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GoogleAnswering these questions is the focus of a new analysis beginning in Le Mars, and officials will want your opinion on the matter.
Le Mars was chosen among nine cities in Iowa to receive a free Market Analysis for Main Street, thanks to application work by former Le Mars Main Street Manager Jayne McGuire.
This week, community leaders and business people met with two experts, one from Chicago and one from the Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED) to get the wheels turning on the analysis.
When asked what Le Mars needed, those gathered pointed to three main businesses: a downtown pharmacy, a clothing store for professional young women and a diner.
"We broke into three groups, and all three agreed on the same needs downtown," said Main Street Director Mary Reynolds, after the meetings earlier this week.
The consultants recommended that a city like Le Mars have two of every business in town, she added.
Another topic that came up, Reynolds said, was second-story housing downtown.
"So many buildings aren't using their second story," Reynolds said. "We want to help them get them rented so they can pull revenue from there as well."
Neal Adler, Le Mars Chamber of Commerce executive director, pointed out during one of the meetings the long-term future of several downtown businesses is uncertain.
"Five to six of the downtown business owners are in their 50s and 60s and it appears they don't have a family member who will carry the tradition on," Reynolds explained. "Those stores are our anchor stores."
The consultants were impressed by the community during their visit, she said.
"They feel we have a wonderful mix of stores and a healthy climate," Reynolds said.
One critique the analysts did have: Le Mars doesn't carry out the "Ice Cream Capital of the World" theme enough.
The analysis isn't finished yet. In fact, it's just beginning.
One of the next steps is to take a survey of people in Le Mars to find out what they have to say about the city's downtown.
Main Street representatives will survey at least 384 people, a cross-section of local residents, on customer service and friendliness of downtown business people, which businesses are valued, positive things about the downtown as well as what's missing, and what Le Mars businesses need to do to keep shoppers from heading to other cities.
"We're really excited to find what people think Le Mars needs," Reynolds said.
In September, the analysts will present the findings, then they'll visit twice more through May 2010 to help put the analysis and action plan into practice.
"One of our main things is to find out what we're losing to other cities, what our strengths are and what our weaknesses are," Reynolds said. "The assessment will show what opportunities are available to us."
The goal, she said, is a strong, established downtown Le Mars.
The analysis is part of the Main Street Iowa program, a chapter of IDED.
Note: The nature of the Internet makes it impractical for our staff to review every comment. If you feel that a comment is offensive, please
a place to take a break from all your worries sure would help a lot. Wouldn't you like to get away? Sometimes I want to go - where everybody knows your name and they're always glad you came. I wanna be where you can see - our troubles are all the same. I wanna be where everybody knows your name. I wanna go where people know people are all the same. I wanna go where everybody knows your name.
I would like a place like that.
sramel, there several places like that in LeMars. They call it A Bar.
a used book store would be nice
SRAMEL was providing the theme song from the tv show "CHEERS".
I am VERY impressed that you knew the lyrics.
I had to play back an old copy of the show to get all of the words.
Kudos to you. That made me laugh!!!!
We go to other towns to see a movie. In fact, we usually eat out first and sometimes even do a little shopping if we get there early enough. Wouldn't it be great to give the owners of the theatre in LeMars a hand and help fix up the existing theatre? We might even get some out-of- towners to come and see a good movie and spend some money in our town.
perhaps some low cost stores of some kind
As far as needing two "diners" downtown, there's always something in the old Pantry location. I'm not sure what the current name is but I usually hear good things about whatever restaurant is there. There's also Pizza Ranch, two Chinese restaurants, and bars that offer food, some of which is actually pretty good. More importantly, though, Lally's has always been a good place to get good food at a fair price. I don't get the need for another "diner."
As for the "Ice Cream Capital of the World," it's hard to live up to that self-proclaimed title. Most of us know people who work at Wells or businesses that exist because of Wells, and one has to acknowledge that the town wouldn't be what it is without Wells. That said, what do people from out of town expect us to do? This isn't Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, where there's a river of chocolate and plants made out of candy. We don't have constant reminders of our "ice cream-ness" everywhere you look. That's the problem with making such a proclamation -- it leads to unrealistic expectations for visitors. They're really going to be surprised in the future if and when Wells changes hands or is split up into several different companies, like what happened with the milk plant.
I agree that a book store, new and/or used, would be nice but I doubt if the demand could support it.
Mark S, liked your comments about are town so called the Ice Cream Capital of the World. Where are the constant reminders of our "ice cream-ness" One may say that we are more then ice cream in this town, but when you go out of town and people ask where are you from, must of us say "I am from LeMars, Ice cream capital of the World." We need to proclaim that more around the town.
We don't need a diner, we just need to support the ones we have, they are good. I think if we proclaimed and showed off some pride to the fact that we are the Ice Cream Capital of the world it might drive more business to our local business. We don't need a double decker bus or some screwed up bricks in a street to to that. Where are the billboards, signs around the bypass to tell traveling people who we are.
How about giving the downtown business a tax incentive/break if they remodel and rent their upstairs builidngs if you want people living there. The City seems to give every other new business a tax break except the people that have been here the longest
There was more than one pharmacy downtown, Lovely drug Mount drug ,There used to be a lot of diners down town also that are not there anymore.
All they needed was for people to use what was there.
There is a clothing store for professional women now.
If people don't use them the businesses that are there they will be gone also. Times have changed and not all of the change has been for the good.
Maybe it is that the stores that are there need to be open different times so that working people can shop when they are off of work.
As for movies a lot of that has to do with the movies that are made now. In my opinion most of them are not what I would go see. It would be nice to have some good family movies.The theater does not have much say so in what kind of movies are made though.
Gib