Ground level space slowly filling in Downtown Cedar Rapids

Of all the business flood recovery efforts in Cedar Rapids one of the areas taking longest is in downtown Cedar Rapids.  But actually, the slowdown involves just a part of the core business district.

Commercial realtors and the Cedar Rapids Downtown District estimate that 80 to 85 percent of the upper floors of downtown Cedar Rapids buildings are occupied once again.  But that figure drops to just 60 to 70 percent as you go to street level.  Developers say there's an obvious explanation.  Most of the flood damage occurred on the ground floor, or lower, levels of downtown buildings.  Still, developers say there's progress to report-although some familiar downtown names won't be coming back.

One example is Ginsberg Jewelers.  That company did business in a street level downtown store for 80 years until the flood of June 2008.  But flood damage forced a move originally to a temporary strip mall location and then a permanent store site just finished at the Marketplace on 1st development across 1st Avenue from Lindale Mall.  Ginsberg celebrated a grand reopening event Thursday and Friday.

Owners Herman and Steve Ginsberg thought briefly about coming back downtown.  But Steve Ginsberg said he then considered all the construction congestion right after the flood.

“With the equipment and machinery on the streets, I thought it was hazardous to ask customers to our store downtown,” Ginsberg said.

Some developers say not all downtown building owners in Cedar Rapids could afford flood repairs and  clean up right away.  So little got accomplished but a mucking out in some street level locations.  And vacancies at street level are a lot more obvious.

A bankruptcy problem prevented any immediate post-flood work on the 40,000 square foot main floor level of the Town Center complex on 3rd Avenue S.E.  But developer Steve Emerson bought that property at the end of last year and work is now underway to market that ground floor space.  Tiffany Earl, a realtor working with Emerson, said people are starting to ask about available downtown space again.

“A lot of established businesses are inquiring because of things happening downtown with the theater reopening and the new convention center,” Earl said.

Doug Neumann, president of the Cedar Rapids Downtown District, said getting the first floor space reopened has taken longer than he like-but he added it's beginning to happen.

“There are more spaces sold today than six months ago-and there will be more spaces sold six months from now than today,” Neuman said.

Exactly what kind of businesses will fill the ground floor space in downtown Cedar Rapids is up for debate.  A new Mexican restaurant is coming in June to a building located at 1st Avenue S.E. and 2nd Street.  Developers aren't sure if the new businesses that will fill street level spaces will be primarily retail or something else.