Downtown Rogers a hot spot for new business

ROGERS -- Business owners who see downtown as a wise investment continue to bring their shops and restaurants there.

More than 30 businesses opened downtown in 2016, and 12 more are planned for this year, including the opening of the old Lane Hotel as Haas Hall, according to Karen Wagaman, vice president of downtown development for the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce.

Development downtown is what city officials like to see.

"We're concerned mainly with keeping everything occupied and vibrant," said Gerald Gilbert, a city planner who works with many downtown development projects. "We would like to see all spaces occupied. Vacancies exist, but they're attached to ideas, and properties that go on the market are bought quickly."

Zoning changes downtown were designed to encourage new business ideas -- specifically more entertainment venues, outdoor cafes and gathering spaces. "Walkability" and preservation of the nearby nature corridor are also part of the plan, Gilbert said.

The zoning changes give business owners more flexibility for their ideas. City planners work with business owners to make sure building codes are met and safety features added without hampering design creativity, Gilbert said.

Adaptive reuse and redevelopment are popular in the area right now. There are ways to return downtowns to their original, intended use, said Daniel Hintz, owner of The Velocity Group, a marketing and planning company in Bentonville.

"Downtowns are like the community living room; they're places to entertain, to socialize and even our kitchens," Hintz said. "Downtowns were initially built that way, but after years of misuse and neglect, the phenomenon over the last 20 years is to become that place again."

Creating city plans with the help of the Northwest Arkansas Council is an indication the region has embraced the concept of valuing existing buildings for their history, Hintz said.

"It's a chance to revitalize, reinvent and an opportunity for good urban infill," Hintz said. "It's asset-based thinking to absorb and redevelop what you have."

Sheila Reese, owner of the Cooking Studio; Brad Vandris, co-owner of Pop's Hog Wild BBQ; and Natalie Hashimoto and Lindz Dolan, owners of Woof & Wander, are among the first dozen business owners and tenants* to settle downtown this year.

Vandris said he knew moving downtown would be profitable.

"We got more traffic when we moved to the [new] location," said Vandris, who is also executive director of Rogers Downtown Partners. "It's between several large players and right there at the entrance of downtown."

Vandris p̶u̶r̶c̶h̶a̶s̶e̶d̶ leased* what was originally an old Phillips 66 station at 318 W. Walnut St., just across from the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce, down the street from the Rogers School District offices and a quick jaunt from City Hall. It was built in the 1940s.

"With everything going on in downtown Rogers, it's an excellent location, and we wanted to stay true to the customer base we've built, for them to access us easily," Vandris said.

Since the building was first a gas station and most recently an auto repair shop, Vandris began renovation with sanitizing, repainting -- keeping the red, white and black color scheme of Phillips 66 -- and increasing the visual appeal through refurbished lighting. Patio seating and bike racks were next.

Construction for an addition to the building will start in mid-February, and the restaurant is operating out of a food truck for now.

The original building will become the restaurant's seating area while the addition will house the kitchen and cooking smokers will be in the back of the property, away from the view of Walnut Street. Landscaping and parking also are planned before the project is completed in late spring or early summer. Meanwhile, the city is creating a crosswalk out front.

For Reese, the motivation to move downtown on Second Street was partly sentimental and partly convenience. Reese grew up just 3 miles from her business location. Her first job was at the former Stroud's Department Store, just around the corner. Her business is a combination restaurant, cooking class space and event venue.

The space where Reese's business is housed has a history in food service. It was Rosco's Cafe when Reese was growing up. It was the Snack Shack when her mother was a girl.

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The Cooking Studio opened Jan. 3. It serves lunch Tuesday and Wednesday, and cooking classes are offered twice a month.

"It's a tremendous location, and we could make it our own. It just needed time and love, to update systems. It's warm and comfy and keeps its local downtown heritage," Reese said.

Renovating the space took upgrading all major systems, surfaces and floors. Reese replaced flooring with a faux wood tile, installed marble countertops and the kitchen area was outfitted with white subway tile. The dining area is filled with wooden tables, and the whole space was freshly painted and polished.

When Hashimoto and Dolan came in from out of state to visit Hashimoto's family, they found Rogers a terrific prospect for a business geared to people who love to take their dogs along on outdoor adventures.

"It just seemed like a hidden gem and had this cool vibe," Hashimoto said. "It aligned with what we're into. It's close to all this backyard beauty with Hobbs State Park, the White River, Lake Atalanta."

The two liked the Vinson Square Building, even though it needed a lot of work and didn't seem to get much foot traffic at the time. Five years later, they left jobs in education and marketing to begin their business. By that time, a developer started work to renovate the space and segmented it into a few suites on the ground floor and office spaces on the second floor.

The character of historic downtown was a draw.

"We came for the community," Dolan said. "We looked at other spaces, mostly in strip malls, but nothing was like this."

Knowing other new businesses -- such as a bar going in around the corner and an Onyx Coffee Lab -- are moving into downtown gives some peace of mind too, Dolan said.

Kevin Nau of Artisan Design and Construct and developer Shawn Dible worked renovating of Vinson Square before the Woof & Wander owners purchased their suite on Elm Street. Hashimoto and Dolan liked their vision and wanted the pair to keep on with the task of restoring the original hardwood floors, retaining exposed brick walls and other features making it unique.

"We wanted to maintain the building's character and let the space speak for itself," Dolan said.

Nau and Dible restored the building from the skeleton up by redoing its infrastructure -- electricity, gas and floors. Artisan Design restored the original ceilings, floors and porthole windows; installed a fire-safe stairwell, modern heating and air conditioning system, electrical lines and plumbing, Nau said. The biggest part of negotiation with the city was working out, over the course of a few Rogers Historic District Commission meetings, how to restore the property while maintaining the historical integrity of the building, Nau said.

In preparation for a late March business opening, the owners are outfitting the suite with a mix of old and new -- some antique furniture made locally and new elements such as an apothecary space and a dog washing station in back.

"We want to see people doing things and businesses thriving; we want to see activity levels go up," Gilbert said. Business and planning "interpretation is a big part of that to do it orderly and safely, but the marketplace determines what works."

NW News on 01/23/2017

*CORRECTION: Pop’s Hog Wild BBQ and Woof & Wander lease spaces for their businesses in downtown Rogers. Their tenancy status was incorrect in a previous version of this story.