A NEW FACE FOR OLD MOLINE

Lewis (Lew) Steinbrecher is city administrator of
Moline, Illinois. (Photo: Greg Boll/QC Magazine)

Drive down 6th Avenue in downtown Moline, and you can't help but notice a whole new streetscape in the heart of Moline. From the new 67,000 square-foot police headquarters to the 443-space parking ramp across the street, the block between 16th and 17th streets has been a hub of construction activity.

Although the plans for new buildings were already under way when City Administrator Lew Steinbrecher joined the city in October 2004, he's enjoyed having a front-row seat on progress. "I can't take credit, but it's been nice to be here during the actual construction phases," he notes. Seeing the buildings come out of the ground is one of the favorite parts of his job, and there's been a lot to watch.

Scheduled to open in mid-November, the new $10.6 million police headquarters is part of Moline's municipal campus plan. Around the corner, the now-closed Carnegie library building could eventually become part of that municipal campus.

"We first have to address the building's condition, and we're working on that. I suspect it might turn into some kind of mixed-use, where it has some library presence, but could also have other municipal uses in the future," notes Steinbrecher. The city also hopes to put more than $1 million into the old police/emergency services building over the next year, to renovate office space vacated by police.

Elsewhere, Moline just completed a new $12.5 million library uptown, and has continued to work on public/private partnerships in the downtown district. One such project is Bass Street Landing, which holds the three-story RiverStation and the Stoney Creek Inn. The city also added streetscape improvements, including a plaza, fountain, and lighting. Now home to the Bass Street Chophouse, the RiverStation could also hold eight or nine high-end apartments, as well as retail and office space.

Both are excellent examples of formerly underperforming properties turned into profitable businesses that benefit the tax base, notes Steinbrecher. "There's great satisfaction in watching our partners in the private sector create new jobs and realizing that we were a partner in helping that business be a success," he says. And the parking garage, completed in 2005 at a cost of $7 million, is intended to do more than just stow cars.

"The expectation is to help business thrive in the downtown, and we know parking is an issue. Clearly, helping businesses address that need is part of our strategy to be business-friendly," he said. "We're now seeing the private sector respond with new businesses, and the Moline Centre is starting to develop a good reputation, particularly as a restaurant district. We have some really fine dining opportunities now."

As of September, 67 percent of the Midtowne Parking facility's reserved spaces were filled. The first floor is set aside for short-term parking for business customers. "It's performing exactly as we hoped it would," adds Steinbrecher. But he knows parking is always a hot issue in downtown life. "When you try to apply a parking plan to a very diverse district like our downtown, you can't expect not to have a few bumps along the way," he adds.

Progress hasn't come cheaply, however, and the city's "considerable" long-term debt load is a concern. "The service on that debt over time places a constraint on city budgets, and there's not a whole lot of latitude," said Steinbrecher. "I think there clearly was a need for a new library, and a new police headquarters. They improve morale, enhance efficiencies, and [result] in a better level of service to citizens."

When we spoke, Moline was in the thick of its budgeting process, and funding capital improvements to streets, alleys, and sidewalks is one of Steinbrecher's top three priorities for 2006-2007. However, stretching the city's annual $35 million budget to fit a growing list of infrastructure needs—without raising taxes—is clearly a challenge. With the city being a service business that employs 415 people, more and more dollars are going into health insurance and state assessments for the municipal retirement fund.

"Once you start cutting back [on people], you see an impact on services, so we're trying to cut back on operating supplies. [But] there are fewer parts of the budget we can look at now, and the community is stretched to the limit. It's going to get to the point where the rubber band gets stretched too thin," he said, noting that great portions of its costs are outside the city's control.

"Revenues are going up two or three percent a year, but so are costs. When added that we're not putting enough into streets, sidewalks, and alleys—and that asphalt is so high now with the cost of oil—roads are deteriorating faster than we can improve or repair them," he said. What's left is a strategy that concentrates on making the economic pie bigger with more housing and more tax-paying businesses. "We hope we do a good job before the band breaks."

WHAT'S AHEAD FOR MOLINE?

One project that's picked up speed lately is the new Riverfront campus of Western Illinois University. Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich recently announced plans to allocate $14 million in funding to the project. "That is really the boost this project needed to get off the ground," says Steinbrecher. "The city is proud to be one of the partners in this effort, and clearly, it's [the result] of a real collaboration of organizations and other community leaders, including Deere and Company."

For its part, Moline plans to redevelop the area near the campus into a high-technology "RiverTech" corridor to help retain the skills of young professionals who will graduate from WIU campus—and hopefully, grow the city's tax base as well. "We know that long-term, the riverfront campus will be beneficial to the community and the whole Quad Cities region. It's part of the strategy to transform the Illinois Quad Cities into an information- and technology-based economy. Western Illinois University really opens doors to attract businesses that will retain young professionals, and I think Moline has done a good job with working on quality-of-life issues, from the urban lifestyle to Ben Butterworth parkway."

To the west, Moline is working with a developer on plans for the West Gateway District. Designed as a high-density, mixed-use area within walking distance of the Centre Station bus depot and downtown businesses, the project would better link downtown to the Floreciente neighborhood. One idea on the table is a Mercado, a traditional open-air market. Another developer has purchased four buildings on the west side of 5th Avenue, with intentions of transforming them into the Gateway Lofts.

"Given the land restrictions we have, it's clear that redevelopment is going to be a major part of Moline's recovery," said Steinbrecher. But growing out isn't out of the question, either. The city is actively looking for opportunities south of the Rock River, and is partnering with Milan on a new housing development along Knoxville Road, called the Bluffs at Case Creek.

Other urban living strategies include working with the developer to add 44 residential condos and townhouses to the Bass Street Landing. Spurred on by forgivable façade improvement loans and by the revitalization efforts of Moline Centre Partners, many downtown building owners are fixing their upper stories. The old Moline High School, near downtown, will eventually hold 60 artist lofts. "There's a great urban lifestyle there near downtown," said Steinbrecher. "You begin to put all these individual projects together, and you really kick-start Moline's economic development. We've got pieces out there that are really coming together," he says.

DEVELOPERS WELCOME

Coming to the area with fresh eyes from seven years as the city manager of Kent, Ohio, Steinbrecher says, "I think I see the same things a developer sees—the success of development along the riverfront and the existence of public/private partnerships. For a town the size of Moline, I was very impressed. It told me this town could get things done. There's such a shared vision here," said Steinbrecher.

His two years here have been a welcome change from his previous position, where he admits to being somewhat frustrated by the lack of a shared focus. "In Moline, I sensed a real commitment to economic development. Kent had the same problems and financial constraints, but they could not agree on the economic development strategy. [In Moline] everybody seems to be onboard. Of course, not everyone agrees all the time, but there's wide consensus with the concept. Moline has a good plan for success," he emphasized.

At age 53, Steinbrecher has 30 years of municipal experience. He served as a city manager in five towns, as an assistant city manager in another, and in economic development before that. "During most of my career, I've worked in older cities with aging infrastructure. I enjoy the challenge that a mature city like Moline offers. We're fortunate that we have a good city council. We work well as a team," he said.

Moline's track record is another strength in its corner. "The private sector responds to that," said Steinbrecher. "We really work well with developers, and that's a philosophy I bring to the job. We're having some conversations now with developers for what we're calling Valley View Village. Moline's reputation as being pro-economic development is helping us nurture that project along."

The 130-acre mixed-use development would add residential, retail, and commercial businesses between 60th and 70th streets, just south of John Deere Road. Though the details are still being worked out, Pedcor Investments proposes to develop 384 townhouse apartments in a two-phase, $22 million project. "It's becoming much harder for developers to make these kinds of projects work because of cost of infrastructure," said Steinbrecher. "Developers need to work with cooperative municipalities, and that's where our track record helps us."

Another priority is to shore up the declining SouthPark Mall into a new "lifestyle center" concept that complements Valley View Village. According to figures from the city, SouthPark was producing at $210 per square foot in March 2005, compared to the mid-30s for NorthPark. When sold, Moline hopes to partner with the mall's new owner to revitalize its second-largest tax-producing entity. "It's extremely important to us not only to attract new development, but to keep what's already there."

—Lisa Lockheart
Staff Writer
QC Magazine
Bettendorf, Iowa

Reprinted with permission from the November/December 2006 issue of QC - The Quad Cities Magazine, Bettendorf, Iowa.