Turning a corner after the “end of an era”

A downtown renaissance is just around the corner.

At least that's what The Gazette said in September of 1983, in a story about the future of retail in the city's core. Killian's department store had just closed its downtown doors the year before. The last big department store, Armstrong's, at Third Avenue and Third Street SE, still stood and was talking expansion. The big idea being floated to save retail was an enclosed downtown mall at Third Avenue and Second Street SE.

My dive into the archives was prompted by this week's announcement that Smulekoff's Home store is closing after 125 years downtown, 72 years at its current location at 97 Third Ave. SE. Smulekoff's is the last big downtown retailer with a history that stretches back to the days when the city's center was home to 10 downtown department stores and dozens of smaller shops. In 1961, as Lindale Mall opened, downtown had 100 retail businesses.

Even someone like me, who has been here only about seven years, can see that it's a significant moment. I pondered that significance, just before drifting off to sleep in a bed purchased at Smulekoff's.

You might call it the end of an era.

But that cliche is taken. It ran across the front page of the Nov. 2, 1990, Gazette, chronicling the announcement that Armstrong's had declared bankruptcy and would close after the holidays. Stories explaining what happened and gauging 'shocked” local reaction took up two-thirds of the front page.

But folks plugged into the business community back then knew trouble was coming for Armstrong's, which had seen declining sales as shoppers opted for malls, factory outlets and other options outside of downtown. One story that day noted that 'just last week,” Wal-Mart arrived in Cedar Rapids.

For remaining downtown retailers, things looked pretty bleak. 'Without Armstrong's and Smulekoff's, we wouldn't have a downtown,” said Jim Corcoran, who managed Foreman and Clark, a men's clothing store.

Well, we can now report from the future that even as Smulekoff's becomes a page in the archives, we still have a downtown.

And it's worth noting the contrast. The closure of Armstrong's was seen as a major blow, 'devastating,” some called it. Smulekoff's announcement also got front-page treatment, but it felt more like the sad passing of a good friend than an omen of troubled, uncertain times ahead. We've known since 2011, when Smulekoff's signed up for a possible flood buyout, that closure could come.

And unlike in 1990, there's a ton of positive momentum downtown. Folks back then who predicted that professional offices, restaurants and cultural offerings would take the place of most downtown retail were on the money.

Restaurants have popped up all over downtown. Thousands of people work in downtown offices. The U.S. Cellular Center, Convention Complex, Paramount Theatre, Theatre Cedar Rapids, McGrath Amphitheatre and a new public library are among many cultural draws. Nearby New Bohemia is flourishing and Kingston Village is poised to follow. Downtown housing is rapidly expanding, with news this past week of more projects.

It's likely that Smulekoff's sturdy, historic building will eventually be home to multiple uses, including housing, restaurant and small retail. Instead of a hole in the downtown landscape with an uncertain future, the space will be reinvented. That reinvention will add to downtown, not subtract.

I wouldn't call it a renaissance, necessarily. For one thing, I'd hate to encourage jousting or sword play. But, having spent a lot of time downtown in my nearly seven years, it does feel like a corner has been turned.

lll

I've had a few readers contact me wondering about the Smulekoff's buyout. The main question is how a building assessed by the city at $2.3 million got bought out for $4.7 million.

I talked with Rita Rasmussen, real estate service manager for the city. She said Smulekoff's signed up for the Voluntary Property Acquisition, aka, flood buyouts, in 2011. Its owners were concerned about the construction of a flood wall behind the building that would basically close its loading docks.

Rasmussen said people and businesses who sign up for the program can appeal the city's pre-flood assessed value.

'Smulekoff's went out, obtained an appraisal, submitted it to the city, and it was ultimately reviewed and approved through the program,” Rasmussen said. City staff, she said, signed off on the appraisal. The money comes from federal Community Development Block Grant dollars, which have paid for many buyouts in the city. Smulekoff's is the last one.

I've tried to contact Appraisal Associates Company in Cedar Rapids, which conducted the appraisal, but I didn't get a call back before deadline. If I find out more, I'll let you know in a future column.

l Comments: (319) 398-8452; todd.dorman@sourcemedia.net.