Section: ENIX ZONE
Edition: LEDGER-ENQUIRER
Page: H9

Back in March, a somewhat different group gathered to talk about what was then sort of a fledgling effort downtown development in Phenix City. Where has this effort gone since then?

Howard: I think we've come a long way. We have finalized our preliminary plan. It's not the final plan, but it is the preliminary plan. That will be presented to the city council, Jeff, I'm not sure when. Sometime either this meeting or the next. I'm not sure exactly when, but that will be presented to the city council to approve it. So we are working through the planning stage and, as I've told everyone, we're through with the easy part. Now the tough part comes. What do we do with it? So that's the next step: What are we going to do? We've talked about white water rafting. We've talked about the possibility of a hotel. We've talked about the possibility of restaurants and the relocating of Riverview Apartments So we've got a lot of things on the plate that we've got to get specific on instead of just talking about it. It's been the most pleasant six months that I've ever worked with a project. But the real work starts now. We've got a little time, but we don't have a whole lot. If we're still sitting here two years from now talking about a plan, then we lost.

Hardin: This has been a vision for Phenix City for a very long time, and I'm glad that we had a group come in and talk about it. But this has kind fallen and stalled, and I'm glad to see the East Alabama Riverfront Development Group has picked this ball up and worked with Boulevard (Group, an Atlanta consulting firm). And I think this is the best that's been done so far, and I think with their excitement and momentum, this thing is finally going to happen. Just speaking from the government side of it, we want to be involved. And we're like Sammy and the rest of the group --- we see there's a window of opportunity and the government's got to be a part of this momentum in seeing this thing through.

Wiggins: It's a tremendously exciting thing for me to be a part of it. As Sammy said, six months ago is probably when we really kicked off and got going as a volunteer group, and I think the difference is that each time we get together now --- we had a meeting last week --- new people come. Instead of getting smaller and interest waining, it's gotten larger. We've had at least four public meetings for the Boulevard Group to talk to the public in Phenix City. Each meeting has been well attended by a very diverse group of people and with lots of questions, all pretty much positive. You're always going to have one or two that have a negative thought, but for the most part a very positive momentum. So this private sector that is getting together on a volunteer deal partnering with the public sector --- it's going to take both sides for this to actually happen and for it to start coming to fruition, but it is. The private sector, the developers and then with help from the city when we need it, I think that we're just posed for activity to begin down here. I grew up in Russell County and, when we came to town when I was a child, "downtown" was downtown Columbus. Everybody was talking about redevelopment and I said, "It's not really redevelopment." That beautiful riverfront property has never been a destination site in Phenix City. Now we have the opportunity to make it a point of destination for people. And building on what Columbus has done over the last 10 years, it's just absolutely the prime time for it to happen.

Lynn: Jeff mentioned that we've been talking about downtown redevelopment --- or downtown development --- for a long time. I know I've been here off and on for the last 20 years almost, and the first piece I did for this newspaper was writing about a news conference on downtown development in --- what was it --- 1985. Those were sincere efforts over the years, but the difference and the thing that's really come to the front in the last six months is, one, we've got a very true, a very strong partnership across the river that we need. We're talking about a town of 28,000 people and a $250 million redevelopment plan. It takes a larger base to make that happen, both politically and economically and otherwise. The other first, at least from my perspective, is that we've got a consultant, someone who's on staff so to speak with a punch list --- because a volunteer group can't. We've got day jobs and we've got to be mayor and this, that and the other. But having these folks guiding us through every step is a tremendous difference and someone to help us ensure that the thing gets implemented.

One of the things that comes out in conversation is that idea that this really may be an approach that bridges the river. Is this an opportunity to really make that happen?

Lynn: Mr. (Bill) Turner has talked recently about --- well, we've all talked about one uptown, you know, that hopefully it's no longer Columbus and the west side of the river but one uptown. And I think that has implications not just economically but socio-economically. It has some cultural implications that we can become more one community.

Wiggins: It is the tri-community area. We just came from the United Way kickoff luncheon, and you couldn't get another person in the ballroom at the Trade Center. I thought that was a tremendous example of what we're talking about. I see in Fort Benning with 15,000 new citizens coming to our area. I saw a presentation on that at the Bradley Company. Thirty-three percent of our employees live in Alabama. Twenty-eight percent of Synovus employees live in Alabama. We are one community, and the quality of life in this one community is extremely important to each of us but also to our families, to our companies' ability to recruit the kind of people we need to recruit. And what we are envisioning for the Phenix City riverfront, with the students coming downtown with Columbus State already, is an educational element. Having the students going back and forth across the pedestrian bridge is just a dream I have. I just love thinking about that and envisioning that. I know that I'm anxious now so I want to get it done, and it's taken Columbus 20 years to do what they've done in the uptown area, so I know it's going to take longer than two years. But I really think that once some of these elements are in place, we're going to really see a lot of movement.

What are people saying and asking most about this project?

Howard: The question I'm asked the most is, "Do I really believe this can happen?" I think our biggest challenge, and it's my biggest challenge as the head cheerleader, is to get people in Phenix City to believe it can happen. I think that's where we're at. Somewhere in here we've got to make some things start happening because we've never really done anything like this. And we're beginning to get people to understand it a little bit, but there's some doubt. And I guess one thing is they have no idea how all this is going to be financed --- you know, if the city can't afford it. Well, the city is not going to be paying for most of it --- the private sector is going to be doing it. Like Jeff just said, the city is there to assist with roads or water or sewage or whatever. But I think the biggest challenge is we've got to continue cheerleading until things begin to happen, for the people in Phenix City to believe this can happen.

Hardin: You know, as I was listening to Sammy, he was saying people ask him, "Can this really happen?" When I talk to people my age and younger, they expect it to happen. It's not an if, it's when; there are just so many expectations for Phenix City to do great things and it's not a matter of can it or will it. . . . People are ready to see things happen.

Wiggins: Somebody asked me yesterday when the groundbreaking for the restaurant was going to be. The expectation is that it's already a done deal.

Howard: That's what I'm talking about. There's no telling how many people have asked, "When is Riverview (public housing complex) coming down?" Well, we're not even close to that, and we don't even know yet if it is coming down. Or the restaurant, when is that going to happen? When are people coming down the river on the canoes? And like Jeff said, they're expecting it to happen, they're ready for it to happen. We've got to make sure that everyone stays excited about it in this next one- to two-year period because you're not going to see a lot of things. You're going to see some announcements. I mean, at some point in the next few months, an announcement will be made about what's going to happen with Riverview.

Hardin: And I don't think this thing is going to be shelved again to collect dust. It's if you can't get it done, we're going to get somebody who can, and that's what I'm hearing.

Wiggins: I recently had guests here from Jackson, Miss., and they were so impressed with uptown Columbus where I work, with how beautiful and clean Columbus is in the center city and the restoration. And they were saying how that Jackson has gone the other way. They work for a college, and they want to bring people over from Jackson to see the student housing we have in Uptown. Well, when our vision becomes reality, well, part of that vision is an attractive uptown experience --- you know, a city, an urban environment where people will be out walking and enjoying themselves. Sammy has mentioned Auburn. Downtown Opelika is a charming place. They have restored the look of the street and added nice amenities, and it's a much smaller area than we're talking about here. This will be a place for us to come and socialize and enjoy ourselves, and we will be proud of what we're seeing. And again, it will be just one uptown nicely developed urban area with food and entertainment on both sides of the river.

Do you have kind of a publicity plan approach to sell this to Phenix City and Columbus?

Howard: I think we've been --- that's what our public meetings have been doing all along. I had a very wise leader in Columbus make a statement, and I believe it: If you keep the people excited about it, your elected officials will stay excited about it. So that's what we're trying to do. We've done things, and people will say, well, that's been in the back door in the past. We haven't. Everything's been out. We haven't had a closed meeting. We don't have a closed group. Anyone who wants to come to any of our meetings can. And I think that's what we've tried real hard to do this time is not make that mistake, to sell it to the public and, again, we've got to keep selling it. We can't let this thing begin to lag or drag somewhere. We've got to keep people excited about it.

Wiggins: Back in January or whenever, we took a bus trip to Atlanta to tour Centennial Place and took anybody who wanted to go with us, including some residents from Riverview. And that was a great day and a great experience. I feel like we gave the Riverview residents a vision of a better life.

Lynn: I think it's been, as Sammy said, a very open process. The local news outlets have been actively covering this thing. I think Sammy's right, though: We're right on the cusp. And we've described to people that it's a blending of an awful lot of resources coming together. We're not going to saddle the taxpayers with 250 million dollars of development.

What can people expect to see happen first?

Howard: I think there are three things that could happen: An announcement of a hotel. A new restaurant on the river; the one we're talking to is a top-notch group. And then an agreement on the Riverview project. If we can get those three things done by the end of the year, I think that's really going to carry into some other areas. We've got some interest from a hotel in building across from the Trade Center. We've got a beautiful location for a restaurant that the owners are very serious about. Once we announce what's going to happen with Riverview --- that's a hold-up; nobody knows --- you've got people ready to come in there and buy property and build restaurants and build shops or whatever. But they're not going to do it until we know what's going to happen with Riverview.

Do you have a timetable on when you might know something?

Lynn: Well, one thing I've learned is it's complex, and it's nothing I can sit down and write on a sheet. The first thing we've got to do, obviously, is hire an executive director. With the whole picture on Riverview, it's going to take a mixture of different approaches to get that whole thing done. There's no single approach to funding mechanisms and relocating residents. We need an executive director on board as a professional who knows the HUD programs and things that are available out there to guide us through that. It's hard to do that with a volunteer board. So once we get that done, I think it starts to fall into place very quickly.

Wiggins: When do you think that's going to be done?

Lynn: We're accepting resumes now. That should close out at the end of this month, and hopefully by early to mid-October I think we'll have a decision.

Wiggins: Do you think it'll be somebody local?

Lynn: We we just started the process for accepting applications or resumes. There may be some local folks, and there are already I believe some resumes coming from out of town. Howard: I told Jeff today at lunch, two of the most important hires that will take place over the next four years are the executive director of the Housing Authority and the economic development board. We've got to have seasoned veterans in those two jobs because a big part of this is going to fall on the professional economic development director just like it's going to fall on the housing director.

Lynn: We kind of have visions of what we want to do with Riverview, but we don't have the technical and professional expertise that we will have with the executive director to move it forward. Then you get into federal funding cycles and all sorts of other bureaucratic considerations.

Howard: I think you're talking about another year before you really can do anything, maybe two years.

Wiggins: The point is clear that everybody now is on board philosophically with creating something vibrant and economically viable at that Riverview site, be it a mixture of housing, perhaps part of the college campus, whatever it is. Do you expect the person you hire as the next Housing Authority director to have some vision about the relocation efforts and redevelopment?

Lynn: Yes, it's got to be somebody who is familiar with Hope VI type structures, like at Peabody (Peabody Apartments in Columbus, scheduled for renovation as mixed-income residences under a federal Hope VI grant). The consultants (Boulevard Group of Atlanta) are helping us through that a little bit now. But we've got to have someone on the job who is familiar with various structures, various elements, whether it's Hope VI or low-income housing tax credits --- just the complete range of ways to get this done, traditional ways and new ways

Wiggins: All the indicators from other developers and the educational element have indicated that once we know the positive track for the Riverview campus, they're there. The educational element --- Sammy hadn't mentioned that, but I think that's going to be close behind those first three in terms of actual movement.

What do you mean by educational element?

Wiggins: CVCC (Chattahoochee Valley Community College) possibly.

Hardin: Troy State.

You mean one or both of those having a presence in town?

Lynn: Yeah. That really caught on with this meeting we had the other week. People really get excited about educational components, because we've seen how successful this Columbus State deal has been and it works really perfectly together. Columbus State's emphasis has been arts and music. Well, Troy and CV can focus on workplace development and MBA programs and other things that are not arts-oriented but are needed in this community.

What kind of buy-in are you getting from the people who own property and who run businesses in Phenix City? Nervousness? Anticipation?

Howard: Yeah. Not real sure. Some have already called and said, "Look, we're ready. We'll sell our property. We can locate somewhere else, especially in the Dillingham Street region." I think they're a little nervous. But I think they see they're going to be better off, no matter what happens in here. And I think some of them are afraid of --- it's not going to be a widespread type thing with the city coming in there buying up all the property and running folks out.

Hardin: I know a particular property owner down there, and he's spoken at a couple of meetings. And he's very interested in if he can help in relocating; he's very willing to relocate and move his business somewhere. He feels like he needs to upgrade anyway, and this would be a great opportunity for him to help the city and also to move into an updated building. I don't think there's really a possessive-type attitude --- you're not going to take my land and we're not going to sell and we're going to be here forever. It's more that we want to see these good things happen, and of course we also want to be paid for our property.

Lynn: I mean, to be honest, this is a business opportunity for a lot of them, but that's a part of the engine that makes these things go.

Wiggins: It is. A lot of this is going to be market driven, you know. We put in loft apartments in uptown Columbus in a building that's not particularly scenic from the outside, and it's a 100 percent rented. Housing or apartments will be one of the uses of the Pillowtex property, and what we're hearing is people want to to live on a river. As we begin having some housing developed over there, I think they'll get any property values that they need to get, but their businesses will prosper.

Is there anything we should have asked you that we didn't, or anything that you wanted to talk about that we didn't bring up?

Hardin: You know, I think one thing that stalled the growth for Columbus' downtown area was not having people there. And I think the great thing about the Phenix City development is we're planning housing down there. Columbus found it was difficult to get people, once they leave the downtown area, to come back at night and patronize the restaurants and the pubs and so forth. And a part of the plan is that they're going to put some mixed use down there with retail and some specialty shops and housing, whether it be condos or townhouses. And I think that's what's going to drive our downtown from the start. That's the environment I envision for Phenix City in the future, and we can see those things happening from the start

Howard: The timing on this is unbelievable. You know, when you talk about river restoration, and you've got overflow from Columbus, you've got a new brigade coming into this area, you can just go on and on about the things that are happening now. It's just almost magical that they've all come together. We couldn't have done this 10 years ago. We couldn't have done it five years ago. We may not be able to do it 10 years from now if we wait. So all the parts have come together and the opportunity is great now, because of a lot of it is just luck.

Wiggins: I think we're in the right place at the right time, to be honest with you.

Lynn: I don't have a lot to add either, except from my perspective this is a good news story. We've got challenges, but they're pretty obvious challenges. Nobody is hiding anything. Nobody is working behind the scenes in any direction that we aren't. It's going to be good for the community. You don't find people who are against it. You do have people still waiting, prove it to me, prove it to me, but there's really nobody out there who's against this thing. It's just a tremendous opportunity, as Sammy said, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

THE PANEL
Jeff Hardin, Mayor-elect, Phenix City
Sammy Howard, Chairperson, East Alabama Regional Development; former Phenix City mayor
Jim Lynn, Total System Services; EARD board
Susan Wiggins, W.C. Bradley Co.; EARD board

"This will be a place for us to come and socialize and enjoy ourselves, and we will be proud of what we're seeing. And again, it will be just one uptown nicely developed urban area with food and entertainment on both sides of the river." Susan Wiggins, W.C. Bradley Co. and East Alabama Regional Development board

FOR THE LEDGER-ENQUIRER
Pam Siddall, President and publisher
Dusty Nix, Associate editor
Michael Owen, Associate editor
Jerry Rutledge, East Alabama team leader
Sandra Okamoto, Arts/entertainment writer; Ledger-Enquirer editorial board

(Caption for missing photo below.) 
"How can you be against this project? I mean, it's just a no-brainer. This is going to be good for all of us. Not just the people on the Phenix City side of the river; the Columbus folks are going to benefit from it, and it's going to be great." Jeff Hardin, Phenix City's mayor-elect, on developing Phenix City's downtown and riverfront areas