Page 39 - Cuero, TX Downtown Plan

Section 7
Conclusion

here is no one single strategy to improve gas funded programs may be most effectively set up at
Downtown. It involves a combination of public the county level and distributed based on community
Tphysical improvements, coordinated public- size, implementation capacity, and environmental
private management, event programming, marketing impact.
activities, business support services, and incentives
and regulations. And while the latter are generally Regulatory tools are also needed to protect
the easiest and cheapest to implement, they can Downtown’s historic assets by preventing them
sometimes undermine the most important strategy from being destroyed by neglect and to stabilize the
of all – improving the overall climate for investment investment market by assuring that new investments
– if not tailored to local conditions and coupled with won’t be diminished by deterioration “next door.” This
incentives. In short, both “carrots and sticks” are adds a degree of comfort and certainty to real estate
needed to turn around Cuero’s Downtown. investment decisions.

Ultimately, however, the best Downtown revitalization Currently, there is a lack of private reinvestment
strategy is a regional economic strategy – one that Downtown resulting in buildings that are increasingly
seeks to increase incomes, jobs, and new business start- at risk of becoming blighted. This lack of investment
ups region-wide. Many of these strategies have already can be attributed to a host of overlapping factors:
been laid out in the Cuero Economic Development ƒ Owners are not creditable or “bankable” – i.e.,
Strategic Plan and supplemented herein.
owners can’t get financing.
In addition to the strategies presented here and in ƒ Space is not in demand – i.e., no perceived market
the Economic Development Strategic Plan, the City, for rehabbed space.
along with others in the Eagle Ford Shale region, ƒ Rehab is market prohibitive – i.e., rehab costs
should also look at ways to funnel fees and royalties exceed financial returns resulting in project “gap.”
stemming from oil and gas extraction operations into
downtowns. The vehicle for this could be a dedicated ƒ Technical fear – i.e., confusion or intimidation
investment fund capitalized mostly through fees and over how to do historic renovations, and the
donations from drilling companies and supplemented belief that such work is either too expensive or
with state, federal, and local program funds. Oil and that competencies are unattainable or unavailable
locally.

ADOPTED 03.04.13 39