Officials with the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls say the new mixed-use Panther District that is planned near the UNI-Dome and McLeod Center will serve as an economic driver for the entire community and help attract new businesses and people to the city.

The university announced plans recently for the Panther District near 27th Street and Hudson Road, which will feature a hotel, retail, restaurants and housing.

Pete Moris, director of university relations, said the university hired consulting firm Vandewalle & Associates of Madison, Wis., to study the feasibility of such a development. The firm has previously worked with the city of Cedar Falls and its downtown district.

“We wanted somebody who was familiar with the market, and I think that was the starting point for us, to make sure there was enough local support and visitor traffic that would warrant adding this to our community,” Moris said.

And it turned out there is.

“There’s enough bandwidth and growth potential in Cedar Falls to do this,” Moris said.

The location is ideal with its proximity to the UNI-Dome, the McLeod Center, the university’s Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center and the new Cedar Falls High School, he said.

The city’s industrial park is a short distance to the south, as are two Target distribution centers.

“This is really a part of the town that is growing and does not have those types of businesses specifically, and there is really no close hotel to our footprint here,” Moris said.

There is a national robotics competition planned and a lot of youth sports events happen throughout the year, not to mention all the activities and events on campus, he said.

“To have a facility that’s really a destination next to all of that, to all those activities and attractions that draw people really made a lot of sense,” Moris said.

He said the site is currently a parking lot, which gives a developer the opportunity to start with a “blank canvas.”

According to Moris, developing the site into a mixed-use destination will also provide revenue to the university at a time when state appropriations remain flat.

“Other than raising tuition, which we don’t want to do, we have to find some creative solutions,” he said.

In addition to the amenities such as restaurants and retail, including market rate housing in the plan will help draw people and companies to town, Moris said

“In order to improve the quality of life in Cedar Falls and Waterloo and attract new people and new businesses, you’re going to have to have a place for those people to stay,” he said. “That’s a real challenge for employers.”

Moris said the housing would not be for students but for members of the community.

The goal is to have a developer on board that the Board of Regents can vote on before the end of 2025, he said.

He said the vision for the district is for it to be a family-friendly, pedestrian-friendly, bike-friendly development.

The first priority would be to lock in a hotel developer followed by retail and restaurant, Moris said.

Although the development would remove a parking lot, he said there are other lots nearby that people can use when attending events at the UNI-Dome or the McLeod Center, as well as other  events on campus.

Cedar Falls Mayor Danny Laudick said the Panther District is an opportunity to “lean into our heritage and connection to UNI.”

“It provides a new type of experience for students and visitors coming into town for events nearby, and it builds on the incredible quality of life and unique amenities that we continue to invest in through our mixed-use districts like downtown and College Hill,” he said in a news release.
  
Grow Cedar Valley President and CEO Katy Susong said the Panther District will be a
bold, vibrant development that energizes the community.

“UNI plays a critical role in attracting people to the Cedar Valley and when we create places that make them want to stay, the entire region benefits,” she said in the release.

It’s too early to put a price tag on the development of the district, Moris said.

“We haven’t crossed that bridge, yet,” he said. “I think that’s part of the process of getting those [developer requests] and finding out what they think. We’re really at the start of those conversations.”