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Hy-Vee’s drastic reduction in operating hours at its downtown Des Moines store is not going down well with the City Council, which is also rejecting, along with Des Moines police, the supermarket chain’s claim that the change is necessary in part to protect staff. and customers amid increasing store theft and loitering.
The city said Wednesday that Hy-Vee has 45 days to return to operating from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., after which it and Knapp Properties, the developer of the 420 Court Ave. building that houses the store, could be violating an agreement. developmental.
Hy-Vee spokeswoman Tina Potthoff said Wednesday afternoon that meetings between Hy-Vee and the city are taking place “now.”
“Today we have been talking to the city about a resolution to better serve our customers downtown,” he said. “We are making some adjustments that we hope to announce soon.”
City Council member Josh Mandelbaum, whose District 3 includes downtown, said the claim that safety concerns played a role in cutting a third of hours, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., sounded like “a pretext.” He called the cut “completely unreasonable” for a grocery store serving a downtown with a growing population.
Without informing the city, Hy-Vee posted the new hours. on the store website and on signs on their doors on Monday. Potthoff confirmed the change to the Des Moines Register on Tuesday.
In addition to citing what he said were more than 200 calls to Des Moines police in the past six months about incidents at the store, he said in a statement that morning and afternoon traffic at the store has slowed as store employees center office continue working. -Home routine they adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2015 development agreement for the store, under which the city awarded the site, then a parking lot, for a fraction of its assessed value, stipulated that, except on holidays, the market must be open from 6 a.m. to 11 pm seven days a week. week. The agreement included 15 years of tax increment financing for the project.
When the store opened in 2017, its hours were 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. It then changed its opening hours to 6 a.m. and the city approved a 9 p.m. closing time.
Deputy City Manager Matt Anderson said in an emailed statement Wednesday that the city had “already reached out to Knapp Properties to begin a conversation” about the new unauthorized change in business hours.
“Once the City is aware of potential issues with the development agreement, we make good faith efforts to work with the company before issuing an official written notice,” Anderson said, adding that so far Knapp has raised nearly $1, 5 million from the financing of the tax increase, which still has nine years of execution left.
Chris Costa, president and CEO of Knapp, confirmed that the company is in talks with the city.
“I know it’s easy to look at it and say it’s completely out of compliance, but there are mechanisms to address situations like this,” Costa said. “There is a timeline.”
The signs and partitions disappeared from the store on Wednesday
Costa declined to comment on whether Knapp was informed of Hy-Vee’s new hours before the change was made.
Signs announcing the new hours disappeared from the store on Wednesday, although the website continued to show them as 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Last week, Hy-Vee confirmed plans to redesign parts of the store, with permanent partitions placed between some departments. However, temporary barriers erected between aisles in certain parts of the store disappeared Wednesday.
City Council member Mandelbaum said the city must be accountable and use its development agreement to the fullest.
“A full-service grocery store has been and continues to be important to the city to ensure that we have the vitality of the downtown and the ability to support the residents who live downtown,” he said. “That will be our focus as we navigate this issue and move forward.”
It’s not the first time the city and Hy-Vee have been at odds. In 2021, Hy-Vee announced plans to renovate the store under its HealthMarket concept, raising concerns that it would no longer have basic grocery items, which could leave it out of compliance with the development agreement. After offering assurances, Hy-Vee suspended the long-term plan.
Des Moines Police Department: More than 200 calls are accurate, but not all likely coming from the store
Des Moines police spokesman Sgt. Paul Parizek confirmed that the department had received about 200 calls in the past six months about incidents at the store’s address, but cautioned that “it is important to note that Hy-Vee may not be the caller in every case.” one of them”.
Parizek, in a statement, noted that the apartments occupy the upper floors of the building, and also that “other businesses or people passing by could have called.”
He said about 40% of the calls involved reports of disputes, arguments, assaults and fights and about 20% were medical calls or requests for welfare checks. The balance was complaints about home invasion, theft, suspicious persons, vandalism, vehicle accidents, “etc.”
Further:Hy-Vee’s partnerships with Joe Fresh and DSW shoes end as departments removed from stores
He added: “I believe the Register reported a significant decrease in violent crime on Court Ave last year. DMPD has dedicated considerable resources and worked closely with businesses and residents in all of our downtown neighborhoods to prioritize the safety of all who live, work and visit the area.”
In his own statement, City Council member Mandelbaum said he would like to “get more details about the crime numbers provided by the company and how Hy-Vee manages its security.”
“I’m sure that area will be safe for customers and residents after 6 p.m.,” he said. “We know. We have tons of people on Court Avenue all the time, all year round.”
“We have reduced calls on Court Avenue over the past year,” he added.
The Center Chamber and the neighborhood association reject the issue of crime
Jimmy Olsen, director of the Downtown Chamber of Commerce, agreed with Mandelbaum and said Court Avenue businesses told him crime has only gone down, especially since the closure of several bars and a nightclub in Court Center, about one block east of Hy-Vee, which were the focus of many complaints and calls to police downtown.
It’s more likely that Hy-Vee is feeling the effects of its own business decisions, from opening in an entertainment district to not offering a full grocery selection, Olsen said.
“With a lot of things that seem to happen in Des Moines, they don’t always think about everything,” he said. “Then they say, ‘Shoot, was that a great idea?'”
Downtown Neighborhood Association President Brandon Brown said he didn’t know what steps Hy-Vee had taken beyond hiring security guards. But if he had faced an increase in theft or loitering, he said, he could have raised the issue sooner.
When the alley between the Downtown Pantry and Surety Hotel became a concern, the businesses there and the neighborhood association worked with the city to erect a gate, Brown said. Any “nefarious” activity was resolved.
“I’ve seen a lot of things happen downtown, but what I haven’t seen is someone unilaterally cutting hours,” he said. “It seems like if you want to be good neighbors, you work with the neighbors.”
Addison Lathers covers the growth and development of the Des Moines metro. Contact her at 608-931-1761, ALathers@registermedia.com and on Twitter at @addisonlathers.
Philip Joens covers retail, real estate and RAGBRAI for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at 515-284-8184,pjoens@registermedia.com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens.
Virginia Barreda is the Des Moines city government reporter for the Register. She can be contacted at vbarreda@dmreg.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.