Editor's note: The following story has been edited to reflect the correct funding sources of the retail study.

Jason Claunch of Catalyst Commercial Inc. told the Jackson Board of Aldermen during a presentation Monday night the results of his company's retail market analysis of the city are better than expected.

The assessment, which Catalyst has been conducting since summer, examined existing businesses and organizations; Jackson demographics, shopping habits and traffic patterns; and available properties to identify opportunities to grow the area's retail environment.

The city hired Catalyst for a 12-month plan costing $68,000 plus expenses not to exceed $5,000. The Cape Girardeau County Industrial Development Authority will pay half the cost, with the other half to be split equally between the cities of Cape Girardeau and Jackson.

With the assessment done, Claunch said, the next overall phase is approaching potential investors and retailers.

The recruitment phase, Claunch said, "is where the rubber really meets the road."

Claunch broke down the different attributes his team found in Jackson that makes the area particularly well-suited to attract business.

For instance, he said, the median home value in Jackson is the highest in the southern Missouri region.

They found more than 50 percent of Jackson's population is younger than 35, which he said makes Jackson comparatively young as a whole, especially with the income and purchasing power the area exhibits, Claunch said.

Claunch said the opportunity his company seems most excited about is of Interstate 55's Exit 99, which he called a "jewel asset" and "the apex of the market."

After that, he said his company identified the interstate's Exit 102, East Jackson Boulevard and the Main Street corridor as other areas of standout opportunity.

Claunch said business types that seem most likely to fit in Jackson would be things such as grocery stores, healthcare/pharmacies and restaurants.

In addition to the potential for entrepreneurs, Claunch said there is interest in Jackson from national anchors, but some difficulty historically in persuading them to pull the trigger and locate a site in Jackson.

Working with the city and Jackson Chamber of Commerce to seal those types of deals is the next step of the project, he said.

tgraef@semissourian.com

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