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Downtown is vital, backers insist Its vacancy rate is lower than the mall's, and several remodeling projects are under way By MELISSA MARTIN Mail Tribune A casual observer might think downtown Medford is a sea of "For Lease" signs, but those given the task of breathing new life into downtown say the core is thriving. "Our challenge is when somebody asks us for space downtown, do we have enough to offer them?" said Don Burt, director of the Medford Urban Renewal District. Downtown Medford's vacancy rate for ground-floor office space is 1.5 percent, lower than the Rogue Valley Mall and the suburbs, said Scott Henselman, owner of Henselman Realty & Management. "People have a wrong perspective of vacancies in downtown," Henselman said. "When you walk the mall, you don't see vacant spaces because they have fake walls and you think you're seeing a hall. But in downtown, there are signs all over, empty windows, property not presenting itself very well. A lot of times an out-of-town property owner will allow a place to deteriorate and you might notice trash is not picked up, sidewalks not swept or cobwebs on the wall. Despite appearances, "downtown Medford is a thriving, healthy place," Henselman said. A Tuesday walking tour of downtown revealed as many remodeling projects or proposed new buildings as it did vacancy signs. A former law office on the corner of Grape and Main streets sat empty. So did the former Pacific Power business office across the street. But two blocks away, Fred Phelps, the owner of Evangel Family Bookstores, plans a major remodel of his corner building at Central Avenue and Sixth Street. Jackson County will build a new library at Central Avenue and 10th Street. And there are plans to remodel the Franklin Building next to Rogue Community College on Central Avenue. At Middleford Alley, a cobblestone street behind the city's Sixth Street parking garage, a remodel is making room for a U.S. Forest Service carpool unit. But a block away, Regence BlueCross BlueShield will leave a gap on Central Avenue, and the C. Jordan Brown building at 230 E. Main St. remains empty. "We've been working with someone who wants to move in here as soon as Lawrence's Jewelers is finished with its remodeling project," said Linda Beauchamp, administrative assistant for urban renewal. Lawrence's Jewelers hopes to remodel its storefront to look like the shiny, new brick building across the street, built by Western Bank but now closed and quiet with a "For Lease" sign in the window. Bank buildings are harder to lease because a new tenant would likely have to remodel the inside, Beauchamp said. Further up Central, Mountain Music remains empty more than a year after the instrument shop closed. But next door, a thriving ARC thrift shop took advantage of an urban renewal loan program and restored its facade. "Once we start replacing these sidewalks with pavers and Fred Phelps completes his project at Central Plaza, it's going to make this area much more desirable," said Burt, standing beneath an awning at the old JCPenney building remodeled years ago by the Southern Oregon Historical Society. "Underneath that old Mountain Music sign is a stained glass transom. Someone could get historic tax credits for buying and restoring this building," Burt said. Twenty downtown businesses have taken advantage of urban renewal's facade restoration program, including the Joseph Winan's project in downtown's "furniture district," Beauchamp said. The biggest project in downtown's history is planned for the empty lot at Main and Fir streets. Medford Urban Renewal and a Washington developer will work together on the $22 million, six-story Winetrout building, which combines a parking garage with office space and condominiums. "It will provide opportunities for people who want to be in downtown and are looking for new space for their growing companies," Burt said. Reach reporter Melissa Martin at 776-4497 or [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.