Reposted from the Las Cruces Bulletin, April 8, 2011
Business opportunities abound throughout Downtown Las Cruces
Talk about an opportunity with a capital “O”!
Have you any idea how many people work and live in the Downtown Las Cruces area? Have you any idea how much they earn in wages and salaries on an annual basis? Have you any idea how many retail businesses serve the folks who live and work in the Downtown area? If not, you’re in for one heck of a supersized surprise.
The surprise in question came to light when the University of New Mexico’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research released an assessment of the state of our Las Cruces area economy, with special emphasis on the pluses and minuses of our Downtown area.
Both the New Mexico Economic Development Department and New Mexico Main Street funded the study. New Mexico Main Street is New Mexico’s division of the National Main Street Center in Washington, D.C., part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Our local Las Cruces Downtown organization is, in turn, one of 24 Main Street organizations in the state whose communities are in the process of revitalizing their downtown areas.
While the study drew interesting and generally positive conclusions regarding the state of our area’s economy, it was clear that Downtown Las Cruces was the star of the show. Why? The answers can be found in my three opening questions.
Question No. 1: How may people work and live Downtown or within three minutes of the Main Street District? Would you believe just over 18,000 Las Cruces employers, employees and residents? It’s true. Four thousand, four hundred forty-four (yes, 4,444) of them go to work every Monday through Friday in the Main Street District, which is bordered by Picacho Avenue on the north, Colorado Avenue on the south, Alameda Boulevard on the west and Campo Street on the east, and measures more than 1 square mile in area.
Another 3,118 people live in the Alameda and Mesquite neighborhoods adjacent to Downtown. Two thousand, one hundred ten of those folks live in the Alameda area to the west, with the remaining 874 residents living in the Mesquite neighborhood to the east. But wait, there’s more! Another 10,500 people live within three minutes of Downtown. That adds up to a total of 18,062 Las Crucens who live and work in our Downtown area.
Question No 2: How much do those 18,000-plus folks earn each year in salaries and wages? Are you sitting down? Perhaps you should lie down. They earn $269.8 million annually. That’s more than a quarter-billion – with a “B” – dollars. Keep in mind that the people I’m referring to either work or live in the Downtown district or within three minutes of its boundaries, not in other parts of the city.
The largest slice of the income pie goes to the 4,444 Downtown area employees. Together, they account for 11 percent of the jobs and 17 percent of the wages paid by all employers in the city. In addition, their annual income of $182.7 million is 62 percent above the Las Cruces’ citywide average annual wage.
The Alameda area to the west of Downtown and the Mesquite area directly east of Downtown, account for an additional $18 million in annual area income. The total annual income for the 874 folks living in the Alameda area is estimated at $7 million, while the 2,110 people living in the Mesquite neighborhood generate another $10.1 million each year. Not to be forgotten are the 134 people actually living in the Downtown area who, together earn about $900,000 each year. That’s a total of $18 million generated by the good folks living Downtown and in the Alameda and Mesquite neighborhoods.
On a side note, the study also estimated that the total retail spending by these three neighborhood households is around $10.1 million per year. Of that amount, residents spend about $2.2 million on groceries, $1.2 million on entertainment and recreation and $800,000 on clothing.
Then there are the 10,500 additional folks who live outside the Downtown, Alameda and Mesquite neighborhoods, but within three minutes of the Downtown district. Together, those 10.5 thousand people earn another $77 million annually. Have you done the math? It totals a whopping $268.9 million annually.
Question No. 3: How many retail businesses currently serve the 18,000 or so Downtown area people who earn almost $270 million each year? Not nearly enough, according to the UNM study. As of 2006, only 11 retail businesses with a total of 105 employees were located in the Main Street District. At the same time, there were only 12 food services and drinking establishments in the area, employing 281 people. The remainder of the Downtown jobs are in public administration, finance and insurance, utility companies, educational services, transportation and warehousing as well as a few other occupations.
More than 18,000 people currently work and live in the Downtown district or within three minutes of its boundaries, earning almost $270 million per year, with little in the way of retail businesses and restaurants to adequately service their daily needs. As a result, the Downtown area currently accounts for only 1.6 percent of all retail activities in the city and only 2 percent of all employment in the Downtown area.
The report also noted that in vibrant commercial districts across New Mexico, retail activities account for 20 to 25 percent of Downtown employment.
What’s missing from our Downtown? Personal service businesses, such as beauty shops, cleaners, florists, drug stores, supermarkets and additional restaurants are on the list along with boutique retailers such as Trader Joe’s.
Is that all there is, you ask? Not by a long shot. Thanks to our state and federal legislators, the City of Las Cruces, Doña Ana County, the New Mexico Economic Development Department, the New Mexico Main Street Program, the Las Cruces Downtown organization and the citizens of Las Cruces and the surrounding areas, our Downtown revitalization effort is in full swing and making amazing progress. More construction is just around the corner.
What’s in it for those who might consider locating their business in Downtown Las Cruces? About 300,000 locals and visitors attended events Downtown last year. In addition, thousands more routinely frequented the Downtown area to conduct business and sightsee. If that’s not a recipe for opportunity, I don’t know what would be.