Reposted from the Las Cruces Bulletin, June 17, 2011

Las Cruces repays large debt in record time

Revitalizing Downtown takes big bucks, but thanks to the combined efforts of the Downtown Las Cruces Partnership (DLCP), Downtown property owners, the City of Las Cruces, Doña Ana County and our local legislative delegation, generating the cash to complete the project became a little easier in 2007.

That’s when a majority of Downtown property owners and registered voters ap‑ proved the formation of a Tax Increment Development District (TIDD) in a special election.

The purpose of the TIDD is to create an income stream that can support the repay‑ ment of tax‑exempt bonds issued by the city to fund Downtown infrastructure improve‑ ments. The district is bounded by Picacho Av‑ enue on the north, Alameda Boulevard on the west, Campo Street on the east and California Avenue on the south.

Here’s how it works:

The gross receipts and property tax bases within the TIDD are “frozen” at the prede‑ velopment levels for bookkeeping purposes. The state, city and county then return to the district 75 percent of the taxes derived from increases in assessed values and gross receipts brought about by new development in the area for the next 20 years. Typically, the increased taxes would be added to the city, county and state general funds.

The first distribution of the city’s GRT increment was $1,485 in March 2009, according to city of Las Cruces Downtown Development Coordinator William Slettom. Through April of this year, the city’s contribution to the TIDD was more than $1.1 million. During the same period, Doña Ana County’s contribution totaled more than $178,000, although the county has not yet provided any funds derived from increases in property taxes. The state began contributing its portion of the collected taxes in October 2010, adding an additional $740,000 of the fund. Total income for the TIDD through April of this year was almost $2.1 million, Slettom said.

The first use of TIDD funds was to close the $1 million gap between the amount needed to fund the opening of the northernmost blocks of Main Street and the amount of funding the city had on hand for the project. To close the gap, the city borrowed $1 million from its re‑ serve fund. The loan was amortized more than 15 years, but was repaid last month – just one year from the date the funds were borrowed.

The TIDD funding is designed to cover approximately $8 million of the estimated $12 million required to complete Downtown revitalization projects, which includes the opening of the southernmost blocks of Main Street. In addition, plans are in place to use TIDD funds to finance the reconfiguration of Water and Church streets to accomodate two‑way traffic, and to redesign the portions of Las Cruces and Griggs streets that run be‑ tween Alameda Boulevard and Church Street.

If you haven’t been Downtown lately, you may not be aware of the vast amount of public and private investment that’s been made to date. New businesses are opening, street im‑ provements are well underway and economic development is in full swing. As the motto of the Downtown Las Cruces Partnership states, “It’s Really Happening!”

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.

Reposted from the Las Cruces Bulletin, April 1, 2011

Theaters, museums, farmers market has record number

If you haven’t been Downtown lately, you might just be in the minority. As the revitalization of the heart of our city continues, the number of local and out-of-town visitors who frequented the area this past fiscal year climbed to almost 300,000. What did this hoard of visitors do while they were Downtown?

Theaters. According to Peter and Ceil Herman, owners of the Black Box Theatre, 4,000 guests attended No Strings Theatre Company and other performances during the 2010-11 fiscal year. Las Cruces Community Theatre President P.J. Waggaman reported that last season’s performances attracted 5,500 theatergoers. Attendance was also high at the Rio Grande Theatre, where, according to manager David Salcido, more than 21,000 men, women and children attended one or more of the various plays and performances offered during the year.

Museums. According to City of Las Cruces Museum Administrator Will Ticknor, more than 121,000 area residents and visitors toured Downtown area museums during the past year. The Museum of Art attracted more than 61,000 art lovers of all kinds, while more than 46,000 visitors attended events at the Branigan Cultural Center. During the same period, more than 13,000 history buffs visited the Railroad Museum. The Natural History Museum, which is currently located in Mesilla Valley Mall and scheduled to move Downtown next year, attracted an additional 152,000 visitors.

Las Cruces Farmers & Crafts Market. Ranked No. 1 in New Mexico and No. 9 nationally, according to market manager Eric Montgomery, the market attracts approximately 1,000 attendees each Wednesday and upwards of 4,000 to 5,000 visitors each Saturday – a total of around 130,000 shoppers annually.

First Friday Art Ramble. According to my fuzzy math, approximately 200 to 250 art aficionados tour Downtown art galleries the first Friday of each month – adding an additional 2,400 visitors to the annual total.

SalsaFest. The Downtown Las Cruces Partnership (DLCP) estimates that 4,000 area residents and visitors attended last summer’s second annual SalsaFest. This year’s event, scheduled for Aug. 28, will be held in conjunction with the kickoff of New Mexico’s Centennial Celebration and is expected to draw upwards of 5,000 to 10,000 attendees.

Winterfest. The DLCP reports that more than 1,000 individuals and families attended December’s second annual Winterfest, which celebrates the holiday season at different venues in and around the Downtown area.

In addition to the dollars spent by visitors to the Downtown area, Downtown business and property owners have invested more than $2 million remodeling, opening and/or expanding their Downtown area businesses.

Reposted from the Las Cruces Bulletin, October 15, 2010

$5 million project to spur economic development

A broad coalition of local community groups has joined forces to add more “bling” to the growing jewel that is Downtown Las Cruces.

The Downtown Las Cruces Partnership (DLCP), which is the Las Cruces Main Street revitalization organization, along with the Doña Ana Arts Council (DAAC), the city’s leading arts advocacy group, are spearheading the effort to bring additional economic development to the heart of Las Cruces. The group’s official name is the Downtown Arts & Business Revitalization Partnership (DABRP). The group has three major objectives.

The first is to renovate and re-purpose the state-owned Camuñez Building for use as a retail and arts center. The proposed name of the project is El Mercado The two-story building, which contains approximately 17,000 square feet of interior space, was the site of Las Cruces’ original J.C. Penney store and most recently the state’s Juvenile Probation Offi ce. It is located between the Rio Grande Theatre and the award-winning La Placita outdoor entertainment venue now under construction.

The second objective is to create small business incubation and business accelerator programs for local farmers, artists, craftsmen and entrepreneurs.

The third aim of the project is to establish a film and theatrical production-training program to create jobs, apprenticeships and internships in the entertainment industry.

Funding will be provided through federal, state and private sources, so no increases in local property or gross receipts taxes will be used. Federal funding will come from grants from the Department of Commerce Economic Development Assistance (EDA), the Department of Educational Hispanic Serving Institutions and Academic Colleges (HSAIC) program, the Veteran’s Administration (VA), the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD). State funding will come from New Mexico state appropriations and the Department of New Mexico Finance & Administration (NMFA). Private benefactors and philanthropic organizations, such as the McCune Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and the New Mexico Arts Commission, will also be tapped for assistance. Within five years, the estimated $5 million development is projected to create a minimum of 100 Downtown jobs and thousands of dollars in gross receipts taxes.

Many players make up the revitalization team. The DLCP plans to utilize the ground floor of El Mercado to develop retail spaces and kitchen facilities for local entrepreneurs, such as farmers market’s vendors who want to grow their businesses to the next level. Initial plans call for the retail operations to be open seven days a week. The Doña Ana Arts Council, Alma d’Arte Charter School and Doña Ana Community College (DACC) propose to utilize the second floor to foster creation of an apprenticeship program for entrepreneurs who want to start their own media technology businesses. A recording studio and computer technology bay will provide lease space to the movie industry, among others. The Hispano Chamber of Commerce de Las Cruces, the Las Cruces Farmers & Crafts Market, the NMSU Agricultural Extension Office and the City of Las Cruces Film Office will also lend expertise to the venture.

Downtown is growing. The middle two blocks of Main Street have been reopened and have already welcomed thousands of people to the many events Downtown has to offer, such as SalsaFest, Winter Fest, events at the Rio Grande Theatre and the farmers market – just to name a few. Reconstruction of the northernmost two blocks of Main Street is currently underway and scheduled for completion within about a year.

Upon completion of the current project, construction crews are scheduled to begin reconstruction of the southernmost two blocks of Main Street. La Placita, which is the extension of Organ Avenue that runs between Main and Water streets and separates the Camuñez Building from the old Popular Dry Goods store and the soon-to-open La Iguana Restaurant, is nearing completion.

Future plans also call for the reconfiguration of Water and Church streets to two-way traffic, eliminating the “racetrack” effect created by the one-way streets currently in use. Plans also include utilizing the Downtown parking lots, which are owned by the city, for development of multi-story retail, housing and parking facilities.

Given the momentum of the revitalization of the heart of our city, the Downtown Las Cruces Partnership’s slogan – “Downtown – It’s Really Happening” – couldn’t be more accurate.

Reposted from the Las Cruces Bulletin, May 9, 2008

Now is the time to stake your claim Downtown

Are you a retailer in search of customers who would jump at the chance to use your products or services? Let’s take that question a step further: Are you a retailer in search of customers who would jump at the chance to use your products or services, and who also suffer from a lack of access to those products and services where they live and work?

Let’s expand the question even more: Are you a retailer in search of customers who would jump at the chance to use your products or services, who also suffer from a lack of access to those products or services where they live and work, and who also earn millions-upon-millions of dollars in salaries and wages each year? If you are such a retailer, Downtown Las Cruces may be just the spot for your business or service.

After eight years of arduous planning, fundraising and diligent “boots on the ground” legwork by hundreds of enthusiastic folks in both the public and private sectors, the revitalization of Las Cruces’ Downtown district is in full swing and making amazing progress. Phase I of the project, which was the reopening of Main Street between Griggs and Las Cruces avenues, has been completed and has already been home to many Downtown events. And more construction is about to begin. But there’s more to Downtown than just the reopening of streets and the addition of new infrastructure. There’s also the economics of the area to consider. And what a consideration it is!

A recent study conducted by the University of New Mexico’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research revealed that Downtown Las Cruces has much to offer, but is suffering from a severe lack of retail facilities. In simple terms, there just aren’t enough retailers in the Downtown area to serve the huge number of people who live and work there. How many people, you ask, live and work in and around the Downtown district?

In a nutshell, more than 18,000 people either live and/or work in the Downtown district or within three minutes of its boundaries – by Picacho Avenue on the north, Colorado Street on the south, Alameda Boulevard on the east and Campo Street to the east. Together, those 18,000+ people earn in excess of $277 million in salaries and wages (last week’s estimate of $269.8 million was incorrect) each and every year … year in and year out. The economic challenge at hand is to bring more retailers and their products and services to those thousands of downtown area people who want and need them.

According to the UNM study, retail employment in our Downtown district currently accounts for only 2 percent of total downtown employment. In comparison, the report points out that retail activities make up about 20 to 25 percent of Downtown employment in New Mexico’s vibrant Downtown districts. So what types of products and services would those 18,000+ folks enjoy having access to in their neighborhood?

According to two recent polls taken on my weekly Real Estate Connection radio show, the callers were interested in having more restaurant choices. They especially envisioned outdoor patio or sidewalk seating. Other notable desires were for personal services businesses such as beauty shops, dry cleaners, florists, drug stores and supermarkets. Boutique retailers, such as Trader Joe’s, also made the list. So what’s in it for retailers who might consider Downtown as their new business home? I thought you’d never ask.

Let’s begin with the economics part of the equation. In the near term, more jobs are coming to the Downtown district. Employment will be consolidated Downtown once the new federal building and city hall projects are completed. There’s also the prospect of the expansion (or possible relocation) of the district court operation. And then there are the rampant rumors about the State of New Mexico’s interest in the Wells Fargo tower on Main Street. Estimates of the exact number of additional employees the consolidations may generate are impossible to quantify at the moment. There’s no doubt, however, that the employment numbers will rise.

In the long term, which may not be as long term as one might imagine, new retail construction and the addition of 400 to 750 new residential units will bring hundreds more Las Crucens citizens to the total.

In addition to the positive economics of the area, great strides have been and are being made on the physical side of the equation. The following is a partial and less-than-complete list of just some of the activity currently going on behind the scenes Downtown:

• Civic Plaza. This is Phase II of the project and will be located directly east of Phase I. Construction is anticipated to begin later this year. The area will be open for gatherings and can accommodate the farmers and crafts market. Three designs were presented to the public last month and are currently under review by city staff.
• Reopening Main Street. The New Mexico Department of Transportation has approved $1.176 million as a preliminary budget for the opening of Main Street between Griggs and Lohman avenues. The design is currently underway and funds will be released this October.
• La Placita/Organ Street Connection. The New Mexico Economic Development Department has provided a $298,000 grant towards the design and construction of the La Placita/ Organ Street connection. A Memorandum of Understanding may come before the city council next month.
• Workforce Housing. Plans are being formulated to bring to Downtown new multistory structures that will house mixed-use retail, commercial and parking on various sites downtown. The residences will take the form of townhomes, condominiums and apartments that will be priced within the qualifying range of our area’s first responders. Phase I housing and parking evaluation is currently underway and funding is in process. The project will qualify for a portion of the $110 million is U.S. Treasury New Market Tax Credits to be received by New Mexico this year.
• Roundabouts. Would you like to drive in circles like the Griswalds did in their European Vacation movie? You may be able to do just that if plans for roundabouts at each end of Main Street come to fruition.

These projects are just the tip of the iceberg, ladies and gentlemen. New infrastructure will be installed to accommodate the newly constructed and refurbished buildings, while communication connections will be upgraded to bring our downtown area technology into the 21st century. Our city museums are being consolidated in the Downtown district as we speak, and major renovations are planned for the old courthouse and the Amador Hotel.

City codes will most likely be upgraded to pave the way for downtown remodeling projects and to address the issue of vacant buildings, while tax credits and incentives will be offered to those wishing to locate their businesses in the district.

Additional information regarding downtown development can be easily obtained by contacting Cindi Fargo of the Las Cruces Downtown Organization at 525-1955 or by email at cfargo@lascrucesdowntown.org, William Slettom of the City of Las Cruces at 541- 2289 or wslettom@las-cruces.org, and from Christine Logan, also from the City of Las Cruces, at 541-2286 or clogan@lascruces.org can provide additional details.

If I don’t see you Downtown, I hope to …