Lincoln Place going up, but effects yet to be seen

LOVELAND – The site Loveland residents still frequently refer to as the old Walgreens block is swathed in chain-link construction fences as a major redevelopment effort in downtown Loveland rumbles to life.

Observers voice high expectations for the Lincoln Place project under construction at Fifth and Lincoln. They anticipate everything from increased visibility for the city’s historic core to several hundred new residents eager to shop, eat and recreate there.

So far the most notable business-related changes the redevelopment effort has directly catalyzed downtown are slightly busier lunch-hours at some downtown eateries and a bit of a parking squeeze in some downtown neighborhoods, said Mary Bahus-Meyer, president of the Downtown Loveland Association.

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“The two main things are that it’s creating excitement and bringing hope to downtown,” Bahus-Meyer said. “Many of our downtown residents and merchants feel that there hasn’t been a lot of attention paid to our downtown. So they were very excited to see city council approve Lincoln Place. I do think it will be a huge catalyst project for us.”

However, looking for ties to other business activity downtown is premature, at this point, say downtown officials.

“I don’t know that we can relate anything directly to Lincoln Place yet because it’s still under construction,´ said Matt Robenalt, senior planner for the city of Loveland.

That’s not to say there isn’t momentum downtown, Robenalt noted. “On the same surge that investment came with, we are seeing other investments in downtown Loveland.”

For example, three new restaurants have opened or reopened in the past year along with an upscale furniture store. Monaco Trattoria, an Italian restaurant, and Jazz Alley, a restaurant and jazz club, are new downtown. The Cantina has reopened under new ownership. Meanwhile, Lux of Loveland, offering leather furniture, home decorating accessories and gifts, has taken up residence on Fourth Street.

“The shift in, I think, the type of businesses opening up in downtown Loveland is slowly ratcheting up to be more upscale,” Robenalt said.

Robenalt said that Loveland, overall, seems to be becoming more attractive to businesses and developers and downtown is benefiting from that. “I think it’s going to be difficult, until Lincoln Place has been around for a while, to attribute any growth in that respect to the businesses downtown.”

Upon completion, Lincoln Place will boast a two-story parking garage featuring 295 spaces, 22,000 square feet of commercial space and 200 residential units, said Pat Donovan, president of The O’Connor Group, Lincoln Place’s developer. All told the approximately $26 million project will add about 290,000 square feet.

Construction is expected to be complete in late 2006, Donovan said.

Similar projects have added vibrancy to the neighborhoods where they’ve taken shape, Donovan said. “Our hope is that the retail will spur activity in the downtown core of Loveland.”

There’s evidence that Lincoln Place already has drawn attention. For instance, the project was singled out as one of “the shining stars … of urban redevelopment in the West” in the October 2004 online issue of Builder and Developer Magazine.

The concrete structure rising out of the former Walgreens block gives shape to three years of negotiations between city and developer over the property and project plans.

As recently as last fall, the two entities returned to the table to discuss a tax abatement request by the developer.

City of Loveland Finance Manager Alan Krcmarik said The O’Connor Group came to the city in late fall 2005 asking for clarification from the city council of a use-tax waiver request. Krcmarik said that Loveland city government agreed to waive the city’s 3 percent tax on building materials on the parking structure as well as the commercial portion of the project, worth approximately $60,000.

Krcmarik said the developer also requested that payment of use taxes on the residential portion be deferred until certificates of occupancy are issued. That element of the negotiation is still under discussion, Krcmarik said.