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Urban Renewal Eligibility Report-Determination of Blight for the Amended and Restated Ice Harbor Urban Renewal District February 1992 URBAN RENEWAL ELIGIBILITY REPORT Determination of Blight for the Amended and Restated ICE HARBOR URBAN RENEWAL DISTRICT City of Dubuque, Iowa Prepared by the Community and Economic Development Department February 1992 • • TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of Purpose Study Area Description of Area Definition of Blighted Area Qualification as a Blighted Area Defective and Inadequate Street Layout Faulty Lot Layout Deterioration of Site or Other Improvements Diversity of Ownership Conclusion Listing of Exhibits Exhibit A: Blighted Area Exhibit B: Street Network Exhibit C: Lot Layout Exhibit D: Building Permit Activity Exhibit E: Existing Conditions Exhibit F: Ownership Patterns Bibliography 1 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 5 7 8 4 10 11 13 14 15 • • URBAN RENEWAL ELIGIBILITY REPORT Determination of Blight Amended and Restated Ice Harbor Urban Renewal District c;ty of Dubuque, Iowa February 1992 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE The following report documents the existence of conditions of blight, as defined by Iowa Urban Renewal Law, within the Fourth Street Peninsula area of the amended and restated Ice Harbor Urban Renewal District and finds that these conditions of blight substantially impair the sound growth of the City of Dubuque and that combined, they are a menace to the public health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the community in their present state. STUDY AREA • • The area reviewed in this report is known as the Fourth Street Peninsula (the "Peninsula"). Its boundary is delineated in the attached Exhibit A. It should be noted that the Ice Harbor Urban Renewal District -- the proposed expanded boundaries of which include the Fourth Street Peninsula -- was determined to be an area of blight by Resolution 381-89, approved by the City Council on November 20, 1989. DESCRIPTION OF AREA The Freeway Corridor Plan: A Land Use and Development Guide for Pubic and Private Property Alonq the Freeway Corridor (the "Corridor Plan"), prepared in November of 1989 and adopted by motion of the City Council on February 19, 1990, describes the Fourth Street Peninsula as historically having been "used for commerce, with heavy industrial uses and manufacturing that relied upon the Mississippi for power, processing and transportation established in the mid-1800's. The brewery, terminals, lumber yards, sand and gravel operations, coal and ice dealers, boat building, railroad depots, freight houses and foundry works were all located here, with some of these uses continuing yet today. However, neither river-dependent nor rail-dependent uses dominate current commerce in this area. While industrial reinvestment has occurred on some properties, new activities which are commercial/tourist in nature have been developing in recent years." The physical constraints o "Although flood-protected riverfront was subject to conditions for over one hu threat, the river bottom s and garbage fill, must be To gain access to the area road tracks at 5th or Jone which begins at Main Street. 'ed by the Corridor Plan. the instability of marsh land also include years of sawdust traditionally industrial ile flooding is no longer a any redevelopment scenario. ne must "either cross rail new 3rd Street Overpass f the area are identifi since the 1970's, this frequent flooding and ndred years. Today, wh oil conditions, which carefully considered in the Plan notes that o s Street or utilize the • The Corridor Plan goes on to describe the current land uses as industrial, commercial, open storage and vacant. DEFINITION OF BLIGHTED AREA A "blighted area", as defined by Chapter 403 of the Iowa Code, Urban Renewal Law, is an area of a municipality within which the local governing body has determined the presence of any combination of the following conditions: 1) A substantial number of slum, deteriorated, or deteriorating structures; or 2) A defective or inadequate street layout; or 3) A faulty lot layout in relation to their size, adequacy, accessibility, or usefulness; or 4) Insanitary or unsafe conditions; or 5) The deterioration of site or other improvements; or 6) A diversity of ownership; or 7) Tax or special assessment delinquency exceeding the fair value of the land; or 8) Defective or unusual conditions of title; or 9) The existence of conditions which endanger life or property by fire and other causes. The City Council, upon determination that any combination of these conditions exist and that they "substantially impair or arrest the sound growth" of the community or "constitute an economic or social liability" and are a "menace to • the public health, safety, or welfare in (their) present condition and use," may declare the area in which they are found to be blighted. The City Council be a slum area, a designation as an district. is required, by Iowa Urban Renewal Law, to declare an area to blighted area or an economic development area prior to its urban renewal district and a tax increment financing QUALIFICATION AS A BLIGHTED AREA In anticipation of the Fourth Street Peninsula being included in an expanded Ice Harbor Urban Renewal District, a study of the area was initiated by the Community and Economic Development Department. Existing conditions in the Peninsula area were documented. Zoning, building and environmental violation reports were consolidated. A series of planning documents addressing the development conditions and opportunities of the area were reviewed. Upon completion of this review, a determination was made that the Fourth Street Peninsula constitutes a "blighted area" as defined by Chapter 403 of the Code of Iowa. Specifically, the following conditions of blight exist within the area that substantially impair or arrest the sound growth of the City of Dubuque, and constitute an economic or social liability to the community. • • Defective and Inadequate Street Layout: Development of the Fourth Street Peninsula has been constrained in reaching its full development potential due to a defective and inadequate street layout. The existing street network, platted in the 1800's, does not reflect current industrial and commercial usage and local traffic patterns. Few of the streets are improved. Many of the streets that were platted when the area was initially subdivided remain unimproved. Several of the industries and business located in the Peninsula have extended their operations, particularly outdoor storage, onto platted public rights of ways. Traffic from the adjoining riverfront tourist development and that of the heavy truck traffic serving the peninsula's industrial concerns are required to traverse the same route creating a potentially hazardous traffic environment. Platted, unimproved streets: Bell Street (between E. Sixth and Commercial) Tower Street Wall Street Cypress Street Pine Street Market Street Washington Street Bodega Street • Platted, unimproved alleys: Between Market and Bell, south of Commercial Between East Sixth Street and Washington Street Between Washington Street and Pine Street The location of the platted improved streets and platted unimproved streets present in the Peninsula is included as Exhibit B: Street Network. Faulty Lot Layout: The Fourth Street Peninsula contains a significant number of lots that reflect faulty layouts in relation to their size, adequacy, accessibility or usefulness. This finding is supported in large part by the Subdivision Regulations of the City of Dubuque, adopted by Ordinance 27-91 on April 1, 1991. The Ordinance states that "no lot may be created that is so narrow, has such little area, or that is so irregularly shaped that it would be impractical ... to construct a principal structure on it." The regulations go on to establish the minimum lot areas and dimensions that are considered by the City Council to be acceptable. "(T)he minimum lot frontage shall be sixty (60) feet for interior lots and seventy (70) feet for corner lots. All lots shall front on a public street or an approved private street ... Lots with double frontages shall not be permitted unless one frontage is an arterial street without access rights. Triangular lots shall be avoided whenever possible ... In so far as practical, the side lot lines shall be perpendicular to the street on which the lot fronts." w • Though no minimum lot sizes are established by local Ordinance for commercial and industrial lots, the Industrial and Office Park Council of the Urban Land Institute has stated that "lots of 200 to 300 feet deep are popular for a range of (industrial and commercial) uses." The application of these standards to the Fourth Street Peninsula finds a majority of the platted lots in the area to be faulty. The lots are irregular in shape and size. Few have sufficient street frontage. A majority cannot support new industrial development, being roughly 22' to 25' wide and 100' to 113' deep. Many are not accessible. Lots which were judged to reflect faulty lot layout standards are shown in Exhibit C: Lot Layout. Deterioration of Site or Other Improvements: The physical appearance of the Fourth Street variety of reports prepared on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce, and the Greater Dubuque The deteriorated and deteriorating condition improvements present in the area has been no organizations. Peninsula has been the focus of a City of Dubuque, the Dubuque Development Corporation (GDDC). of the structures and other site ted repeatedly by each of these The adverse development conditions of the peninsula were recognized as early as 1965 when it was described in the Dubuque Development Program, prepared by Victor Gruen Associates for the City of Dubuque and the Dubuque Chamber of . Commerce, as an area of "mostly deteriorating (buildings); disorganized; inaccessible." Though several of the structures have been demolished or upgraded, Gruen's statement continues to accurately describe the overall condition of the peninsula. A review of building permits issued for work completed in the area indicates that, with the exception of the Adams Company, Mississippi Valley Trucking, the Brewery and Fischer Inc., few of the property owners have invested in excess of $20,000 in their buildings since 1965. (Please see Exhibit D: Building Permit Activity.) In June of 1987, an eleven member task force was established by the Planning and Zoning Commission to review overall redevelopment goals for the Fourth Street Peninsula area. After six months of study, the task force submitted its findings to the Commission in a report entitled, Report to the Planning and Zoning Commission: Redevelopment of the 4th Street Peninsula (November 18, 1987). The conclusions of the task force were drawn through their own observations as well as through an "examination of facts as presented in past reports and studies." Though it is noted that the property owners and task force members were "not in total agreement with the final recommendations" of the report, there is no indication that there was any disagreement on the following findings: "That the general appearance of the peninsula is poor and leaves a negative visual impression in an area that (is) highly visible to passersby on the freeway and the Julien Dubuque Bridge." • 4 • "That public streets are in poor condition and public utilities either lacking or undersized. A photographic record of the area is included in Exhibit E: Existing Conditions. These factors -- the presence of deteriorated or deteriorating structures and site improvements and the negative visual impact of the area -- have substantially impaired the sound economic growth and redevelopment of the Fourth Street Peninsula. Diversity of Ownership: Assembly of land for redevelopment purposes by the private sector is severely hampered when the proposed development site consists of a number of lots or parcels owned by several individuals. Such is the case in the Fourth Street Peninsula. There are within the Fourth Street Peninsula, a number of potential redevelopment sites ranging in size from $ to 9.5 acres. The properties which make up these sites are held by anywhere from four (Development Block B) to as many as seven individual property owners (Development Block A). Land assembly is difficult and consequently the growth and redevelopment of the area substantially impaired. (Please see Exhibit F: Ownership Patterns.) This problem has been recognized by the Greater Dubuque Development • Corporation (GDDC). In early 1986, GDDC organized the Ice Harbor Planning Task Force. Though the Ice Harbor was its primary focus, its assignment included the development of a long range view of development possibilities throughout the remainder of the Peninsula. The task force's report, distributed in June, 1987, notes that "a number of existing problems in the area must be overcome before large-scale development would be possible or desirable. Among the problems are: the fragmented property ownership patterns." CONCLUSION It is the finding of this report that the Fourth Street Peninsula constitutes a blighted area as defined by Iowa Urban Renewal Law by reason of a combination of the following conditions: 1) A defective or inadequate street layout, 2) A faulty lot layout in relation to the size, adequacy, accessibility, or usefulness of the lots, 3) A deterioration of site or other improvements, and 4) A diversity of ownership. It is therefore recommended that the Dubuque City Council adopt a Resolution of Necessity finding that: 1) the Fourth Street Peninsula is a blighted area; and • 5 • 2) that the rehabilitation, conservation, redevelopment, development, or a combination thereof, of the area is necessary in the interest of the public health, safety, or welfare of the residents of Dubuque, Iowa. • • 6 • LISTING OF EXHIBITS EXHIBIT A: EXHIBIT B: EXHIBIT C: Exhibit D: Exhibit E: EXHIBIT F: CJ Blighted Area Street Network Lot Layout Building Permit Act iv it Existing_Conditions Ownership Patterns • 7 EXHIBIT A FOURTH STREET PENINSULA BLIGHTED AREA ~ ~ r ~ `~ U '' \\ ~ ~~ i~ <. 0 _ ~~, . ~, ,~, ~: ~ '~ ~_o o~ ~~' :~. O y 4 O / ~. ~~ fit. / / t .• ~ ~ ~~ ., ~~ a o ~~ ~ ~~ ~Ykr~~ ~~ ., a ~ .~~~ ,,, ~:~ ~~ ~::- f ~ ~ ~ . !`~ \\\ 11 y~~ ~ ~/ \\\ lI // . / / . o ~~ ~~ Q Q . ~~~- • ,~ • ii ~ ~~ % ~//: tt~ ~ ,- ~ . ~ ~ i / ~ ,• . i ~ i ~_ _ , ~ ,~ . 1 • ~~ (\ . o ~~~ 1 `\ ~`~.~ ~ O ~~ ` ® KEY ~_,_ ` . ~~ ~ ~ ,~ ^ ~ ^ Boundaries 8 EXHIBIT 6 FOURTH STREET PENINSULA STREET NETWORK . ~ ,. . ~> a ~`• i . ~ ,l ~ •, . ./! ~~ / ~ ~f ~ ~~,~ . t `~~,~~ ~~ ,~ \1 ,C~ 'sq~~ o,~ s ~, i ~.-; .~, ~ ,;,~ .~ ' j ~ '' %~~~ iii ~•. / ~ //~~ of ~ ~, J ~ '`,~ ~. ~ `r.~ ~ . '' `. : , ~~ i ~'~~`~ ~' ~~ ~ ~~- ~~ -=~ .a ~. ~~ _~ ~ I ,Q7 I ~ ~, ~~ r,~ KEY ~~ Improved Platted Streets and Alleys a ~ ~ ^ Unimproved Platted Streets and Alleys 9 • FOURTH STREET PENINSULA LOT LAYOUT ./\~ • . • .~•• ' 4• ~~ ~~ '~~ ~~~ ~O• ~ `t~ ~ ~~~ i~~ r~ ~~~. IL' .; ~Sy~~' L; EXHIBIT C KEY I ~. r >~ ~ ,~ ,o `\ ;` Faulty lots 1). Inadequate Street Frontage; or 2). Inaccessible; or 3). Double Frontage; or 4). Irregular Shape 10 • • • Exhibit D BUILDING PERMIT ACTIVITY The following listing was compiled from the Building Permit records of the City of Dubuque, Iowa. They are available for review in the Building Services Division at City Hall, 53 West 13th Street between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday. The listing does not include sign permits nor those building permits issued prior to 1965. Current Property Owner or Occupant Permitted Activity Value Year Christianson Tracy Exports Dubuque Hardwoods Mississippi Valley Trucking Adams Company Harbor Place Fischer Inc. Loading Dock Erect Steel Building Total Investment: Loading Dock Total Investment: Erect Pole Building Erect Steel Building Total Investment: Erect Steel Building Total Investment: Building Alteration Reside Building Reside Building Building Alteration Re-roof Total Investment: Alterations Alterations Total Investment: Roof Interior modifications Demolition Total Investment: Brewery Roof Addition Addition Addition Roof Roof Interior Modifications 11 $ 800 3.500 $ 4,300 $ 8,100 $ 8,100 $ 2,000 8,000 $ 10,000 $ 62.000 $ 62,000 $ 2,800 $ 15,000 $ 2,500 $ 200,000 $ 57.944 $ 278,244 $ 20,000 NA $ 20,000 $ 40,000 11,000 NA $ 51,000 $ 500 45,000 84,000 9,719 1,700 330 17,500 1967 1965 1989 1979 1974 1972 1975 1979 1978 1985 1985 1989 1989 1983 1984 1991 1974 1975 1980 1981 1967 1967 1985 Interior Modifications 8,000 1985 • Interior Modifications 15.000 1987 Total Investment: $ 181,749 Dubuque Chips, Inc. Erect Steel Lean-To $ 2,000 1976 Erect Steel Shed 2.500 1976 Total Investment: $ 4,500 City of Dubuque, Iowa Roof $ 14,267 1988 Total Investment: $ 14,267 Agri-Industries Roof $ 9,000 1982 Total Investment: $ 9,000 • • 12 S Exhibit E EXISTING CONDITIONS The following photographs were taken of the Fourth Street Peninsula during the months of January and February 1992. The original photographs are available for viewing at the offices of the Department of Community and Economic Development, City Hall 53 West 13th Street, Dubuque Iowa during regular working hours. • 13 ~ :: • /.• .•~ FOURTH STREET PENINSULA OWNERSHIP PATTERNS ., /; ,~ 1 • ~~ Owners: I DEVELOPMENT BL~~K OB Size: Owners: ~~+r \ DEVELOPMENT BLOCK CO Size: ~ , / Owners: .~.../ .~ ;~ 14 ..~ ~„% ~- - ~' OWNERSHIP PATTERNS: KEY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK ~ Size: EXH 9.5 Acres City of Dubuque, Iowa Robert and Ruth Kehl Chicago, Central and Pacific Railroad Robert D. Miller William J. Klauer Dubuque Hardwoods John McLaughlin 8.5 Acres City of Dubuque, Iowa Conagra, Inc. Aspermont Chicago, Central and Pacific Railroad 8.0 Acres City of Dubuque, Iowa Aspermont Fischer Investment Mississippi Valley Truck Center Robert and Ruth Kehl Interstate Power Company • SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY City of Dubuque, Iowa. Code of Ordinances: City of Dubuque, Iowa. Municipal Code Corporation, Tallahassee, Florida. December 1991. • • Department of Community Development. Report to Council: The 4th Street Peninsula. City of Dubuque, Dubuque, Iowa. January 1986. Greater Dubuque Development Corporation. Report of the Ice Harbor1Fourth Street Peninsula Planning Task Force. Greater Dubuque Development Corporation, Dubuque, Iowa. June 25, 1987. Gruen Associates. Fourth Street Peninsula. New York, New York. April 1975. Long Range Planning Commission. Results: Riverfront Visioning Sessions. City of Dubuque, Dubuque, Iowa. September/October 1991. Planning and Zoning Commission Task Force. Report to the Planning and Zoning Commission. City of Dubuque, Dubuque, Iowa. November 18, 1987. The Urban Land Institute. Business and Industrial Park Development Handbook. Washington D.C. 1988. Victor Gruen Associates and Larry Smith and Company. Dubuque Development Program: Prepared for the City of Dubuque Iowa and the Dubuque Chamber of Commerce. New York, New York. 1965. 15 5~ PHOTOGRAPHIC INVENTORY FOURTH STREET PENINSULA City of Dubuque, Iowa January - February 1992 • • ~ ~ ~~ \~ M ,. i /; ~~ r' C ~..: ~ O o ,t. o tN / 1 OO J ,,.- ~~. ~ o ,, t o `\~~_, \~ RcE h,~~ soy 1 \\ ,~ .. , ~::_ v o. ~~ .~ -~~ ~ la \ ~ 'I \` ~ r> 11 ~~~ ~\\~~ \ v~ ~ \ \ ~ ~ \\ ~ ,. ~ ~ ~ ~,~ '~!' / :. a O ~~ ~l ~~ i ii ~j~ i // // // ; ~: //. ` ~~ //~ F~ i /~~"~ <` ~ / ,, ~i ~ _ i / ~+ a ~ EXISTING CONDITIONS: KEY 0 0 0 0 0 0 Photo Sheet # ~_ U • ,~ ,v, i ;; ~ ,; I ., ~~'~ ~ Y ~~ ~ ~ < ~ / i• J ~ ~o 0 ~ ~ ~ ~'' ~~ ~_, ~f M~?.off 1 \, '~ ~` ~ o ~~ ., ,,., o \' ' .\~ .\ ,\ . , \ ~. 11 :.: l,~ ~''~r ~~ ~ ~~ Q 1 ~~~\, ~~~ -~\~ ~ ,~~\\\ ~~ ~~ \ ~'~~ ~~ ~ ~~ L ~~ O / -1 ~~ i ii ~ f ~~ ~~ ~ ~~ ; t: ~~ ~~ ~e i ~~~ ~~ ///r',' e ~~ i ~ i ::' /~ EXISTING CONDITIONS: KEY 0 0 0 0 0 0 Photo Sheet # ~_ v -~ ~~ 0 ,~ ° • ~ _~ _- -_, Q ~ 4-~ F" ~ Z O ~ ~• ~ ..~ . ~M /i {• ~ ' ~ li` ~, O it Q 0 0•~ •° ~ O J /// ~~\~ \ / ~ ~ 3 ,~ ~ ~~ ,~ ~ ~ Do ~ ~,,~ .7.~ O ~ ~ - ~ ~ tM tt. ~ / '/ `~ s. / Y~. .;e ~1 ~ ~ ~~ Jy 1 AS~~,: ylv•'i ~~ ~ ;~r~. \~\\_ }~ :~T~~} ~ il.~/' ii k'c h~RfoA \, ~, , `, ~ •~ \ ~ ~ti --~ ~. ~ . ,. ~~ // // // ,r ~~ // . ~~ ~_ i / ~ - ~. 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