Investors bring vision to downtown Tupelo

TUPELO, Miss. (AP) - Almost three years ago, Scott Wagner set in motion a plan to take a bigger role in helping reinvigorate downtown Tupelo.

Through Blue Moon Enterprises LLC, he and his business partners bought a row of high-profile buildings on Main Street that, quite simply, had seen better days.

The three buildings had previously housed Main Street Vintage Guitars, Latin Quarters (and before that, Lucky Joe’s and Benjamin’s) and The Big Easy.

But Blue Moon didn’t want just another restaurant, bar or club to open. Wagner envisioned something far different.

“We knew we had to do something with what we called ’the green monster,’” said Wagner, referring to the green metal covering that hid the brick and glass facade of the largest of the buildings.

The metal monstrosity was taken down bit by bit, much to the delight of downtown business owners and shoppers alike.

Today, the buildings are home to Swirlz, Caron Gallery, Farmhouse and Kermit’s Outlaw Kitchen, or KOK.

The buildings’ renovation is part of a long-term effort by downtown and city leaders and investors to boost the “heart of the city.”

Nearly $150 million in public and private money has been invested downtown since 1991, and the dividends, many believe, are paying off.

Several new businesses, including restaurants, have opened in and around the historic area, helping bring new energy and enthusiasm downtown.

For Wagner, however, the jump-start for his efforts was the opening in August 2013 of KOK, a farm-to-table restaurant developed by Neon Pig co-owners Mitch McCamey and Seth Copeland.

“KOK was what really got it started,” Wagner said. “They were our anchor for what we’re doing. The vision was to build it up, have nice retail, something local - not anything franchised.

“Although,” he said with a smile, “if Apple said they wanted to open in one of my buildings, I’d make an exception.”

KOK’s opening was later followed by Farmhouse - which moved from McCullough Boulevard - and Caron Gallery, which had been in a building east of its current location, next to Tupelo Hardware. Swirlz, which had been on Court Street moved to its higher-profile spot as well.

Wagner also owns the building on Court Street that’s home to dessert cafe Crave, as well as the building housing Cafe 212.

“What Tupelo doesn’t really have is a square like you see in other towns and cities,” he said. “So I’m trying to help create our own square full of boutique shops and restaurants that will lead more people downtown.”

And Wagner has an appreciation for a vibrant downtown, having spent his teen years and beyond in Amory, where his family moved when he was 14.

Debbie Brangenberg, executive director of the Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association, said Wagner’s renovation work has been an important “piece of the puzzle” in downtown’s resurgence.

“That building in particular has been through several lives in the 25 years I’ve been here, and some inappropriate renovations had been made to the exterior,” she said. “We were thrilled to see that green slipcover come off and bring back some of the original features of the building. Unfortunately, some damage had been done from previous renovations through the years that it had to be totally redone on the upper part of the building.

“But the work on the buildings has created retail space to have a thriving business move downtown, it opened up space for the expansion of an existing business, which then opened up a vacancy for a new business. So the synergy of all that created a vibe. .they’re building blocks. It’s what we’ve been talking about and working on for years, and they’ve finally taken hold, and it’s been wonderful.”

Apartment living

While Blue Moon Enterprises owns five buildings, Wagner Properties, a separate enterprise that also includes his wife, Marci, owns other properties in and near downtown as well as across the city. But his primary focus is downtown.

Along with shopping and dining, he wants to add additional housing to the area.

Last week, the scaffolding was taken down in front of Caron Gallery and Farmhouse as Wagner and his construction team worked on the second floor of the building to add inset balconies.

Wagner is building at least two apartments - possibly four - on that floor, which is accessed through a door and stairway between Caron Gallery and Farmhouse.

“They won’t be balconies in the traditional sense that stick out from the building,” he said. “Instead, they’ll be recessed, with access from French doors on the inside, and you can set a little table and chairs, drink coffee, get a view of downtown and maybe see the construction on the sidewalks and street below.”

The front apartment, between 1,300-1,400 square feet, will have two bedrooms, while the second apartment in the back is an “efficiency” unit about 950 square feet with one bedroom.

“They’re geared toward young, professionals,” Wagner explained.

’I knew what I wanted’

A fairly young professional himself, Wagner, 45, said he left his former job and “was doing nothing” when he decided to get into the building renovation business.

“I knew what I wanted, and that was to get into the property business, but to make it happen, I had to make it work,” he said.

Wagner also has Wagner Contracting, which specializes in remodeling and custom jobs. That experience fueled his desire to buy his own buildings to renovate himself.

“A little over three years ago, I was pulling weeds and cleaning gutters, and then somebody told me about these buildings,” Wagner said. “I talked to the owner, Mike Woolven, who wanted to get out of it, and he did an owner-financing plan. That’s what allowed this all to take place. I told him the vision, and he said, “OK, if you come up with ’x’ amount of money, we’ve got a deal.”

Wagner admitted coming up with the money was a struggle.

“My mother-in-law helped us out, and we used what money we had just to get it going.”

KOK, whose name pays homage to what had once been Kermit’s Bakery, was renovated by that initial infusion of funds.

“We built it out for them at no cost, which made it easier for them to come in,” Wagner said. “And that’s what got things going. It took a little time. . But look at what we’ve done in two years. Most people said we were crazy to try this. But things happened quickly. We never thought we’d be this far along.

“But, we’re not through yet. We’re not where we want to be. Downtown isn’t where it needs to be yet. But we’re getting there.”

Wagner won’t say exactly how much he’s invested in downtown Tupelo, but said the figure is easily in six-figure territory.

“And we’re not through yet.”

Wagner said he senses an aura of excitement in the area that’s growing quickly.

“People want to be downtown,” he said. “Look at Voz (Vanelli). He wants to be here. Others want to be here, but there aren’t enough places available. That’s why I’m doing what I’m doing. . This is where it’s happening.”

Wagner thinks the amount of retail space downtown can double, but he knows there will have to be a push to get some buildings available. And he also said he can’t do it alone.

“We need other people who come in and see the downtown doing as well as it’s doing, who want to invest and be a part of it and do well,” he said. “I really want this to be the next place because it just has a different feel to it.”

Brangenberg said all the new businesses downtown in recent years have brought a new vibe to the area, but emphasized the importance of longtime businesses that have anchored it.

“You can’t forget about the mainstays like Main Attraction, Cafe 212, MLM, Reed’s that have been here and stayed through all the years; it takes that balance of existing businesses and new businesses,” she said. “It’s good to have that.”