What growth did he vote against exactly? I hear this sentiment repeated often here, but never substantiated by anything concrete. Serious question.
Good bye Battles/Campus town liquors building
- Thread starter JP4CY
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What growth did he vote against exactly? I hear this sentiment repeated often here, but never substantiated by anything concrete. Serious question.
He's got the anti-growth label stuck on him since the mall proposal off I-35 was being debated. He along with a few other anti-growthers dragged the process out so long that it eventually just died. Yes, in the end he ended up voting to allow it, but he was outnumbered on the council at that point anyway.
Recently, he's been pretty vocal about South Duff development, the Deery Brothers car dealership proposal, and a proposal by a developer to do actual re-development of campustown (as opposed to putting lipstick on the pig that it currently is).
He has business interests in Ames, and he keeps his interests ahead of the community he was elected to serve.
I pay attention to the city council every now and then, and from what I can tell he is the only one that has an idea what is going on and isn't rife with cronyism. For instance I think everyone wants to see more businesses coming to Ames, but should we have to bend around our own policies/regulations in order to bring them here (i.e. Deery Brothers getting tax abatement for building in a flood plain) when long-standing businesses in the community didn't get the same kind of breaks? Problem is he can't do much with just 1 vote out of 6.
I think a re-developed Campustown would serve his interest well.
The problem with the Campustown proposals so far is that they totally miss the point. Campustown needs redevelopment, but it does not need retail/office space. It needs building renovations/demolitions, and some aesthetic changes. The thing is, its an entertainment district and thats what is going to work there. If you try to turn it into office space, its going to bomb.
The problem with the Campustown proposals so far is that they totally miss the point. Campustown needs redevelopment, but it does not need retail/office space. It needs building renovations/demolitions, and some aesthetic changes. The thing is, its an entertainment district and thats what is going to work there. If you try to turn it into office space, its going to bomb.
It "just died"? That's not how I remember it. I seem to remember the investor in the land getting foreclosed upon after failing to secure a single leaser for the proposed retail space. Not sure it's in the city's best interest to let some developer who can't remain solvent for a couple years develop 800,000 sq ft of future urban blight.
You really want to re-hash that entire debacle? I was trying to make a point with some brevity.
Yeah, the council should've been able to foresee the developer going bankrupt and the economy tanking...but they didn't.
Yup. Prices up, sizes down, quality down.
Also, the same 2 guys have been in line for well over a year now:
The Fighting Burrito Fulfillment Cam
This may be true, however FB wasn't doing so well financially which is why it was sold in the first place. Fact is their burritos are still good and I can can get one cheaper than i can at Poncheros (considering I like grilled veggies and they charge an extra dollar for them).
I had FB the last time I was in Ames and found it incredible.
That could have more to do with the fact that I live an hour from the nearest burrito joint, so I'm quite deprived these days, but nonetheless it was highly enjoyable.
That could have more to do with the fact that I live an hour from the nearest burrito joint, so I'm quite deprived these days, but nonetheless it was highly enjoyable.
Yeah FB has always been my favorite because of the choices they give you and I really like their ingredients. With that said the "good ole days" of them double wrapping burritos are gone.
Right, my point was just that maybe it wasn't such a bad thing that this particular developer didn't end up building a mall at that point in time.
I'm with you on wanting to see Ames grow Ribs, I just think there is also room for deliberation and strategic development. Sometimes it's good to have at least one contrarian on a City Council because you certainly don't want it to just be a rubber stamp. Overall, I think Ames has done a good job expanding slowly without massive sprawl and blight. Even North Grand Mall is finally getting their act together (I hope).
If you graduated from ISU in 2005 like me, and returned for this first time this year, you likely wouldn't recognize more than a hand full of businesses along South Duff from your time in school.
Which is a HUGE step in the right direction. Hell holes like Happy Joe's and the bowling alley needed to go for that area to do anything.
If you didn't pick up on it, I'm not a big fan of Goodman. This dates back to the mid-90s when he was just the gyro guy. I'll leave it at that.
