The Frankfort Redevelopment Commission addressed major projects at Thursday’s meeting with lots of discussion, including providing funds for an economic development contractor, restoring the city’s faded Coca-Cola mural downtown, resolving water damage to a building, and property acquisition. Commissioners Joe Palmer, John Virtue, Jeremy Newcomer, Chris Vawter and Eric Woods, along with non-voting school board adviser Bud McQuade, were present for the discussion.
New Economic Development Partnership
Kimberly Black, the city’s Community Development Director, brought Joe Murphy, an economic development specialist with Garmin Construction Services, before the commission to pitch his services. Murphy currently serves as economic development director for the city of Marion, where he said his office has “announced over $250 million in new development” over the past two and a half years, including the redevelopment of a shuttered middle school into mixed housing and flex industrial space, and a new riverfront apartment and retail project downtown.
Black told commissioners the mayor was requesting $8,250 from the redevelopment commission to fund Murphy’s services through the end of the year, with a request for as much as $50,000 in 2027 pending city budget decisions. The agreement is hourly, with a 30-day out clause for either side.
Commissioner Eric Woods, who also sits on the Frankfort City Council, urged caution before locking in a longer-term commitment. “This is a topic that I do believe does merit some additional discussion,” Woods said. “The council has not yet voted upon the support of this. It’s not that I disagree with anything Joe said or what Kimberly said — Frankfort definitely has a need.” Woods said he had proposed a council work session on the city’s broader economic development needs and asked that redevelopment commissioners be invited to attend. Despite those reservations, the commission voted unanimously to approve the $8,250 request for the remainder of the year.
Coca-Cola Mural Restoration Funded
Longtime Frankfort resident Brett Pitzer asked commissioners to help pay for restoring the historic, weathered Coca-Cola sign painted on a downtown building at Washington and Columbia Streets. “Restoring it will preserve a recognizable piece of Frankfort’s history while improving the appearance of an important gateway along the Washington Street corridor,” Pitzer told the board, presenting quotes from two local painters and a $1,000 donation from Tornado Roofing that would bring the net cost to $5,700.
A representative from Perkins Signs, whose bid came in lowest, told the commission the paint is designed to last well over a decade. “It’s about the highest-quality outdoor advertisement paint you can get,” he said, adding the work could be finished in about a week and a half. Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the $5,700.
Commission Makes Moves on Property
In a separate vote, commissioners agreed to offer $122,000 — the average of two appraisals — to purchase the building housing the mural north of Veteran’s Park and its current tenant, Patrick’s Computers, contingent on a clean phase-one environmental study. The commission also approved up to $3,000 for that study and a separate $16,600 phase-two environmental study for the former Mac Machine property, after an initial phase-one review couldn’t rule out contamination.
Commissioners formally, and retroactively, approved a $15,000 facade grant toward a $30,000 roof replacement at 60 East Washington Street, work that had already begun because of recent heavy rain and leaks. The board also discussed the long-stalled 308 North Main Street property, where a previous sale fell through; no action was taken, though one commissioner said he would no longer support spending city money on the site.