Councilwoman: Downtown Colorado Springs retail businesses struggling, more public support needed

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- During a work session Monday, Councilwoman Michelle Talarico expressed concern about the success of retail businesses in the downtown area.

"A lot of the businesses downtown that are retail-oriented are continuing to hurt," said Talarico, a businesswoman herself. "I, too, am a victim of pushing my Amazon button. However, I would ask us all to reconsider. They need us very badly right now. So, I would just encourage you to buy local whenever possible."

She also revealed that a recent fire that closed and displaced several businesses on Bijou Street will keep them closed for another year.

"They're looking to relocate," she said.

Austin Wilson-Bradley, economic and community development manager for The Downtown Partnership, said that downtown sales were down 4% through October of last year but recovered strongly in November; numbers for December are not available yet.

"2022 was a bit of a Goldilocks period when people were still enjoying the economic stimulus from the pandemic," he explained. "And yet, we hadn't seen the higher interest rates and higher levels of inflation that we saw in 2023."

Wilson-Bradley said that the holiday season could have been even more profitable if not for several late-year incidents -- including the Bijou Street fire and a major underground fire that knocked out power to dozens of businesses.

He also cited inflation, along with higher prices and operating costs, as factors in slumping sales downtown but he feels that the situation should improve this year.

Jennifer Sheehan, general manager of the Colorado Craft restaurant on Tejon Street, said that she often hears from customers that lack of or ease of parking are common complaints downtown -- even though the Partnership insists that plenty of parking exists.

"Would I say that I'm struggling? Not so much," she said. "I mean, it's a restaurant in January, so everybody's holding on through January and February. We're doing pretty good."

Carl Peterson, a regular downtown patron, said that he loves the area and plans to come more often.

"I'm sorry to hear about the issues," he said. "I didn't know about them. That's one more good reason to come downtown -- keep the money local because the local merchants are great."

Wilson-Bradley added that downtown still hasn't reaped the full benefits from the flurry of apartment construction -- which is expected to bring more people to spend money on a regular basis.

"The only thing we don't have that we need, is a grocery store," he said.