About 25 people attended a downtown revitalization meeting at the former Thelma’s building on East Main Street last Tuesday night. The meeting featured a presentation by Redevelopment Resources, who have provided consulting services to the city of Merrill for the past four years.
Redevelopment Resources has worked with the city on projects including the Lincoln House and bakery building on East First Street – both now vacant lots – along with the 811-813 E. First St. building now occupied by Generations Antique Co.
“Downtown is the heart of the community and Merrill is unique in it has different segments,” said Redevelopment Resources managing partner Kristen Fish.
The downtown is defined as being bordered by the East Main Street/Stuyvesant Street intersection to the east and Cleveland Street to the west.
A vibrant downtown will help attract people to live, work and shop in Merrill, Fish said. She added that Merrill’s downtown may be doing well, but it can be improved.
“We really do believe you don’t have to be sick to get better,” she said.
Fish presented an artist rendering of a multi-use building that could be constructed on the Lincoln House site. The building would include retail on the lower level and residential units on upper floors.
“We want to dream big,” she said. “We have been actively seeking developers for that concept.”
City Finance Director Kathy Unertl noted that the city’s Redevelopment Authority was organized in 2004 to look at ways to foster redevelopment in the city. With recent development in the tax incremental financing district (TID) that includes the new Walmart, new tax dollars paid on properties in that area is now available to be used for projects in TIDs that are deemed blighted.
“We finally have some money to work with,” she said.
Redevelopment Resources economic development associate and Merrill native Mary Rajek noted that phase one of a downtown revitalization plan is underway. She pointed out that a variety of different programs are available, aimed at assisting small businesses with things such as marketing, façade improvements and job creation. The city, for example, has a revolving loan fund with money available to invest in the community.
Unertl said the city is in the process of amending the downtown TID, which would create an opportunity for grant funding.
Long-time downtown business owner Robby Johnson said the move of Hwy. 64 from Main Street to First Street has hurt the East Main Street business area. While the DOT isn’t likely to re-designate Hwy. 64 back onto Main Street, there are things that can be done to attract motorists to head downtown on Main Street, Rajek said.
“We can work to divert some of that traffic flow,” she said. “There are things we can invest in to invite people in and change their habits. We can do things that are intriguing and build interest.”
Making the downtown more attractive will benefit the community, said City Administrator Dave Johnson.
“We need to make people want to move here and the people who live here to stay here,” Johnson said. “If we don’t change what downtown looks like, we’re going to lose businesses. The city has to step up and make an investment in the downtown. If we leave things as they are, we’ll watch them go downhill.”
Amanda Kostman said Merrill should capitalize on its small town charm.
“Why can’t we draw people from Wausau and be that cute place to go?” she said. “People like to go to cool places to shop.”
Rajek said the city can first focus on changing the look of downtown through features such as benches, bike racks and an archway.
“Those are feasible things that can happen in short order,” she said.
She also mentioned the addition of more murals downtown.
There seemed to be some support for creating angled parking downtown to gain more parking spaces.
The parking lots on the north side of Main Street get good usage, while the parking lot on the south side is less used, Rajek observed.
The discussion turned to specific sites in the downtown area that are in need of redevelopment.
There is currently a raze order on the building at 900 E. First St., on the corner of Mill Street. That building will be coming down, so there was some discussion on the best use of that lot. Additional parking could be a possibility on that lot, Rajek said.
The lot where the bakery was, next to Blooming Wishes, is probably best left as green space, those in attendance agreed. The lot isn’t big enough to either be attractive to a developer or provide any appreciable parking space.
The city council recently rejected an offer from Lincoln Community Bank to purchase the former Guys Shop lot on East Main Street. In the city’s ownership, the lot would be turned into a terraced green space.
“We’re going to see if the private sector can develop it,” Fish said. “We’re going to work hard to see something happen there.”
The Thelma’s building, vacant for the past two years, could be used as a business incubator, said Lincoln County Economic Development Director Ken Maule. Maule noted that Rhinelander has a downtown mall that has been successful and Merrill could do the same with the Thelma’s building.
Fish said there has been some interest in the building, but its large size has been an obstacle for attracting a single business to fill the space.
Fish noted that she has been working with a chef to bring a fine dining restaurant to Merrill.
“Everybody looking for fine dining is leaving Merrill to find it,” she said. “We don’t want to dream small for Merrill because we know you have the potential.”
“We have a variety of retail leakages,” Rajek added. “That’s where we see opportunity for investment. We know there’s opportunity here.”
The city had invited the owners of downtown businesses and buildings to provide input at the meeting, to get a sense of what they feel is important. Without the backing of business owners, the plan is not going to work, Rajek said.
“Where the rubber hits the road is right here in this room,” Rajek said.
For progress to occur, the Merrill community needs a positive attitude toward change, said Lincoln County Economic Development Director Ken Maule.
“This is not all going to happen overnight,” he said. “Everybody is welcome to participate in a positive way.”
City Finance Director Kathy Unertl noted that the city can do some small things downtown this year. By meeting with business and property owners, the city is looking for a bigger vision to budget for in future years.