Last modified: Tuesday, September 4, 2007 3:15 PM CDT

Entrepreneurs help city maintain its character

Beth Thompson, owner of Cose Dolci Bakery, is the kind of entrepreneur the city of Ferguson wants for its downtown business district.

City officials are working with the business community to preserve the charm of Ferguson, said Joe Lonero, owner of the Corner Coffee Shop and other enterprises.

That means attracting the right businesses.

"We have a lot of mom-and-pop stores here," Lonero said. "We have a list of walk-in businesses that we want for downtown. Her (Thompson's) bakery is perfect for us."

Ferguson aggressively pursued Thompson to open Cose Dolci. She had been a mainstay at the Ferguson Farmers' Market, and city leaders believed in the quality of her baked goods.

Money was a strong enticement. The city is using tax increment financing to help small businesses open in the downtown area. Thompson received $10,000 to start the bakery in a strip of rehabbed buildings on South Florissant Avenue, Lonero said.

"If it hadn't been for them, I wouldn't have opened the shop," Thompson said. "They gave me the grant to start it up."

- Scott Bandle