Osage Beach hearing continued as developer outlines mall redevelopment, jobs and economic impact

The Osage Beach board voted to continue a public hearing on a proposed redevelopment of the Osage Beach outlet mall to May 12 to allow time to review a revised plan and complete required tax‑district notices under the TIF act.

Supporters and residents urged the board to prioritize local jobs and asked for more public detail, while the developer outlined employment, payroll and tourism projections intended to bolster the project's case.

The developer, Chris Foster, who took the podium after the board opened the floor to public comment, said the revised plan was submitted that day and projected "a total of 1,600 full time jobs, $55,000,000 in payrolls" and an overall "total economic impact to the community of $300,000,000 a year." He said the project also would create more than 3,000 construction jobs and that the team had commissioned a Jones Lang LaSalle market study to support those figures.

Public commenters said they supported revitalization but wanted more transparency about tenants, traffic and infrastructure. "Lives are dependent upon that mall," said Sean Scheffler, a former Eddie Bauer employee who told the board his job ended in March after nine years and said the mall once supported about "1,400 employees." Resident Vicky Simbrell said she could not find clear information about the redevelopment, raised concerns about congestion and cited a figure she had seen of "$46,000,000" needed to fix the local sewer system.

Board and staff members said they had received a revised redevelopment plan only hours earlier and that the city needs to give statutory notice of revisions to taxing districts before a final vote; city staff member Spykerman requested the continuation under the TIF act to allow time for those notices. Several board members described the property as blighted and said TIF legislation was the mechanism to support revitalization in such cases, though one member said they were "not ever usually a fan of TIFs." The developer said negotiations with Bass Pro were advancing and that Bass Pro was "fully engaged," estimating the Bass Pro store planned for the site would be roughly twice the size of the Branson location.

Following public comment and discussion, a board member moved to continue the public hearing to May 12 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote with no opposition recorded. The board then approved the minutes for April 1 and adjourned.

The public hearing will reconvene on May 12 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall to consider the revised redevelopment plan and related TIF matters.