Showing up isn't good enough

Woody Allen once said that 80 percent of life is showing up. While Allen was a part of some good movies, it’s hard to imagine his famous quote to be truly applicable, especially in regards to the poor economic situation we find ourselves.

“Jobs, jobs, jobs” is the message we hear both locally and nationally as the way to economic recovery. With the latest national unemployment rate at 9.5% and an irregular pattern of people entering and exiting the workplace, it’s hard to say when the key statistic will show satisfactory signs of improvement. This comes at a difficult time because as easy as it is to say there need to be more jobs, we’re also going through a transition requiring a change of focus. In the future, successful results will rely not on how hard we work, but how smart we work and the ideas we can generate.

Companies are continually trying to produce products and provide their services as efficiently as possible while maintain a certain level of quality. It’s nothing new; you can look at most manufactured goods over the past century to see the gradual decline of manpower needed to produce it. Advances in technology make it a fact of life. Why have three employees when one can do the job just as good or even the possibility of none with the assistance of a computer?

Most people would agree these are good things and a sign of our advancement as a productive society. Good for capitalism as it increases margins and leads to growth, bad for the old standard of job creation in the manufacturing sector. Lower employee needs in old industries is creating the demand for new industries to be created.

We were always told when we were growing up if we worked hard and put in the hours we’d be rewarded. Although certain aspects will always ring true in terms of work ethic and attitude, it’s being efficient with our time and effective with our decisions that will really make the difference individually and as an overall economy. The creativity and flexibility to think of new and better ways to do things allows for the creation of manufacturing jobs to produce new technologies. It will also provide new jobs for the expanding service industry because no matter how advanced our technology is there are some areas where good employees are not replaceable.

It’s hard to know where the majority of jobs will come from once the economy is back to full-strength, but it’s safe to say many of them will be created through the creation of new businesses and different production lines. The entrepreneurial spirit that is so unique about America will be what eventually puts the unemployed back to work. Traditional employment centers have adjusted to lay-offs they were forced to make, but they can begin to employ again, not into the same jobs as before, but in new ones they create through launching new business lines and products as an expansion of their companies and even into new industries all together. The opening of small businesses will serve job creation in much the same way.

In the end, the politicians and pundits can argue all they want about what tax breaks, incentives, or stimulus will spur these actions to take place, but the true difference will come from the ideas companies, both big and small, generate along with individual entrepreneurs that will lead to real job creation.

While there is still the need to show up, leaving the rest up to a small 20% just won’t be good enough anymore.

Without responsible planning, short-term benefits turn into disadvantages

Platte County has had quite a successful decade, especially in terms of economic development and population growth. This was re-enforced again last week when county population estimates from the Census bureau put Platte County’s 2009 population at 90,688, an increase of just under 17,000 people from 2000. Continuing to be one of the fastest growing counties in Missouri has brought significant benefits including increased revenues for education, more opportunities for employment and new businesses, and the added choices available to consumers. While positive growth is important to maintain, it’s imperative to make sure the economic development we see in the next decade is implemented responsibly with long-term sustainability in mind.

You don’t need to look too far to find examples of short-term economic benefits turning into long-term disadvantages. Although they thrived leading into the new millennium, Metro North and Antioch Mall are now nearly obsolete. Developers and public officials have been trying to figure out for years what exactly to do with what is now a symbol of a retail development era of the past. What were once high concentrations of economic power are now an eyesore reflecting on the surrounding businesses and neighborhoods.
In coming years you’ll also be able to look to Johnson County, a symbol of financial strength and growth over recent decades, and their many municipalities to see who has planned for the eventual maximization of retail supply. Strip malls and retail centers didn’t seem like they could be built fast enough at one time. As they age and lose their appeal, tenants find their way to newer locations down the road, leaving empty buildings and parking lots to breakdown.
Many could say these are results of the free market at work, but one thing not considered is the lasting effects failure has on a community. Not only are jobs lost, tax dollars for public improvements decrease, and home values go down, but surrounding businesses that rely on the demand created by these large developments tend to see lower revenues as well. This is why responsible planning is just as much a factor in our county’s financial sustainability as development itself.

Although this growth would never happen without the investment of developers, sometimes their short-term commitment is similar to the approach politicians take towards poll numbers and exchange the long-term vision of a community for rewards in the present. By the time 20 or 30 years have passed, the original owner or development group is long gone, having seen their profit years before. It’s nothing to say of their character, but simply the capitalist nature of our society to get out at the top. This is why in addition to responsibly planning the development of new economic assets with current ones to expand our county’s growth, encouraging the re-development of older, underutilized centers and buildings will allow for the rejuvenation of entire neighborhoods and street intersections. This creates both the tangible benefit of more economic activity using already present resources and the opportunity to restore an area’s image.

Riverside, Parkville, Platte City, and our major intersections in Kansas City including Zona Rosa and along Barry Road are seeing great progress, but it is important in 20 years that we have planned well enough and built a strong enough infrastructure to ensure the continued economic strength of our county. Although unpredictable and difficult to do, our county must take steps towards growth similar to the steps we take in our own personal lives towards long-term health and well-being.

Tuileries Plaza

Several years ago, few people would have looked at the 50 acres located a half mile west of I-29 on 64th Street and imagined that it would look the way it does today. The brush-filled, rocky terrain the may not have caught the eye of someone interested in developing a retail center.

That was not the case with George and Pam Gunter, the couple who envisioned the site as the future home of Tuileries Plaza. Development began in 2003 with over a year devoted to site work involving the removal of brush, trees, and large amounts of rock. This was just to have the ground level and ready to grade, which was necessary before any buildings could be constructed. Then, another nine months was needed to complete the first buildings. All together, it took about two years from when the construction started to the opening of the first business in 2005. With brick paved streets, rock waterfalls, and slated building rooftops, this area has a very different image now.

George gives credit to his wife, Pam, for the inspiration behind the Tuileries theme.

“We started out with a couple hundred names and keep whittling it down until we came to about twenty or thirty. Then, Pam kind of took us down the path towards Tuileries, a European development.”

With the European architecture and designs of the historic Tuileries Garden in Paris coming to mind, the theme was chosen.

“We like the old timeless look of the buildings and paved streets,” Pam goes on to say.

All of the buildings in Tuileries Plaza are consistent with a European, Old World design with the exteriors featuring either brick or stone veneer. With a unique style, the Gunters also wanted to offer a variety of businesses and shops for consumers to choose from. You will find many locally-owned small businesses such as Em Chamas Brazilian Grill, La-De-Da Fine Furnishings, along with new tenants Fringe Salon and All Star Pizza & Pub. Although a national chain, the Bonefish Grill is one of two locations in the Kansas City area, but the only one in Missouri.

The plaza also features many of the same kind of tenants you see at other shopping centers. Many of these tenants include Quizno’s, Scottrade, SportsClips, and a non-traditionally designed Taco Bell. Since Taco Bell’s standard building design didn’t fit the Tuileries theme, a deal was made so that the exterior matched the rest of the buildings.

“They came to us and wanted to put a location here, so we had to compromise between their standard retail look and something more compatible with our development,” George says.

You also can’t forget about the Haagen Dazs, which at the time it first opened for business was the only Haagen Dazs with a drive-thru window in the entire country.

Tuileries offers a free summer concert series in the courtyard on Thursday nights where people bring their own lawn chairs. The concert series features local artists and bands that vary in music genre. Jazz icon Ida McBeth kicked off the concert series this year on June 11th. Most recently, Private Stock offered an exciting array of classic music hits from the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s. Both young and old can come enjoy a cool, relaxing evening, with the shade from the buildings reaching the courtyard as if on cue for show time. An occasional Congo line or slow dance is sure to add to the entertainment.

With the concert series in mind, the courtyard was designed to provide a relaxing atmosphere. It provides a more intimate setting for smaller crowds and performances. With the expansion of future events in mind, the stone parking lot adjacent to the courtyard can serve as a venue for larger concerts to accommodate bigger crowds. In fact, it will be used to conclude the summer concert series in August, as The Elder’s perform in the series finale on August 13th. Although, Tuileries calendar includes events throughout the year, the concert series is quickly becoming a local favorite.

Yes, George and Pam Gunter have taken Tuileries Plaza a long ways in the past five years. From a brush-filled, rocky piece of land to a European inspired retail development, with a mix of tenants sure to attract consumers of all kinds.

When asked what makes Tuileries stand out from other retail destinations in the area, George said “Everyone thinks they have unique tenants and we believe that too, but I think it’s the look of the buildings and being able to walk on the brick streets and sideways that gives someone a unique feeling about being here.”