A Chance to get it right

By Jack Z. Smith
Star-Telegram Staff Writer

Thus far, the numbers are disturbing.

The city of Fort Worth has poured about $4.8 million into the sprawling new Mercado building in the 1500 block of North Main Street, after the original developer abandoned the project with it only 60 percent complete.

The city is to receive only $2.5 million in cash for selling the property to developer José Legaspi , in a deal expected to be approved by the City Council in January. That leaves the city out about $2.3 million for the building, although the shortfall is to be covered with money from several sources.

Up to this point, the Mercado has been a losing proposition.

In the long term, however, the building, coupled with the inspiring restoration of the historic Rose Marine Theater and other improvements made in the 1400 block of North Main, should prove a clear plus for Fort Worth and taxpayers.

Those improvements, proceeding in fits and starts since the late 1990s, collectively have come to be known as "the Mercado project."

The focal point is the three-story Mercado building, an attractive and imposing 58,000-square-foot structure looming over an increasingly bustling section of North Main about two miles north of downtown on the historic north side.

Here's why everyone should be enthusiastic about the outlook for the Mercado project:

Construction of the Mercado building is essentially complete, with the exception of interior finish-out on the second floor. The city should be free of additional financial risk for the structure once the deal with the Los Angeles-based Legaspi closes next month.

Legaspi appears to be just what the Mercado needed: a bright, energetic developer with substantial financial wherewithal and considerable experience in Hispanic-oriented urban developments. He is putting tens of millions of dollars into an imaginative redevelopment of La Gran Plaza, the former Town Center and Seminary South shopping center, in south Fort Worth.

The Mercado building has the potential to become a community magnet and Fort Worth landmark because of its imposing size, appealing design and highly functional layout. It likely will include retail stores, a nice restaurant, professional offices and a banquet room that should be in heavy demand for wedding receptions, quinceañeras and gatherings of corporate, civic and social groups.

The Mercado building and the improvements to the immediate south will stimulate further economic redevelopment in the area. In fact, they already are doing so.

Attorney Armando Flores said the Mercado development was "a huge factor" in encouraging him and his legal partner, Eduardo Cañas, to buy a property at 1441 N. Main, where they are building a law office that is to open in March.

All the new development will generate increased tax revenues to the city and other local governmental entities for decades to come. That should pay back the city's $2.3 million net investment in the Mercado building many times over through added property and sales taxes.

The Mercado project should succeed because of its location.

It's not only close to booming downtown Fort Worth, but also is just north of the area that is poised to benefit from a wave of commercial, residential and retail redevelopment that could come with the $435 million Trinity River Uptown project, previously dubbed the "town lake" venture.

The Mercado project also is only a short distance south of the historic Stockyards district, a popular tourist mecca and weekend entertainment and dining hub for locals.

The Mercado building site has been the home of a large but little-used parking lot designed as a park-and-ride facility. The 1400 block of North Main once was dominated by dilapidated buildings and seedy bars. The public and private investments already made are a striking improvement.

City Councilman Sal Espino, who represents the north side, predicts that the Mercado development will prove "a tremendous resource to the city" and a wise investment.

"I think if you look at the project five to 10 years from now, you'll see that we made the right decision," he said.

It's been a long, rocky road for the Mercado project, with a variety of mistakes and setbacks along the way.

The project has been a textbook example of just how difficult central city redevelopment can be.

In coming years, however, the Mercado development should prove a textbook example of just how rewarding such redevelopment can be.