An agreement to renovate, modernize, and potentially expand Southern Hills Shopping Center in West Plains has been reached, according to Economic Development Director David Bossemeyer.
Travis Smith, owner of Southern Hills, and community developer, Ryan Kiser, will work together to renovate and potentially expand Southern Hills for future development. The City of West Plains has worked with Kiser since 2016 on development and redevelopment opportunities that would ignite economic growth and thanks him for his time, investment and persistence, said Bossemeyer. Kiser states, “I believe the City of West Plains is now positioned to add additional retailers to the market through redevelopment and new development opportunities. I look forward to working with Travis and his team, along with Wal-Mart, in making the necessary capital improvements that will enhance the characteristics of the property to create better synergies, connectivity, curb appeal and safety to the Southern Hills’ customer experience and in an effort to attract “name brand” stores that are in-line with other retail developments in similar markets”.
Smith first met Kiser in 2013 and stated, “I don’t know anyone that does what he does, with no guarantees on the front end, spending years of his time and using his own money to understand the community’s needs, having a vision, network and ability to align everyone’s interest to actually bring it all to life. I saw Kiser’s dedication to West Plains’ commercial district and driving growth became his purpose in life. It was Kiser’s character and passion that matched the ownership’s past and present approach to life and business in wanting to work with him to make the necessary infrastructure and building improvements to stabilize and enhance Southern Hills and deliver a better experience to our tenants and customers”.
That work could include rehabbing existing buildings, adding new structures, and changing traffic patterns around Southern Hills, said Bossemeyer, who indicated that West Plains’ residents, visitors, and Southern Hills business owners should expect to see some major changes “in very short order.”
Smith will continue performing the day-to-day management of Southern Hills while Kiser will exhaust his efforts on securing new retail base and development activities within and around Southern Hills, said Bossemeyer. “We are so encouraged to see this move forward for our retail sector and wish to thank both Kiser and Smith” said Mayor Jack Pahlmann.
