Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney announced that the city of Frisco and the Frisco Community Development Corporation will soon provide $500,000 to businesses impacted by the Main Street makeover.
Cheney stated that the city will consult with business owners to determine how to use the monies.
Several shop owners spoke at the Aug. 16 council meeting about how the Main Street construction has affected their businesses. On Friday, August 12, the same businesses formed a “Save Main” action, taking to Main Street to raise awareness about the difficulties that local businesses face.
Cheney, who is in his 18th and final year on city council, said he has a long history with the Rail District, and that there were times when the council was unhappy because it wanted to make downtown Frisco great but didn’t know how to help.
Cheney stated that the government cannot compel the Rail District to be a particular area; rather, “it has to happen naturally.” In the early 2010s and 2020s, he added, the council felt it was time to step in and help.
He stated that since the night the council chose to invest in the Rail District, approving the Downtown Master Plan by a divided vote, there has been a “council of yes” in downtown.
Cheney said he “sympathizes” with the building issues, but “we all want you to finish with us.”
Scott Hoffner, owner of Didi’s Downtown and leader of the “Save Main” organization, expressed gratitude for the $500,000 in funding, but noted, “It is bigger than that.”
He told council that it is difficult to retain personnel when only a few people come in and financing “doesn’t equate to the loss.”
Lee Gonzalez, the proprietor of La Finca, stated that his restaurant opened in October 2020 and weathered COVID-19, labor and supply shortages, and inflation, but that construction has “been a death sentence” for many enterprises.
Hoffner stated that previously 13 Rail District businesses have closed, with Willow House being the most recent.
An emotional Randy Burks, owner of Randy’s Steakhouse, stated that he and his wife have drained their resources to keep the business viable, and that sales are down 60%.
Burks previously stated that he had gone from selling about 140 steaks on a regular Friday night to just 40. He has already spent more than $130,000 that he set aside for this project.
John Taylor, the owner of PC Geeks Computer Repair, implored the council, “Please help us.”
Frisco invested $76.3 million on the Rail District’s redevelopment, which included $22.2 million for Main Street, $5.1 million for walkways and parking along Elm Street from Third to Fifth Streets, $22 million for the Fourth Street Plaza, and a $27 million public parking garage.
The Frisco Community Redevelopment Corporation approved the extension of the Rail District Reinvestment Program on July 23.
