One of the largest impediments to growth in Old South
Town neighborhood, as some business owners — some of whom live in the
area — joke, is that that the area “is one block into the
ghetto.” According the city of Springfield’s
consolidated plan, the neighborhood “shows signs of advanced
dilapidation, obsolescence, deterioration, structures below minimum code
standards, excessive vacancies, [and] deleterious land use.” Nevertheless, the report says, the area around the
intersection at 11th Street and South Grand Avenue “is crucial in
connecting the east side to downtown.” On May 2, the Springfield City Council passed an
ordinance designating Old South a housing and urban redevelopment area.
That move should help the city tap block-grant money from the U.S.
Department of the Housing and Urban Development, says Mike Farmer, the
city’s planning and economic-development director. The city set aside $445,000 worth of grants for the
first phase of the project. Landlords may also borrow money from the city
to make improvements to their buildings. Someday, Farmer says, the
redevelopment could stretch as far east as Dirksen Parkway. By
concentrating on improving the infrastructure, the city hopes to attract
more private investment, Farmer says. Last fall, city officials unveiled plans to reverse
blight by redeveloping the area, which was once a commercial hub. Already
the city has purchased and demolished several dilapidated buildings along
the main strip on South Grand. Next, plans call for the restoration of
building façades and the Varsity Theatre marquee — one of the
oldest in the state — as well as the construction of a 40-space lot,
which is also under way. It’s a good start, area proprietors say, but
much more needs to be done if the area is going to thrive. By most accounts, Jerry Nelson, owner of Café
Kanichi-Wa, has the most successful business right now. He’s
skeptical as to whether the city’s vision for Old South Town can be
brought to fruition. “The only thing we’re going to get out of
that is a parking lot,” says Nelson, who acknowledges that, once the
lot is complete, he’ll reap much of the benefit from the added
parking spaces. However, he has other concerns. “We could use another neighborhood police
officer. I’d like to see the neighborhood come up because I own a business here, but we
need more police presence,” he says. Nelson also wishes that Springfield cops would do
more to crack down on prostitution by enforcing a law that limits the
travel of recidivist prostitutes, saying he frequently sees one notorious
streetwalker roaming the neighborhood. Skank Skates owner George Sinclair is more worried
about skyrocketing property taxes should the Old South Town redevelopment
move too quickly, though he gives a “shout-out to Mayor [Tim]
Davlin” for getting the ball rolling on the project. Still, Sinclair, who has had his share of run-ins
with the city, as evidenced by his two three-ring binders full of various
citations, says: “I’m very happy the project is moving
forward — it’s 15 years past due, but that’s how things
go.”
This article appears in May 18-24, 2006.
