St. Joseph Awards Loan to Future Downtown Restaurant, Bakery

ST. JOSEPH -- St. Joseph is one step closer to having a new restaurant and bakery.

At their Thursday night meeting, the St. Joseph City Council approved a seven year, $52,500 revolving loan with a three percent interest rate for Krewe and Flour & Flower, a Cajun restaurant and Scandinavian-themed bakery under construction at 24 College Ave. N.

City Administrator Kris Ambuehl says the loan amount and repayment timeline fit the city's priorities.

"They asked for a lot longer term than we gave them, and they asked for a higher dollar amount than we gave them. We calculated the risk. We don't want them to default and we don't think they will. We wouldn't have given it to them if we did."

The owners of Krewe and Flour & Flower originally intended to be open in mid-April. While Ambuehl isn't certain what caused the delays, he's confident the loan will speed up the process to getting there.

"They've got money invested. They've got equipment purchased. They're already doing improvements to get it up and running. They've got skin in the game. They're moving forward. And the part that the city could help with was hopefully advancing that and getting things moving forward faster."

Ambuehl says the attitude surrounding Krewe and Flour and Flower is overwhelmingly positive.

"There was no one against this. Everyone was for it, everyone wanted to make it happen. We did limit the time frame just to put in place more securities for us. And the fact that they said, 'that's fine,' it shows that they're prepared, and going to do well."