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Some North Columbia community leaders say they will oppose an effort by the city to locate a Taco Bell on a prime spot along North Main Street unless it conforms to the architecture and feel of the surrounding property.
Tony Lawton, the city’s executive director of business opportunities, unveiled the negotiations at a community meeting this week as part of the city’s ongoing effort to shore up the Eau Claire/North Columbia corridor.
“It was like they dropped a bomb in the meeting,” said Rhett Anders, president of the Windemere Springs Neighborhood Association.
Anders, a real estate agent and community activist, is among dozens of North Columbia leaders working to bolster the city’s most economically and racially diverse community.
Keith McIver, a former president of the Hyatt Park Neighborhood Association, said he worried that locating a fast food restaurant on the site “doesn’t seem to jibe with efforts we’ve put forth in trying to make a more economically diverse neighborhood.”
Lawton said the opponents are overreacting and don’t have all the facts.
“We have talked to a variety of other individuals,” he said. “We may put ourselves in a predicament because those prospects may not even come now.”
The State ran a four-day series, “Crisis or Comeback,” earlier this month that focused on the perils and potential of the area.
Many residents tout the virtues of this area’s leafy neighborhoods near downtown, but three killings earlier this year in and around apartment complexes prompted city manager Charles Austin to label the area a community “in crisis.”
The series identified problems and solutions for the area, one of which is more businesses along North Main.
Anders said he and others would like to see mixed-use and more upscale establishments on the parcel adjacent to the North Main Plaza, which he calls the “most cherished” piece of property along North Main Street.
The plaza, which houses the popular Main Street Deli and other businesses, is built in the same architectural style as the Eau Claire Town Hall and Print Building.
Anders’ concerns were eased somewhat after meeting Thursday with City Councilman Daniel Rickenmann, who suggested the Taco Bell, if it is built on the site, would conform to the architectural surroundings and might have patio dining to give it a sidewalk cafe feel.
Lawton said city officials have talked to executives from a number of companies, including the women’s fashion retailer Cato, and Lizard’s Thicket. He said he would love to lure a Starbucks or Red Lobster to the site, but worries the numbers don’t add up to make it economically viable.
“We are in tough economical times,” Lawton said.
Reach Click at (803) 771-8386.
