November 07, 2009
What's Inside:
TIF fight brews over Rock Port grocery store
ROCK PORT, Mo. — One grocery store is apparently not enough for a tax increment finance board in Rock Port.
A group of developers looking to establish a new 10,000-square-foot grocery store is requesting $175,000 in TIF help. The TIF board met Thursday and listened to the developers and the owners of what is currently the sole grocery store in town — Rock Port Market.
Community members spoke for and against the TIF before the board voted unanimously and without discussion to approve the financing.
Miles Leisman, who owns Rock Port Market along with his father and two brothers, pointed to an alleged violation of the state’s open records and meetings law. He said a notice for a City Council meeting where the TIF was discussed occurred May 12. The notice published in the local paper said the meeting was to take place May 13.
“This is a railroad job,” Mr. Leisman said after the meeting.
The Atchison County commissioners will have final say on the matter when they meet in two weeks.
Matthew Leisman, whose family has owned grocery stores in the county since 1932, said the family doesn’t mind competition. But the TIF, they say, will provide an unfair advantage to the new store, which would be located at the intersection of highways 136 and 111 in Rock Port.
Chris Sally, an associate with Development Initiatives Inc., out of Kansas City, argued for the Leismans Thursday. He said the TIF will unfairly take customers from the existing store and tax money from the public from a business that is already filling the needs of the town.
Mr. Sally argued that the TIF should be used to bring in businesses that don’t currently exist in the town — a car dealership, farm equipment company, clothing store or grain company — to generate financial growth and improvements to the community.
W.C. Farmer, one of the developers, told the TIF board that although his group is looking for some tax breaks, they’re not asking for payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOTS).
“We didn’t want to touch any of that,” Mr. Farmer said, adding that they would be willing to pay the first $21,000 in taxes before any TIF money would be redirected toward their investment.
An official with Affiliated Foods, which supplies Rock Port Market, said their projections show that the area can support two stores. Mr. Sally said those estimates, which are two-and-a-half times the current sales, are way off.
“The biggest loser is the taxpayer,” Mr. Sally said.
Jimmy Myers can be reached
at jimmym@npgco.com.
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I'm told the current store has bare shelves and lots of out dated merchandise lots of the time, the folks I know that live there go out of town to shop for that very reason.
Over in Maryville they built a new store with TIF funds to replace an inadequate one. In their advertising they call it "Your Hy Vee".
In the past we've shopped there quite a bit, and in the big malls in St Joe that taxpayers built.
I guess now, "we" have a grocery store too.
I find the comment by Mr. Leisman "This is a railroad job" very interesting... In my eyes, the Leisman's have been railroading the community of Rock Port for years. We have been forced to shop out of town due to extremely high grocery prices, and lack of available product. Not more than one month ago, I went to Rock Port market to purchase a few items, here is what I saw... Bare shelves, no meat in the meat case, no produce, no can goods. I can go on and on.... not to mention poor customer service. Here is another fact that I find very interesting.. Rock Port Market was recently in violation by the state of Missouri for not paying sales tax (which is public record), even though they were collecting it from every sale. It is hard to believe that Rock Port Market is challenging this project on the grounds of community tax money, when they themselves did not "PAY" their sales taxes.
I have one comment about MR. Sally statement "Rock Port Market is already filling the needs of the town", if this was actually true, I would not need to drive 60 miles to shop for my groceries. I look forward to when the new store opens so I can shop for my groceries locally again, which will help support and grow the community that we all love.
What a shameful use and abuse of taxpayers. The $175,000 could be used to improve and augment an existing but struggling business. This give-away scheme will cause a family owned and operated grocery to be put out of business. This is not fair to the majority of taxpayers!
Will we see this NEW 'family' of investors grocery for another 3/4 century? Or will we see these new investors sell out and run off with a bundle even before the new grocery proves not to live up to expectations and projected sales?
We who read the Atchison COUNTY Mail have seen mistakes before. But in this situation the difference in May 12 and May 13 is more than one day! Could it be that a part owner of the Mail is also an investor.
Would a new and larger grocery store be great for Rock Port? Or, would it be a mere set of ARROGANCE, INDULGENCE, and GREED (AIG)? How soon will they be back for more handouts? And, if not PILOTS, what are the tax breaks W. C. has in mind? Which of us will pay for those tax breaks? For how long?
Went over to visit my aunt yesterday, thought I'd pick up a couple of steaks to fix on her grill..........the store didn't have any, not one single steak of any cut except a few of the pre packaged ones from Tyson Foods. She says that's kind of normal for them. That's a far cry from the meat counter they had when I was a kid growing up over there. Kind of sad to see it that way. Sort of like someone forgot they were in business.
I fully back everything that Rock Port Citizen said above. I believe in buy local also, but I quit shopping at this store over the past couple of years because of the outrageous prices, spoiled food, and the attitude of the Leisman boys that run it now. I hate to see any small business fail, but have to say in this case, it is their own fault.