Evansville business owner says city should help shops hurt by constant construction

EVANSVILLE – Your Brother’s Bookstore had only been open a month when the city blew up the building down the street.

The planned implosion of the decrepit skyscraper at 420 Main St. closed roads, reconfigured routes and misted parts of Downtown Evansville in a layer of dust. The dynamite vibrations even caused a barricade around the site to crash into the corner of Your Brother’s.

But for owner Adam Morris, the biggest issue was timing. The Nov. 22, 2021, demolition came only five days before Black Friday, the biggest sales day of the year for countless shops, especially a newly opened one like his.

It was far from the last disruption. In the ensuing years, the city shuttered portions of Main Street to rebuild its driving lane; closed sections of Sycamore Street for months’ worth of water and sewer work; even threw up occasional barricades to turn parts of Fifth Street into a giant sandbox in front of the Children’s Museum.

Now crews building a planned new development that will reportedly fill the pit where 420 once stood send construction noises and vibrations leaking into his store. Last month, they busted a water pipe that closed Fifth Street again.

All that – plus a scarcity of parking spots Downtown, especially for those in need of spots for disabled customers – has made Your Brother’s hard to get to. Because people go out of their way to shop there, sales are still strong. But the issues have undoubtedly made business more difficult.

“I don’t want to stand in the way of progress. I like that buildings are being built. I like that the construction is finally happening,” Morris said. “I don’t like that the city schedules things that makes existing retail difficult if not impossible.”

Now Morris has an idea to remedy that.

He believes either the city, Downtown Evansville or the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership – a major driver behind the 420 site – should create a fund that could bolster small businesses during rough stretches. If construction or another unforeseen calamity caused sales to dip, owners could reach out for a quick month’s rent or a short-term loan to stay afloat.

It would be a crucial development in a world where the margin of error is tightrope-thin.

“One bad month and we’re out of business. Two bad months and we’re out of business. And (city projects and E-REP) specifically are the cause of our problems,” Morris said.

“They’re doing all this development so fast. Which is fine – but they’re doing it at the expense of us.”

E-REP and $45 million

Morris’ suggestion is straightforward. Where that money would come from, though, is not.

E-REP bounced into existence after the Southwest Indiana Chamber of Commerce, the Growth Alliance for Greater Evansville and the Economic Development Coalition of Southwest Indiana merged to form the new company in 2021.

It now counts former Mayor Lloyd Winnecke as its CEO. And earlier this year, it received a major influx of cash.

It’s one of the administrators of a $45 million READI grant from the state of Indiana . Considering businesses and individuals can apply for a slice of that money, Morris said that would be a perfect source for a small business fund.

But according to E-REP spokeswoman Abby Elpers, READI cash comes with specific rules.

“The program supports capital projects like new or rehabilitated buildings, parks, trails, and land acquisition,” she said in an email to the Courier & Press. “READI funds cannot be used for rent compensation.”

There are specific breakdown requirements, too. For any project using READI money, 60% of the total costs must come from private sources, while the remaining 40% is split between local government money and the READI grants, respectively.

Elpers said any struggling small business can reach out to the Southwest Indiana Small Business Development Center for help.

Loans from the Department of Metropolitan Development

Morris also pointed to another potential funding source: the city itself.

He said he’d love to see Mayor Stephanie Terry lobby for a pool of cash that could keep Evansville’s unique businesses afloat.

Ariah Leary, Terry’s community affairs and special projects director, said “Mayor Terry is certainly open to exploring options to help businesses that are struggling due to construction or other work, whether they are in Downtown Evansville or other areas of the city.”

She pointed to the Department of Metropolitan Development’s revolving loan funds, which allow “businesses to borrow funds at a low interest rate to assist in situations like this,” she said.

According to DMD Executive Director Kolbi Jackson, a company in need can reach out to the small business development center, which will help them submit an application to the DMD. From there, they can apply to one of three funds – two of which are largely infused with federal dollars, with some city cash to match.

They can borrow anywhere from $2,000 to $50,000 via the city’s revolving loan fund. With the federal money, the maximum reaches as high as $250,000. But Jackson said the balances are too depleted to hand out the highest-end amounts.

Loans are approved by the city’s Loan Administration Board, which is supposed to meet once a month.  According to the city government website, however, the board's gathered only once this year, on Feb. 23.

A video of that meeting shows members approving minutes from its previous session: Aug. 25, 2023. The board does gather once a month, Jackson said, but if there aren't loans to discuss, they cancel the meeting. She said the last one occurred in April, but it doesn't appear in the city's meeting archives.

The February session consisted of board members discussing loans to two businesses (one large and one small) and rattling off how much the board is owed (around $1 million) and how much available money it has in its U.S. Economic Development Administration funds, which Jackson pegged at $419,000.

Members also listed a few businesses DMD “sent to legal” due to lack of repayment – something an official said they try to avoid at all costs. The Courier & Press reviewed court records for two of the lawsuits. Both were listed as dismissed.

Morris also wondered if Downtown Evansville – the economic improvement district attached to Your Brother’s neighborhood – could establish a fund.

Marketing and events coordinator Laura Gobert said the district is "supportive of initiatives that benefit Downtown businesses," but since their organization is paid for by "Downtown property owners," they can't "use ratepayer dollars to pay a property's rent." (None of the Courier & Press' questions mentioned using ratepayer money to do so. A reporter only asked if they would support the creation of a fund.)

She said they point any business in need toward the DMD's programs. During the recent construction, she said they also used marketing campaigns and "open for business" signs to steer customers toward the affected businesses.

Your Brother's Bookstore

An Evansville native, Morris moved back to town a few years ago after working on Wall Street.

His brother Sam, an Air Force veteran, landed back in town at the same time. To combat homesickness during their time away, they’d often hole up in bookstores and make friends with the people working behind the counter.

They wanted to recreate that here. And in the years since Your Brother’s opened, it’s become a cultural hotspot, bringing in not only authors for readings, but a steady stream of local and regional bands.

Earlier this month, employee Hamilton Golike won the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana’s Arts Project Award for the store’s BOOKED concert series , which provides “an inclusive, all-ages alternative for musicians and avid listeners to give/experience in a small group setting.”

Morris said they’re the only all-ages venue in the city that pays its musicians – “a huge bragging point.”

That’s part of the dream the brothers envisioned for the place. If they wanted to make money, they would have set up shop on the East Side, he said. But he also hasn’t taken a paycheck since the store opened. And that’s only sustainable for so long.

“That lifestyle is not normal. The only reason why I can is I’m fortunate enough to have a good partner, and I saved up everything,” he said. “I’ve sold everything I can possibly sell just to stay alive. But I shouldn’t have to do that.”

Nobody should, he said.

“If I go under, fine. But in the future, this fund needs to exist,” he said. “Something needs to exist that’s a lifeline to the small business.”

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Evansville business owner says city should help shops hurt by constant construction