A pared-down development plan for a site just south of the South Lawrence Trafficway on Iowa Street addresses many of the concerns expressed when an earlier request was denied.

The proposal also will go to tonight’s meeting of the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission with a favorable recommendation by the city planning staff, which provided many pages of documentation to support its opinion. Unless some additional information comes to light that argues against the plan, it seems reasonable for the planning commission and Lawrence City Commission to allow this development to move forward.

The new development would be located at the southeast corner of the Iowa Street and SLT interchange. In response to concerns that the first plan was too large, the size of the project has been reduced by about 60 percent and now calls for 250,000 square feet of space for retailers and restaurants. Although there has been no formal announcement of what businesses will locate there, Academy Sports, Marshalls/Home Goods, Old Navy and Designer Shoe Warehouse were among the retailers that developers said were committed to the earlier plan. The spaces and general categories of retailers outlined in planning documents still would accommodate those businesses.

Many local residents probably are enthusiastic about the additional retail options the development would provide, but the potential financial benefits for the city also are appealing. The development group says it doesn’t plan to seek tax increment financing or other tax financial incentives from the city. That means the development will add to the city’s property tax base as well as providing both construction jobs and ongoing retail jobs.

The developers also estimate that when the project is completed in 2019, it will generate $1.2 million a year in sales tax revenue for the city. It might be argued that not all of that is new revenue but rather sales tax that was diverted from existing businesses in Lawrence. There likely will be some element of that, but it’s also reasonable to think a large portion of the increased sales otherwise would have gone to stores in Kansas City or Topeka. The addition of popular stores in the local market most likely will keep more Lawrence shoppers at home and draw more out-of-town shoppers, especially from Ottawa and other cities to the south.

One of the main arguments against the earlier proposal was its location. At least some city commissioners preferred to push retail development toward property that already has commercial zoning around Rock Chalk Park. Another year has passed since the first proposal was rejected without any apparent progress on attracting retailers to the Rock Chalk area. The city can’t force retailers to locate at what they see as a less-than-optimum site.

Approval of the South Iowa development will require some rezoning and some changes to the city’s long-range plan. Planning and city commissioners should examine the proposed development carefully, but the plan seems like a positive and appropriate use of that site that will provide benefits for both local shoppers and local tax coffers.