Many Eyes Focus on Downtown
Tulare - Filling vacant buildings, the future of the Nielsen's Restaurant/Civic Affairs block, and parking are all hot topics as the 2040 Downtown Tulare Visioning Committee and others look for ways to improve the downtown.
“Think outside of the box,” Bob Reynolds told the 2040 committee's newly formed Business Recruitment Subcommittee, when it met for the first time last week to develop a theme and strategy to attract new businesses.
The subcommittee, which wants to establish a process for recruiting business, has determined it needs to involve pretty much the entire business community and the public in the effort.
“Even a private citizen could have contact with a brewery,” Reynolds said in a reference to previous attempts to attract a micro-brewery to downtown.
“The best way to get contacts in this economy is by referrals,” he said.
Reynolds, chairman of the subcommittee, said when downtown insurance agent Dan Xavier learned a Porterville client was looking to expand, he simply asked, “Have you looked at Tulare?”
The result was Golden State Paint and Body decided to build on South K Street, Reynolds said.
Teaching the business community and others to ask the right questions and providing them with the tools to promote downtown is important, he said.
Nona Wilson, CEO of the Tulare Chamber of Commerce, came up with a marketing theme that her subcommittee colleagues liked: “Live, Work, Play … It's Your Downtown.” The larger visioning committee was expected to consider that recommendation at its meeting this week.
Watson and Traci Myers, the city's economic development manager, are working on copy for downtown marketing brochures, including ones that would identify city-owned parking, identify downtown merchants and explain the process for starting a downtown business.
The 2040 Visioning Committee, formed a year ago as the result of a 2008 consultant's study, recently formed four other subcommittees: Funding and Budget; Events and Activities; City Assistance and Community Downtown Promotion.
Civic Center Block
The Nielsen's Restaurant/Civic Affairs block across the street from Zumwalt Park in downtown Tulare is back in the spotlight, two years after a Southern California developer proposed to raze the properties to build a five-story, block-long mixed use development on the site.
The developers, Opal Capital Partners, recently contacted city officials to say they are still interested in a downtown project.
The company was scheduled to meet with the 2040 Visioning Committee in February, but that was delayed because of other business the committee needed to address.
With the Tulare Public Library getting ready to move this summer into its new downtown building at the corner of M Street and Cross Avenue, which also includes City Council Chambers, the question has been what will the city do with the aging Civic Affairs Building, which houses the existing chambers and three small businesses, including the Tulare Voice, which rent office space from the city.
The City Council and the Tulare Redevelopment Agency are scheduled to meet in joint session this week to discuss the future of the building and the block and other matters.
Parking Woes
City Manager Darrel Pyle asked the City Council last week for direction on another downtown issue – parking in the city lot on the corner of North K Street and East Tulare Avenue.
He offered two possible solutions: Impose two-hour parking limit or sell a portion of the parking spaces to the new Dillyn's Restaurant.
By time the discussion was over, the council had decided in a 3-1 vote with Vice Mayor Phil Vandegrift in opposition and Councilman David Macedo absent, to limit parking to two-hours in that lot.
Jeff Nahial, owner of the restaurant, said he is concerned the lack of a time limit in the city-owned parking lot adjacent to his business is causing his and other restaurants in the area to lose lunch business.
“I've seen customers drive by and leave because they can't find parking,” Nahial said. He reported the problem doesn't seem to exist after 5 p.m. and suggested a two-hour limit between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
Lionel Pires, chairman of the 2040 Downtown Visioning Committee, agreed control was needed.
“It's being used more by people working downtown,” he said.
“I think we've had this discussion before,” Mayor Craig Vejvoda said, referring to the fact the problem with this particular lot has surfaced many times over the past few years.
“To say the least, this is a controversial issue,” said Jerry Magoon, coordinator of the Tulare Improvement Program.
Council members said they had been contacted by Billie Souza, owner of a beauty shop across the street on Tulare Avenue, who has opposed restricting parking in the lot.
In the past she has stressed the need for employees to park there because of safety issues in the evening, when they leave from work in the dark.
“This parking lot does seem to hold premium status because it is lit,” Pyle said, adding that perhaps a review of improvements needed to increase security in other parking areas needs to be done.
The question of whether the city could enforce two-hour parking was also discussed and Tulare Police Capt. Wes Hensley said that his department, in conjunction with the Code Enforcement Division in the Fire Department, could probably work jointly on the issue.
Pyle said the two-hour parking won't happen immediately and said he will work with the City Attorney's office on the matter.
After the vote, Councilman Richard Ortega asked Pyle to look for ways of enhancing lighting in the other downtown lots, which he said he would do.
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