A Front Door for Menomonie
city plans downtown “gateway project”
After an initial veto by the mayor, distribution of a town survey, countless e-mail and blog commenting, and general talk around the block, the decision is finally in: downtown Menomonie will soon be home to a spankin’ new, multi-million dollar mixed-use housing and retail complex.
The Menomonie City Council, after a 10-0 vote, recently overturned Mayor Randy Knaack’s veto against a proposed building project for the downtown area.
The building plan – which has been named the “Gateway Project” – is being managed by Eau Claire-based AHMC Asset Management, and will take the place of the old Leever’s grocery store on South Broadway, a site that’s been sitting vacant since 2003.
The 250-bed complex will offer student housing, as well as first-floor commercial development, and, to top things off, the building will be four stories tall – one floor taller than the rest of the buildings downtown. So what does this all mean for the city of Menomonie? Residents are saying big things.
“Most of the downtown owners and business persons I have heard from have spoken with great enthusiasm about the project,” said Menomonie attorney Mike Fairchild. “It is likely to provide significant property taxes to the city … [and] make shopping easier and more attractive to Stout students.”
Laura Short, executive director of Main Street in Menomonie, spoke to me on the phone about her expectations for the new project. When completed, she said, the building will be just the ticket for business growth and expansion in the city.
“All business owners want to see downtown improve … they want to see development,” Laura said. “The ground floor retail will definitely serve as a hope for growth.”
As director of Main Street, Laura works daily with business owners to engage the community. When she’s not marketing the downtown area, she’s busy recruiting new businesses to the city.
As director of Main Street, Laura works daily with business owners to engage the community. When she’s not marketing the downtown area, she’s busy recruiting new businesses to the city.
“I get lots of phone calls every day from new businesses hoping to start up in Menomonie,” she said. “Most places make you buy property, which is difficult for businesses just starting up to afford … most new businesses prefer to lease.” And the new complex will allow businesses to do just that.
So with this flurry of positive energy, why did Knaack initially rule against it? The plan’s sudden momentum made him uncomfortable; his veto was a final strategy to gain two weeks’ time to assess the details and study public sentiment. According to media sources, his thinking was that blossoming business and increased out-of-town traffic were not guaranteed outcomes, though moving “another dormitory” downtown was.
As of now, the Menomonie Market Food Co-op has already reserved 1,300 square feet of the complex. But not to fret, entrepreneurs – an additional 1,800 square feet is still available for the leasing.
And aside from helping new businesses flourish, the rest of the complex will offer great (not to mention brand new) housing with a downtown location and close proximity to UW-Stout.
According to Cary Osborn, CEO of AHMC, the final product will be two “L”-shaped buildings, positioned across from each other like a separated puzzle with a parking lot zigzagging in between. One building will host 60 units and the other 66 units – 80 percent of the housing will consist of two-bedroom apartments, 10 percent will have three-bedroom apartments, and the remainder will be studio apartments.
“We expect to get a lot of students to rent,” Cary said. “But really, it’s open to anyone.”
With the renovations underway and the Menomonie community at its back, the Gateway Project is a promising expansion – both economically and culturally – for the city and its residents. The project is set to be complete by August 2011.
