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St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Lee Enterprises

Friday, August 8, 2008 11:11 PM CDT
OUR VIEW: Mall renovation plan is good news

JG/T-C Editorial Board

The $4.5 million renovation of the Cross County Mall is good news for the Mattoon area.

The renovation will be paid for through TIF funds and a special 1 percent sales tax in the mall area.

The funding basically comes from the shoppers in the mall area.

The mall has been a staple in Mattoon for about 40 years. An upgrade to the building is needed.

A few changes have been made to the site over the years, some internally by individual stores, but this will be about the largest upgrade in the mall’s history.

As we said last fall when the renovation first was suggested, a key ingredient to the ongoing vitality of any regional shopping center is periodic investment and modernization of the facility.

The mall serves as an anchor on the east side of Mattoon.

Growth near Interstate 57 was a long time coming.

From the late 1960s until the early 1990s there was little commercial development along Illinois Route 16 near the I-57 interchanges.

But the mall has been there with some stable major retail outlets.

Today, JC Penney, Elder-Beerman and Sears continue to occupy major space in the mall.

In recent years, several other retail stores have opened between the mall and I-57. Those shopping and dining options complement the mall and give people more reasons to shop locally.

That’s important to any community.

In the $4.5 million plan to upgrade the mall, the shopping center’s owners will provide $500,000 while TIF funds and business district taxes will fund the bulk of the project.

Frankly, we wish the mall owners were making a greater investment in the project.

But creating the TIF and business districts will raise needed funds without committing the City of Mattoon to the use of other money.

TIF funds available are limited to the amount of sales and property tax increases that are greater than what was generated the previous year.

Amounts up to the previous tax revenue still go to the city for other uses.

The 1 percent sales tax should not be a deterrent to most shoppers.

The citywide sales tax is 6.75 percent so the 1 percent hike means folks shopping at the mall will pay 7.75 percent.

For someone who spends $100 at the mall, it means they will pay an extra $1 in taxes.

True, the 7.75 percent sales tax is higher than what shoppers will pay at stores outside the mall area business district. Charleston and Effingham have 6.75 percent sales taxes — the same as levied in Mattoon outside the mall area business district.

But Champaign-Urbana and Decatur have 7.75 percent sales tax rates while Bloomington-Normal’s sales tax rate is 7.5 percent.

So the mall area business district tax is not out of line with what is generally charged in some other communities that are shopping hubs.

Keeping an established mall as a strong retailing force is in the interest of the city of Mattoon and the area.

The$4.5 million renovation project at the Cross County Mall looks like a move forward.

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BW wrote on Aug 9, 2008 8:23 AM:

" Did we get to vote on the sales tax increase? I don't recall voting on it. Is the mall authorized to levy taxes? "

just wondering wrote on Aug 9, 2008 10:46 AM:

" As I understand it, rent on the phone company and the eye care place was doubled or tripled and that is why they are moving out. If they want more business in the mall, I think this might be the real problem why they can't get anyone to locate here if they are doing that to all the businesses. "

Early Bird wrote on Aug 10, 2008 5:43 AM:

" The first time I heard about this tax increase was on this site, by a fellow poster. Was it announced publicly? It seems strange that the city would make such a decision without any public input. I suspect this "stealth" tax increase was sneaked in through the back door, like most of the things in Mattoon are done.

I did see that the fireman are spreading their lunch business around. I saw a fire truck at the Don Sol restaurant at lunchtime the other day. Being a part owner of Pagliacci's, I wonder if the city attorney is trying to get them to go to his business too? LOL! "

pj1983 wrote on Aug 10, 2008 6:30 AM:

" bw, the mall didn't levy the taxes, the city did. "

medic57 wrote on Aug 11, 2008 8:03 AM:

" That extra 1 % tax wil send buyers of big ticket items to Wal-Mart, Cards, Waldens, Rural King and Champaign. Actually, it probably won't make much difference with Sears, they never have what is on sale anyway, but they do always seem to have the next model up. "

medic57 wrote on Aug 11, 2008 8:05 AM:

" Yeah, and paying $500,000 out of 4.5 millino seems like a pretty good deal. At least for the owners. "

pj1983 wrote on Aug 11, 2008 11:43 AM:

" hate to burst your bubble, medic, but the sales tax in champaign is the same as it is in the mall. 7.75% if i were in the market for a big ticket item, i'd check out terre haute. sales tax is only 6% in indiana. "

Voltaire wrote on Aug 11, 2008 8:45 PM:

" We buy 80% of everything online. 0% sales tax, free 2day shipping, we can shop whenever we want and not spend any on gas. Some places even offer free return shipping. The only time we go to mall is when we need something the same day and we haven't been to W-mart in over 10 years. "

medic57 wrote on Aug 11, 2008 9:01 PM:

" PJ

And while you're in Champaign, or Terre Haute, you can shop at 10 times as many store and eat at 10 time as many resaraunts. If you buy a car in Indiana they still charge you Illinois Tax. "

pj1983 wrote on Aug 12, 2008 8:56 AM:

" i agree, medic. but fixing up the mall is a step in the right direction. i don't think we'll ever be a terre haute or a champaign, but it will be nice to have more options. "

The Curious wrote on Aug 13, 2008 5:43 PM:

" Voltaire wrote on Aug 11, 2008 8:45 PM:
" We buy 80% of everything online. 0% sales tax, free 2day shipping, we can shop whenever we want and not spend any on gas. Some places even offer free return shipping. The only time we go to mall is when we need something the same day and we haven't been to W-mart in over 10 years. "

Do you find toilet paper cheaper online?
Do you eat/drink anything at home? "

longtimegone wrote on Aug 15, 2008 1:19 PM:

" Another free ride for the mall owners? "

Texas T wrote on Aug 15, 2008 1:44 PM:

" That small sales tax percentage you save driving to Terre Haute gets eaten up in fuel charges to drive over there and the last time I was over there (last summer) the area near the mall was getting pretty seedy looking. Sears in the Mattoon mall has some amazing sales. I flew up to visit my Dad one weekend and the airline lost my luggage so when I got into Mattoon I went out to the mall and stopped by Sears. I got $300.00 worth of clothes for less than $50.00. That was awesome. Of course on my way home from the mall the airline called and they had found my bag. LOL Still amazing. "

voltaire wrote on Aug 16, 2008 10:33 AM:

" The Curious wrote on Aug 13, 2008 5:43 PM:

"Do you find toilet paper cheaper online?
Do you eat/drink anything at home? "

Yes, almost everything is cheaper online and we only eat out one night week. Eating out woudl defeat the puropse of buying everything online to save money.

We have subscribe and save from Amazon for toilet paper, paper towels, diapers, baby formola and the kids cereal. We save about 35% and the shipments are strung out across the month, so about once a week a shipment comes. If we run out we get online and it comes the next day. Free shipping on all the products. We don't eat red meat but get fresh ground turkey and chicken from a farm in Vermont, saves about 15% over the local grocery store price and it's organic. Horizon organic milk is $4.80 local, we get it online for $3.75. About the only thing we buy local grocery wise are fresh fruit and vegetables and bread items. Otherwise why not just let ups bring it to your door and it is there when you get home from work and save 20% on average. We get a much bigger selection of items and we save several hours a month by not having to go to the store. Give it, There is not much to not like about it. "

medic57 wrote on Aug 16, 2008 12:25 PM:

" I once flew to Seattle, I ask TWA if they could send 1 bag to Chicago, 1 to New York and 1 to Boston, they said I'm sorry sir we can't do that. I said why not, you did last year. "

attainedage wrote on Aug 16, 2008 10:57 PM:

" voltaire - websites please. "

Dottedline wrote on Aug 17, 2008 9:36 PM:

" Recently,I had looked everywhere for a particular kind of CD player/radio, including "big box" stores and online retailers. I found exactly what I was looking for at Sears at the best price. WalMart had the product but at a higher price; that surprised me. What do you think WalMart prices will be when the only store in America is WalMart and the only supplier of goods is China? What do you think the quality of groceries and other products will be in those circumstances? It will be whatever WalMart says it will be. As for the mall, it has LONG needed improvements; it has never looked like a mall from the outside, never looked like an inviting place. I hope the upgrades will make it look great and that businesses there will prosper. Mattoon-Charleston need good shopping options and that will be only more true as gas prices rise. "