We’ve said a lot, in print and on this blog, about Wichita developers’ penchant for fiscal conservatism. We didn’t overbuild or speculate in the housing market, and that’s helping prop up the local economy.
But we certainly overbuilt commercial space — the dreaded vacant strip centers that popped up like toadstools in a damp yard all across town, location be darned, because real estate was everywhere. So much Tuscany that I’m seeing it in my sleep.
Which brings me to today’s issue: Wichita commercial development has slowed in the face of a national economic slowdown and tighter credit.
So much so that there’s little or no movement, even in projects that seem to have great potential and great location, like Brad Saville’s Holland Place at Kellogg and Tyler and the nearby growth around the QuikTrip at Kellogg and Maize.
Tell me what you think. Is now the time to build, as businesses look for bargain leases? Or is it time to pull back and wait out the economic downturn? Is Wichita done growing commercially, for the time being?