LOOKING AT THE FUTURE? Developer Geoff Moeding points to live-work developments, like this proposed one in Seattle, as models for what he wants to build in Eau Claire.

Living and working in the same place is far from a new concept. From time immemorial, craftsmen have plied their trades near their own hearths, and countless 19th- and 20th-century shopkeepers ate and slept in the apartments above their businesses. However, over the last century or so, the automobile, suburbanization, and the global nature of modern business have driven a wide wedge between home and workplace for most of us.

And yet, in some places, forces are pulling in the opposite direction. Whether it’s because of the increasing attraction of urban life, the desire to avoid lengthy commutes, or simple practicality, developments are springing up that combine street-level space for shops, studios, and offices with apartments for entrepreneurs on upper floors. Such developments have appeared in larger urban areas – think Seattle, San Francisco, and St. Paul – and now an Eau Claire-based developer wants to create one in the heart of downtown Eau Claire.

“Retailers gain the visibility and accessibility afforded by being located in a dense area, and tenants gain the convenience and increased quality of life that comes from complete, walkable communities.” – Geoff Moeding, developer

Geoff Moeding of Moeding Partners – whose four existing developments in downtown Eau Claire include 84 apartments and 30,000 square feet of commercial space – recently told the city Redevelopment Authority that he’d like to build three buildings, including one featuring live-work space, on what is now a parking lot in downtown Eau Claire. The North Barstow Street parcel – otherwise known as Block 7 or the “Livery lot” – is one of the final undeveloped parcels in the Phoenix Park neighborhood. According to a project summary, Moeding says the building “will provide a commercial flavor to the street frontage and provide the entrepreneur or very small business a great option for visibility and affordability, with office or workspace coupled with living quarters.” The original plans called for two buildings (which would be separated by an alley) facing North Barstow Street. Each building would include about 25 apartments and 2,400 square feet of ground floor space along the street. However, after feedback from the RDA, the two buildings have been merged into one, which would include six to 10 ground-floor commercial spaces, Moeding says.

Who would use such live-work spaces? Moeding says they’re ideal for plenty of professionals, from attorneys and architects to seamstresses and artists. “I think it’s time for another niche market to open up,” Moeding says of the live-work concept. “JAMF encourages me that way,” he adds, citing the homegrown software company, which recently built a four-story office nearby. “I think there’s just a lot more people going the entrepreneurial route.”

Advocates for live-work developments cite their many advantages to urban areas. According to Seattle-based Johnson Architects – whose mixed-use developments Moeding points to as a model of what he’s aiming for – “the benefits for the occupants are numerous: retailers gain the visibility and accessibility afforded by being located in a dense area, and tenants gain the convenience and increased quality of life that comes from complete, walkable communities.”

The downtown block in question – which is bordered by North Barstow, Wisconsin, and Galloway streets – is currently a parking lot.

The potential Eau Claire development would appeal to more than a select few, Moeding says. “It’s ideal entrepreneurial space,” he explains, “but I’ve seen tons of different kinds of uses” – such as business owners subletting the upper-floor apartments to other renters.

“This project would benefit both the North Barstow Redevelopment district and the City of Eau Claire with the addition of much needed housing to meet the growing demand for downtown residences.”

“This project would benefit both the North Barstow Redevelopment district and the City of Eau Claire with the addition of much needed housing to meet the growing demand for downtown residences,” Moeding wrote in his proposal to the RDA. “The additional residences and live/work space will add to the synergy created by more people living, working, shopping, and playing in downtown.”

Mike Schatz, the city’s economic development administrator, says he’s not aware of any other developers who have attempted to build such live-work space in Eau Claire. “I think he was looking for another type of housing to present and another type of commercial (property) so we weren’t constantly repeating ourselves,” Schatz says of Moeding’s proposal. Schatz notes that the RDA has sought commercial development along North Barstow (a guideline that Moeding’s plan would seem to meet).

The proposed four-story live-work building would include 45-56 apartments, while the other two buildings – one facing Galloway Street on the south and the other facing Wisconsin Avenue on the north – would each have 30-40 apartments. Parking for residents would be between the buildings on the inside of the block. Moeding has offered to buy the property for roughly its assessed value ($310,000), and he estimates that the development will be worth at least $14 million. He also has requested that the city help with $2 million in tax incremental financing to help him break even on the project. (In TIF districts, such city payments are offset over time by the additional property tax revenue generated by new developments.)

Moeding presented his plans to the RDA in mid-February, but no action was taken. He will go before the RDA again on March 16 to discuss further details about the project. If an agreement is finalized in the near future, construction could begin later this year, and all three buildings could be complete by 2020.