One of Lincoln's oldest shopping centers has a new owner who plans to give it a major facelift.
Steve Glenn, who owns several businesses in Lincoln and his hometown of Pawnee City, bought The Piedmont Shops shopping center at 1265 S. Cotner Blvd. last month for $2.7 million.
Glenn said he plans to spend about $2 million on renovations to the center, which has fallen into disrepair over the past decade.
"We're real excited," he said. "The neighborhood is real excited."
Piedmont was built piecemeal in the early 1950s by the Kimball family, said Jim McKee, a local historian, owner of former Piedmont tenant Lee Booksellers and owner of current tenant The Coinery. According to Journal Star archives, the final layout of the center as it exists today was completed in the early 1960s.
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It was a major neighborhood shopping center into the 1980s, hosting tenants including Safeway, Ben Franklin and K's Restaurant.
The center has had a couple of different owners since, and McKee said the last owner let the place go.
"He did no maintenance whatsoever," McKee said. "The place really went downhill."
McKee said he's excited about Glenn's plans for the center.
"It's going to be great. It really looks spectacular," he said. "If the Kimballs were around, they'd approve."
Glenn said he plans to keep the center's stone facade but "embellish" it with higher-quality finishes.
He said it's currently what would be considered a C-rated center in real estate parlance, and he hopes to bring it up to an A-rated center.
"We see it as a diamond in the rough that can be polished," Glenn said.
The upgrade in looks hopefully will attract new tenants to a center that's less than half full.
Glenn said he has had some discussions with potential tenants and has a couple of letters of intent but no leases yet. Because of that, he declined to name any potential tenants.
"We'll have some big announcements in 60 days," he said.
McKee said he has heard that potential new tenants include a hardware store and a restaurant.
Jay Haes, who owns Ole's Boot & Shoe Repair along with his wife, Stephanie, said he thinks the renovation will be nice for the whole neighborhood.
Haes moved his store to the center a couple of years ago after three decades at 48th Street and Pioneers Boulevard. He said he knows the center is a good location because his business has boomed since the move.
"I think it's really going to be a booming place once it's all done," Haes said.
Glenn is hoping to move quickly. He said if everything moves along as planned, he hopes to start renovation work in the fall and be done no later than next spring.
One thing that could complicate the timeline is that Glenn said he has been working with the city on parts of the plan. If he decides to seek tax increment financing to help pay for the renovations, that could push the project back.
City Urban Development Director David Landis said he has not had any TIF discussions with Glenn, but he said he has heard that Glenn has talked to a firm about commissioning a blight study, which is a requirement to be able to qualify for TIF, which would allow the increased property taxes generated by the renovations to pay for public improvements at the center.
Landis also said there have been some discussions about minor parking reductions to accommodate some landscaping enhancements and possible access restrictions on 50th Street, which runs behind the shopping center to the west.