The Iowa City Marketplace, formerly known as the Sycamore Mall, can now be redeveloped after the Iowa City City Council approved an urban renewal plan on Feb. 17.
Rachel Kilburg Varley, Iowa City’s economic development and public art coordinator, said there has been interest from the community in redeveloping the area to better serve the community and gain more activity. Varley said the Iowa City City Council is working with partners to get different opinions on how the property can be renovated to best serve the community.
The renewal will increase retail opportunities, draw in businesses, add affordable housing, and increase pedestrian activity.
In 2024, Iowa City and surrounding cities launched a Strategic Investment Districts Program to identify outdated areas that needed renovation, including Sycamore Mall.
Mall and shopping center activity has decreased in recent years, with shopping trends shifting to online shopping. According to Capital One Shopping, 87 percent of large malls will close their doors in the next 10 years.
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“What we’ve done with the strategic investment distinct initiative is pull together stakeholders, community members, and public and private partners, and create a vision for how this area could redevelop or have other investments,” Varley said. “It can better serve the community and be a spot for economic vibrancy.”
Jamie Chittick, an employee at Ollie’s Bargain Outlet in the Iowa City Marketplace, said while Ollie’s is normally busy, mall shopping culture has diminished.
“It kind of breaks my heart a little bit that it’s just not like it used to be, and I think anytime you can renew the area, it’s great,” Chittick said. “We just have to change how people shop for today. It’s different from how it was 20 years ago, and we have to figure out how it fits in today’s society.”
The mall was built in 1969 and is structured as a shopping center with a small variety of stores, such as Panera Bread, Dollar Tree, Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, and the Marcus Sycamore Cinema.
Haifeng Qian, director and professor of the University of Iowa’s School of Planning and Public Affairs, said urban planning impacts almost all dimensions of urban life, like transportation methods, economic development, environmental aspects, job availability, and housing market prices. These effects could be seen in the mall’s area with urban planning.
“If you improve the area, it may help some local entrepreneurs to start their business there, or attract some business from other places, so it creates jobs,” Chiang said. “Eventually, it contributes to the city tax base and urban development.”
Qian expressed that better retail and consumer services following the improvement also mean better quality of life for residents, especially those living on the east side of Iowa City.
The plan requires economic investments, with one potential option being tax financing. Iowa City uses a Tax Increment Financing policy, a tool that provides financial assistance to support urban renewal projects if deemed eligible. Varley says that Iowa City has a test policy that ensures Tax Increment Financing policy money is being for public benefit.
According to the fiscal year 2024 Annual Urban Renewal Report from the Iowa Legislative Services Agency, the special revenue fund income was $484.8 million statewide at the end of 2024 and 361 development agreements were made.
Varley categorizes the development as a preparatory project for future renovation.
“We don’t have a specific project in mind, there’s no anticipated development happening, but we have this vision,” Varley said. “We want to have this tool in place and be ready so that when development does happen, we don’t have to go through a long process.”