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South Bend <br />Regular MeE <br />6. NEW BU; <br />a. Cor <br />Mr. <br />cor <br />quc <br />TrF, <br />Con <br />est <br />in <br />835 <br />est <br />240 <br />est <br />tot <br />wit <br />$82 <br />too <br />inf <br />pre <br />oth <br />the <br />exc <br />wer <br />$22 <br />evi <br />fun <br />tim <br />out <br />int <br />be <br />and <br />the <br />is <br />elopment Commission <br />- June 14, 1985 <br />(Cont.) <br />Jannotta discussed the kind of blight that <br />Inues to exist in the downtown area <br />ang sources from the Census of Retail <br />le, Bureau of Census, U.S. Department of <br />fierce. Paid employees in retail <br />,blishments in South Bend's Central <br />.ness District (CBD) in 1967 totaled 3,400 <br />)le. In 1982 the number of paid employees <br />-etail establishments in the CBD totaled <br />When looking at the number of retail <br />.blishments in the CBD, in 1963 there were <br />and in 1982 there were 67 retail <br />blishments remaining. In 1963 there was a <br />.1 of $90 million in total retail sales <br />In the CBD. In 1982 there was a total of <br />million. That drop does not seem to be <br />precipitous, however, if you take out <br />ation in those number that is a very <br />:ipitous drop in total retail sales. One <br />:r factor Mr. Jannotta pointed out was that <br />total sales of retail establishments, <br />uding the automotive, in 1963 retail sales <br />$65 million and in 1982 retail sales were <br />million. Since 1982 there has been <br />fence of a continued erosion of the retail <br />!tion in the downtown area. Since that <br />Penneys and Gurley Leep Buick have moved <br />of the downtown. Robertsons has moved <br />smaller quarters, and there continues to <br />high vacancy of available space in the <br />town area. There still remains a large <br />per of parcels and buildings in all three <br />dopment areas that are either vacant or <br />!rutilized. <br />des the evidence of the physical <br />rioration, there is both functional and <br />omic obsolescence. An example of the <br />tional obsolescence are multiple <br />houses and loft buildings in both downtown <br />the East Bank where their function has <br />ged and there is tremendous difficulty in <br />reutilization of these buildings. In the <br />ilization of these buildings the risks are <br />higher because they were basically not <br />gned for any other use than what they were <br />inally intended. Functional obsolescence <br />lso seen in the Robertson's building. It <br />-10- <br />