-quality grocery/every day needs retailer in that space. I’m not so concerned about the sales tax revenue as I am with a desire to do whatever is best to make this area more attractive to potential home owners. Having a place where people can walk or bike for basic needs helps with that and helps strengthen a sense of community. Walgreens and Haddad’s are convenient and carry good products, but if you want to stock up on lower-priced toilet paper or laundry soap or buy a new cooking pan or laundry basket, you have to drive across town.
“I highly doubt there is a conspiracy afoot…”
I didn’t suggest there was. All I meant was, if a rumor is false, normally PR departments are quick to debunk them. When they don’t respond, it makes you go “hmmm.” But on the other hand, it’s Christmas time, so vacations could just as likely explain the silence. In fact, it was vacation, and I’ve updated the post.
I am a graduate of the University of Iowa. When I was in school in the late 80’s and early 90’s the downtown area had a large shopping mall. A much larger mall project opened in Coralville (nearby city) in the late 90’s and most the retail either left the downtown mall for the new mall or went out of business. The mall project changed owners a few times with very little positive results. About 5 or 6 years ago the University started to lease space in the mall and eventually acquired over 50% of the space. The City has lost property tax revenue but the remainder of the mall is now fully occupied and busy due to the increased “population” of the mall. The owners have reinvested in the mall and cleaned it up and now it is a functional part of downtown. Why is it bad that Bradley acquire space in Campustown (either lease or purchase)? It would allow for the movement of offices off of campus and would free up space for classrooms (or create flexibility for future use in a landlocked university). It would free up parking as Campustown has a very large parking lot. It would/could create a center that has life during the day with people that would eat at the restaurants, etc.
I remember this area before Campustown was built and it was nothing to speak of. Campustown was and is a significant improvement. Let’s hope that the new era has as good of results as the first.
I sez: “I highly doubt there is a conspiracy afoot…”
Then CJ sez: I didn’t suggest there was.
I sez now: yeah, you did. glad you fixed it.
We shopped at Sullivans and I remember their prices be very high compared to Krogers
Im just curious if the location is as great as everyone thinks why hasnt there been any public interest in locating a grocery store even onto the Walgreens lot? I mean HyVee is actually bulldozing and building new construction retail space at the Lake location next door to Krogers and just up the road from Schnucks? I mean maybe those companies are just missing out on a great opportunity only thus of us posting here see………….
I would not be surprised to see Sav-A-Lot open in Mid-Town Plaza.
Bradley students do the vast majority of their grocery shopping at Kroger on Sterling. Bradley students only used Save-A-Lot as a last resort if they forgot something on their list and didn’t want to drive across town.
I stopped shopping at Thompson’s in Campustown before it actually closed and more recently at Kroger’s on Sterling for the same reasons. As much as I hate to admit it, I did stop at Thompson’s mainly because of the loiterers outside the store–but not because of the clientele in the store, many of whom often had some connection to Manual (I enjoyed shopping there for that reason). It’s possible that I knew the loiterers, too. 🙂 A second reason for Thompson’s and now the Sterling Kroger’s is that it began to be dirty–the floors, the restrooms, etc. I felt that the management was as much or more at fault than the customers–that they knew that the customers weren’t going to complain, so the management just stopped taking care of the store. As for the Kroger’s on Sterling, there were two times (almost in a row) when the shelves were too empty–and the one thing I went in to get was not available. In fact, one time I asked to see the manager (turned out to be a very responsible former student); he apologized and told me that the products were in the store–they just hadn’t made it to the shelves yet because they were shorthanded. Again, I believe the store management (main office) was a fault. At least, three really good employees that started on Sterling moved to Lake Street at about the same time as I started shopping on Lake. Kroger’s, I believe, put their best people where the most upscale shoppers shop. I guess it’s good business, but the poorer clientele get blamed for conditions that aren’t their fault.
I think Bradley having a presence and Campustown is a great idea.
CJ is just trying to get a rise out of all of us. He knows it is a good idea also, but then that would just make for a boring article.
Peoriafan always takes the opposite position from me just to get a rise out of me. He secretly agrees with everything I say, but that would make for boring comments.
“anon e mouse” fancies himself a mindreader. I wonder if he can tell what I’m thinking about him right now.
Now now C.J. — that wasn’t a nice thought you had about “the Mouse”.
Happy New Years CJ……or is it?
Bradley Bookstore would be more likely in the Blockbuster space.
You are now entering in… The Twilight Zone… da-du-da-du-da-du-da-du
I have heard from a more-than reliable source that Bradley is leasing Blockbuster’s space, not Save-a-lot. And they will be using the space to house offices from the college of education and health sciences while westlake is being renovated. This saves them from finding space on campus for it. I don’t think the bookstore is moving.
CJ says: “If it’s converted to a new Bradley bookstore, the old bookstore would likely close, so there would be a net loss in commercial square footage, which translates to a net loss in sales tax revenue.”
Really? Is the current Bradley bookstore the same size as the Sav-A-Lot, which I assume is 20K sf or so? I’ve never stepped foot in the Bradley bookstore, so maybe it’s huge. But it strikes me that since parking on campus is pretty crappy for visitors, moving the bookstore (which I assume sells lots of other paraphernalia that is attractive to non-students) to more of a retail location would be a good thing.
Also, I’m not sure that grocery stores are great sales tax generators to begin with. Most stuff isn’t taxed, or at least not taxed by the city. Secondly, groceries are generally inelastic goods — people will still buy them even if one store closes. The real problem for Peoria would be a shift of purchasing to Haddad’s (in West Peoria) or the East Peoria Walmart.
But I know how fond you are of the “glass-half-empty” outlook….
I’ve heard that Bradley is exploring the possibility of opening a small convenient/grocery story on campus. This was all before Save-A-Lot announced their closing. The current bookstore location could be suitable.
Sud: If you add the square footage of Save-a-Lot and the Bradley Bookstore, then you subtract the square footage of Bradley Bookstore, you have a net loss of square footage. And parking on campus is not crappy for visitors of the bookstore, which has its own gated lot to ensure visitors have a place to park.
However, you make a good point regarding the low tax rate on grocery items. Of course, there are a number of goods that are sold in grocery stores that are not “grocery” items for tax purposes, and thus get charged the general merchandise tax rate.
As for my supposed “glass half-empty” outlook… thanks for your input.
Mahkno: I’ve heard from more than one source about BU students requesting a grocery store on campus because they didn’t want to shop at the Sav-A-Lot. It is a shame that Campustown, which was created to be serve BU students (among others), has management that no longer is interested in serving them.
How many Bradley students regularly purchase grocery items and in what quantity do they buy them? How many students are eating non frozen, or microwavable meals during the week? I am assuming that most BU students are either eating caf food or making premade meals but maybe Im wrong. I lived in a fraternity house in college and even preparing our own meals for a house of 15 guys we did very little “quality” grocery shopping.
I am willing to bet that on campus grocery store means something that isnt much bigger then a gas station convenience store.
CJ: You are correct about the net loss of square footage of commercial space. My bad. However, less square footage does not automatically increase to less sales tax revenue. An expanded bookstore that offered more than books would likely have a higher per/sf tax generation than the Sav-A-Lot (or any grocery store) plus a smaller bookstore. And if Bradley added a convenience store on campus, that might make it even more of a plus.
You are half right about the parking at the current BU bookstore. But it is by no means a visible, high-traffic location. If your real aim is tax revenue, I would think you’d want a bigger store with higher visibility. I know that my wife usually buys her BU stuff at the EP Walmart — but a centrally located place might appeal to her.
Point to me to your last optimistic post, and I’ll retract my comment.
Sud says: “Point to me to your last optimistic post, and I’ll retract my comment.”
How about this one: Merry Christmas!
Heh heh.
Seriously, though, define “optimistic.” If you mean “boosterism,” then you’re right, I have very few “optimistic” posts. The city has plenty of organizations that take care of that function, including the Journal Star.
I’m optimistic that if the city were to adopt a fiscally-conservative, basic-services-first philosophy and practice, Peoria would flourish once again.
I agree with C.J. about the city–and District 150. Feel good Public Relations is their modus operandi. Those of us who point out the negatives of 150 are often labeled as being just that “negative.” I, for one, am very glad that C.J. provides us with this opportunity to bring issues into the light. The blogs provide the opportunity for posters to be positive or negative on any issue–which is bound to help us all get a more accurate picture of any issue.
Yep — Peoria needs to be BEST AT = Basic Essential Services Today and Tomorrow! 🙂
Citizens want safety (police and fire), good schools, good roads and infrastructure and jobs — you know the cupcake and then you can add the icing and sprinkles (ball stadiums, Riverplex, museum, civic center ….) if there is extra money!
Citizens want lower taxes, honesty in representatives and so on — at least that is what they are telling me as I go door to door! 🙂
Well said, Karrie!