Is a Shift From Free to Pay Parking Really Anti-Community?
Decatur Metro | April 11, 2011If you dipped into FFAF over the weekend you may have noticed a resurgence in talk surrounding a recent development concerning the most-talked about property in Oakhurst.
The topic of the “Big H” property at 630 East Lake Drive – named for a long-gone former tenant – frequently brings out both the young and old alike to debate the future of the property and Oakhurst itself. The largest remaining vestige of a former era that saw unlimited potential in the automobile, the Big H was built for major artery-like car crowds in a single-family, residential neighborhood.
Today the parking lot often sits mostly empty; and until this past weekend, served as an overflow FREE parking spot for drivers looking to frequent one of Oakhurst’s businesses.
But then, parking suddenly went from FREE to $5, the response from “consumers” was the same as when ANYTHING goes from free to pay. Anger, resentment, exasperation. The pastor at the new Oakhurst Church in the “Big H” complex stated publicly on the Oakhurst Message Board that he was “deeply saddened and frustrated” by the switch to pay parking, and asserted that creating a pay lot “was in direct conflict” to “fostering community”.
But is it really?
While the benefits of cars and parking are MANY, I’ve never felt like fostering community was one of them. In a best case scenario, the two elements coexist beside each other, with car infrastructure subsidizing the more walkable and pro-community elements. (This is certainly the case in downtown Decatur, and also perhaps Oakhurst.) But in the worst case scenario – from a community perspective – the car’s needed infrastructure stifles and suffocates community, isolating people in their cars, fostering “road rage” instead of casual hellos on the sidewalk, tearing down “traditional neighborhoods” in the demands of more parking. Etc, etc.
Why else would the long-term solution for more-parking challenged downtown Decatur read like this? From Decatur’s Community Transportation Plan…
As the downtown and other parts of the city grow up, parking conditions must change accordingly – from free parking to priced parking,and from “front-door” parking outside every business to a “park once” environment where most people need to walk a short distance to their final destination.
Now, some will rightly point out that downtown Decatur and Oakhurst are very different places. And while I’d agree with that to an extent, I’d argue that we can still apply this rule to the Oakhurst commercial district. In terms of parking, both districts operate in the “best case scenario” I described two paragraphs ago. Parking subsidizes the area’s pedestrian clientele. But too much free parking, too close to the most the in-demand businesses, can actually sabotage long-term plans of “walkable neighborhoods”.
So, regardless of any suspected motive behind the change to paid parking in the “Big H” lot, perhaps we could also see it as an evolution of the neighborhood and a result of a growing, popular and more successful Oakhurst businesses district.
I’m sure few folks will celebrate a move to more paid parking, but I just wonder if the change is actually the result of positive trends in the neighborhood. It’s a murky issue to be sure.
I wish them luck with their $5 parking. I would assume that very few people will pay and that the end result will be more people parking on the street in and around the Oakhurst community.
Supply and demand will determine whether it’s a successful venture or not. As for people parking on the street, wouldn’t that also be the consequence if the property were redeveloped as mixed-use? People often wish for that on DM, with little thought to the loss of free parking spots.
If that happens, I wonder whether it would make sense for the city to put meters up on the parking spots around Oakhurst Village. I don’t see offhand why government-subsidized free parking near a commercial district is a god-given right. Put up meters, and use the revenue to help pay the start-up costs for that golfcart shuttle service between downtown and Oakhurst, so that the Oakhurst businesses don’t get screwed.
I live a half mile from the Oakhurst business area and frequent many of the businesses there. If I have to pay $5 to park, it will affect how much I spend in Oakhurst, especially since I am often just dropping in to pick up something up for take-out.
The owner of the lot has the right to charge people to use it, so I can’t complain, but it will affect the other businesses in the area. They will lose business. It will also affect residents in the area as people park along the streets further into the neighborhoods.
Walkability is an awesome goal, but not every customer lives within walking distance. If you don’t account for their needs, they will go somewhere else. For example, I don’t frequent Midtown since there is no reasonably priced nearby parking for those establishments. Without the driving customers, most businesses in Decatur won’t survive. Leaving them out of the equation is a bad idea. The paid lot is a bad turn of events for the Oakhurst business district.
I’ve never had any trouble finding a free parking space within 100 yards, or so, from my Oakhurst destination.
I’ve never even considered parking in that lot, nor will I in the future, free or not., unless it gets developed into something worthy of my business.
I’m not opposed to paying for parking as a general proposition, but maybe if the owner of the property would do something with it, he wouldn’t have to charge for parking. The idea that he’s somehow benefitted the community by allowing us to park there for free all this time is just nonsense. It’s not like he’s resurfacing the parking lot or providing security for parkers.
Paranoid law of unintended consequences theory:
Many people will, naturally, seek out parking on side streets in Oakhurst to avoid paying $5. This abundance of cars from outside the neighborhood, parked on unattended streets, will be a magnet for the petty criminals. Eventually there will be a rash of car break-ins and we (Oakhurstians?) will have a momentary freak-out about how crime from the city has leapt across the border in Oakhurst. Word will get out that Oakhurst isn’t as safe as it looks, so that going forward people driving into the neighborhood won’t feel comfortable parking on the street and will thus happily pay $5 to ensure their car is safe.
And no, I’m not saying anything crazy like ‘Bruce wants more crime in Oakhurst’ – that’s nuts. Just playing out a possible scenario as food for thought…
I’d argue that parking in front of someone’s house is probably as safe – or safer – than parking in a deserted parking lot.
If more people on our streets and sidewalks will cause more crime, I wonder what caused the dramatically higher crime rates in the 90s when the Village was essentially boarded up?
People already park on the sidestreets surrounding the Village. The modest number of “drive ins” that refuse to pay Bruce will have almost zero impact on anything. As Jeff says, there’s plenty of parking. Within an eighth of a mile of the U Joint are over 300 on-street spaces. Many are used now and will continue to be. Life will go on.
Agreed. More people on the streets definitely support a safer environment.
Was just playing out an overly-caffeinated theory in my head and wanted to see what the response looked like.
Not to swerve this topic even further from its ‘do parking lots build community’ origins, but do we have any new news regarding the DG? I sense that it’s a done deal from some of the comments on FFAF, but haven’t seen anything concrete about that.
Actually, there are plenty of us right around the businesses that have to use the onstreet parking because we either don’t have off street parking or only have narrow drives that lend themselves to one car. About 80% of people on the two blocks around me utilize on street parking. So some of us who own homes around those restaurants ARE affected, Scott. I think Bruce can do whatever the hell he wants. He’s paying the property taxes & maintenance and if he is charging then, yes, there is security if there is an attendant on pay nights. However, it does affect me directly- I have no offstreet parking – and many of my neighbors. I will certainly be consulting Patti Garret about the “resident parking only” signs should it become a problem.
To be clear, I did not say surrounding residents are not affected by on-street parking around the Village. I said that the fallout from Bruce’s actions, should there be any, will not have any measurable impact beyond what is experienced now. Some people will pay 5 bucks for the convenience and sense of security associated with the lot attendant while those that refuse will be diffused over many streets and spaces elsewhere. I don’t think the uptick will be perceptible.
“…zero impact on anything” seems to imply that the residents who have to deal with an increase in offstreet parking actually are not affected. BUUUUT maybe that is just me
Anyway, I don’t disagree with you at all that the guy can charge for whatever he wants. I am not so sure what I understand is why the city takes into account off street parking- which is heavily utilized on many streets around the busineses by homeowners and their guests because it is all the parking we have access to- in business parking plans. Yet Farm Burger had to jump through hoops to get parking variances when there is a LOT attached to it.
Don’t know if you’ll find this written anywhere but, essentially, Farm Burger is downtown, which is considered distinct from its adjacent neighborhoods. Oakhurst Village is a neighborhood commercial district, which is considered integrated with its surroundings. Thus, “spillover parking” is viewed according to its respective context.
The reason on-street parking is considered is because, without it, U-Joint, Mojo, the dry cleaners, Mezcalitos, Steinbeck’s, and pretty much any similar neighborhood business, would be illegal. If you want walkable neighborhood businesses, you need on-street parking. It’s worth noting that the one spot in Oakhurst Village that handles its own parking in a fully “up to code” way is also the one spot everyone hates and complains about.
That’s not a free pass, mind you. The surrounding parking counts, together with the needs of the respective residences, is what regulates commercial expansion. My guess is that, at this point, any commercial development in the Village would likely need to provide its own parking. Keep in mind, though, that once someone’s capturing their own parking they can go a lot higher / bigger because they need more square footage to offset the parking costs. Factoring in on-street parking typically keeps commercial development to a single story. Like all things, there are pros and cons with every scenario.
How did I know you would know?
I believe the spaces in the lot attached to Farm Burger had already been counted towards code required parking for Watershed and the dry cleaning business.
If you go back and read the posts on this blog about the Farm Burger parking issue, you will see may posts complaining that the city parking requirements are too strict . Most people felt Farm Burger should be given a variance allowing them to open without adequate dedicated parking spaces. I expect the city will be working to eliminate these parking requirements ASAP now the new strategic plan has been completed. Is that really the right thing to do ?
I think paid parking will ultimately hurt the businesses in Oakhurst. For example, I am less inclined to go to certain businesses in Decatur (on weekends especially) because I don’t want to have to pay $5 for parking when I want to just stop by and get $4 of yogurt. I have been going to other places where I don’t have to pay to park.
I also think it will definitely end up having more people park on the street, which can be more dangerous for pedestrians in the area.
On-street parking slows down passing cars. How can it be more dangerous to pedestrians?
That sounds like a hope, not a fact. The lack of parallel parking prowess I regularly witness is definitely not safe and the frustrated traffic behind these on-street parkers frequently whip around them into oncoming traffic.
“I also think it will definitely end up having more people park on the street, which can be more dangerous for pedestrians in the area.”
This one’s not true. On-street parking actually serves to increase pedestrian safety for two reasons. First, it decreases the useable width of the street which slows down traffic considerably. This is key because, going from 20mph to 35mph, the chance of a struck pedestrian being killed is increased more than 7 times. Second, parked cars provide a physical buffer between traffic and sidewalks. In Oakhurst, where curbs are often buried in asphalt and planting strips are just a few feet wide, this becomes even more important.
On-street parking can be more dangerous because the cars coming into Oakhurst on East Lake Drive will, instead of parking in the parking lot, drive to some of the other streets around the Oakhurst businesses to find free parking. More cars on a street = more dangerous to pedestrians.
Winnona Mom, I recently discovered that you can park for free in the garage off Ponce if you are going to the Yogurt Tap (just ask for a parking token.) I had been avoiding going there for the same reason. It’s the parking garage that also serves Subway and Great Clips.
It’s not amazingly convenient, but at least it is free!
Winnona Mom, the county lot has tons of FREE parking on weekends and weeknights. God forbid you have to actually walk 2-3 blocks to your destination.
Paying to park will certainly affect things for my friends and me (from the downtown Decatur area) who frequent Oakhurst.
I know we’ll go less often for casual coffee/meals/Jazz nights etc… because the of the cost to park or the headache to find parking on all the side streets (which will undoubtely annoy residents all-the-more).
I also disagree that paid parking will increase decisions to walk. Oakhurst is already a place where folks walk whenever they have the chance. The walking -and-saying “hello, how are you doing?” vibe is already there! Paid parking will do nothing to enhance and already existing ethos.
Finally, paid parking changes the atmosphere of the area. Right now, Oakhurst has an incredibly good reputation – and part of that has to do with the lack of a corporate/dollars-and-sense mentality. Free parking is welcoming and hospitable – a stark contrast to other parts of Atlanta that charge and therefore create headaches because either 1) you pay or 2) you rome around the side streets hoping for something to open up. Headaches are not hospitable. I’m glad the church there wants to keep the welcoming enviroment.
It may be welcoming and hospitable to business patrons, but does it strengthen the larger community?
It doesn’t weaken it.
His property, his choice. It isn’t his responsibility to make it easier for other businesses. Maybe they should pay him. I’ve always thought folks (and businesses) should say thank you to Bruce instead of vilifying him constantly. The guy can’t win.
I agree — 100+…
“The guy can’t win”. I agree with that statement. Although probably not in the same way that you meant it.
Almost makes me wish Mulligan’s was still around.
[edited: Sorry George. No personal attacks]
Can we still bicycle through the lot for free?
Bicycles get a reduced rate of $3.00.
Looks like I’ll be parking on a side street somewhere. Just like I’ve done for years in Va-Hi. No big deal.
Who cares? Let him do what he wants. It’s just not that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things. I think it’s a sign of financial trouble… not vindictiveness.
What ever happened to Dollar General? Did we scare them off?
I agree it kind of sucks to get the free parking yanked, but really, is $5 that much in the scheme of things? It’s usually twice that to park in Va-Hi & Midtown lots.
Good point. I venture into midtown far more often than Oakhurst so it’s not the price of parking that is always the deciding factor…
I think it’s reasonable to charge to park there, especially on Friday and Saturday nights only, which I heard was the plan. My guess is that this will hurt our Oakhurst businesses because people hate paying to park, and I hate that. As much as I like Leon’s, many times I don’t go there because I have to pay to park or walk a long(ish) way from the dark deck.
PS – Yogurt Tap does have free parking, for the person who doesn’t want to pay to park on top of the yogurt. It’s in the same deck with Natural Body – just ask for a token when you check out.
and next we get booted for parking at Steinbeck’s and walking to Kavarna? I’m not sure what “strengthening the larger community” means, DM. We try to be good neighbors, we look out for each other, we support our schools and local businesses. How far should people have to walk to pick up their dry cleaning? Are we “strengthening the larger community” by driving out local places like that? Do we not frequent the business district when the weather is bad?
Of course, any place with designated parking places can probably charge to park and harass any non-customers. But the tone, the feel, of the neighborhood changes and i don’t think for the better.
The Dollar General deal is dead.
It met the fate that many would be tenants have met in this space and dealing with this landlord. It goes something like this:
Tenant: I will offer you $15 per square foot to lease the space
Bruce: I can’t do it for less than $18.
Tenant: I will pay you $17 per square foot but you’ve got to make certain improvements to the building.
Bruce: No way am I going to make improvements. And I am so offended that you have made such a suggestion, the $18/per foot offer is off the table. $20 per foot, no improvements.
Tenant: Walks away from deal.
And this cycle repeats itself over and over again and the building goes empty another 5 years until another serious potential tenant comes along.
So, no income is better than some income? I guess I’ll never understand real estate.
Does this guy have any commercial tenants to speak of at any of his properties…? Maybe a couple?
[edited: no personal attacks]
I say let him charge whatever he wants for parking. It will have little effect on Oakhurst in the end, and it will only lead to his property being reassessed, which is something that is long overdue. DeKalb and Decatur both need tax revenue badly, and they really need to take a look at his dramatically undervalued real estate.
You were in on the negotiations?
It seems to me that a number of the businesses in the area have benefited from the free parking in that lot. Maybe some of those business would strike a parking arrangement so that you would get a discount when using the lot. $5 to park, $3 discount if you spend over a certain amount. Seems fairly reasonable and it’s done in a number of other places (e.g, Raging Burrito).
Let me get this straight. The Big H has sat, unimproved and mouldering for the full time the current landlord has owned it, a blight at the heart of Oakhurst, and the only benefit it afforded is now being taken away. Given the huge amount of off-street parking relative to the small number of businesses in Oakhurst, the effect is pretty awful and infuriating. Instead of providing any meaningful community benefit, the pay for parking is going to add inconvenience and trouble for nearby residents and do nothing to improve the prospects of the business district.
Am I the only here that thinks it’s in poor taste for a church to air their grievances with their landlord on a community message board?
No. I’ve spent quite a bit of time mulling it. More than a poor taste thing, it’s troubling…
Where’s the “Do unto others as you’d have them do unto you?” You can’t truly foster community without building lines of communication– especially with those who think differently than you. How much sweeter it’d be if the Church would seek to bring the landlord and the community together. Not every action needs to be announced, and the best ones are often known only by a few. And of course God.
Churches are kind of in the business of making their opinions known, don’t you think?
On landlords and parking? Seems slightly off message…
No and I find it interesting that he refers to the parking lot as “our lot.”
But…but…aren’t they paying to rent the space where that lot is? If so, then aren’t they also paying for that lot for their members/attendees? That kinda makes it “their” lot (at least, the one they’re paying to use). Maybe they didn’t mind sharing it, and were dismayed because the landlord is now charging additional $$ for parking lot spaces that the church, in a sense, has already paid to use…so you could look at it from their point of view, which could be that the landlord is now getting twice the $$ for use of the parking lot, which makes people resent the landlord & his building…maybe the church doesn’t want to be tarred by the bad vibes. I didn’t have a problem with the church expressing its dismay at this.
Cubalibre- I absolutely agree that Oakhurst Church has every right to be ticked off for the reasons you’ve given. I’d be fired up too! But they couldn’t even wait to see if conventional communication worked before issuing a statement? For me, it just feels wrong… but perhaps it worked. Maybe they’ll draw in the likeminded Oakhurst folks…
It depends on the lease. I am a lessee in a commercial building and I don’t have control over the parking lot. In fact, I pay extra per month for my employees’ parking with card access and we don’t have reserved parking. That has been my experience with several leases around town. My guess is that the lease for a church would not give them exclusive use of the parking. I still don’t understand the resentment for the landlord because “the landlord is now getting twice the $$ for use of the parking lot.”
Please understand, that sentiment is total speculation on my part– I was basically pondering in print what might be behind the church’s dismay. And of course their rights to the parking lot depend on the lease, & I certainly haven’t seen it– but organizations like churches aren’t generally going to enter into an agreement that doesn’t give them some rights to parking space (more than most other businesses, they do rely on “butts in the seats”, so parking would be a very important part of their needs). My main point was that I didn’t have a problem with the pastor expressing his disappointment at the landlord’s actions. If people resent the landlord of your building, you have to wonder whether some of that will rub off, however inadvertently, on your business. I just thought it was his way of expressing solidarity with the community.
Yeah, I thought it was the church charging for parking. They started charging right after the new signs went up.
I just don’t understand why Bruce wouldn’t want businesses in there?? Why can’t he take a step back and see how this vacant property is an eyesore.
Why, Bruce, can’t you cooperate with businesses who WANT to move in there?? Everyone would benefit.
Bottom line – Don’t pay $5 to use the parking lot. Park somewhere else and after a few weeks of paying an attendant without collecting any revenue he’ll give up.
[edited: no personal attacks]
Glad I can walk to the village.
As far as the city putting up meters: Ask business owners in Virginia Highland how well that has gone. Business is down significantly since Atlanta put in parking meters.
Bottom line – Don’t pay $5 to use the parking lot. Park somewhere else and after a few weeks of paying an attendant without collecting any revenue he’ll give up.
I predict this is exactly how it will play out. It will also demonstrate that there is plenty of on an off street parking places for the current Oakhurst business district. For example, no one ever uses the 30 or so spots directly behind Palate/McGowans. There are not even “no parking” signs on East Lake.
There is no Marta stop in downtown Oakhurst so customers have to drive there. I will not drive to Oakhurst if it is expensive, unsafe or inconvenient for my family. I will not park a few blocks off the square as it is not safe in the evenings if I am by myself or with my small kids. I’ve lived here for 17 years… so there is no need to defend Oakhurst. I love it there.. in the business area only. BTW… I never park in that lot anyway.
But, $5 to park? What makes Oakhurst a better value than parking in Decatur at $3? Decatur has one hour free parking in the garage during the week. This does not make good business sense… you make money where the value you provide is viewed as greater than the cost to acquire it. This makes as much sense as charging $10 or $20 to park. Oakhurst is not downtown Atlanta for a night out for dinner and the Fox… or Decatur with the diverse stores, salons, restaurants. People pay for value… and a fee parking lot is a looser.
It will take a very long time to recoup the money to pay an attendant, even the setup of a pay yourself box. Once the public realizes they are charging in that lot they will not park there. Then, some will stop going to Oakhurst. Which, in the end, devalues the big-o-deserted property. Not good business sense…
“Decatur has one hour free parking in the garage during the week. ”
Which garage is that?
Last I checked that was the policy in the deck behind Parker’s on Ponce.
This brings up another topic. How close does a MARTA line have to be? The East Lake MARTA station is a roughly 10 minute walk from the Oakhurst Village. Is that too far? Maybe it is, but there is also quite frequent bus service from both the East Lake and Decatur stations that runs right through the village. Next time you are sitting on the patio at UJoint try counting them.
Our neighborhood is obviously not safe enough for this person. Personally, I have lived a block from the Universal Joint for longer than the Universal Joint has existed and in south Decatur since the late 1980s. Nothing has ever happened to me, but I guess that is because I know how to handle myself in big scary Oakhurst/MAK.
How do you make comments like that and not expect to offend most of the neighborhood?
Lots to be happy about with this latest development:
1. Obviously the Dollar General thing is dead. Long live independent local businesses!
2. More and more people get to know what that landlord is all about. Bad for him, good for Oakhurst.
3. Oakhurst is hugely supported by locals who don’t need parking. Witness the scene during the snowpocalypse week, when no one could drive anywhere and Oakhurst was HOPPING. The area is not dependent on parking like other business districts.
4. The “good guys”, the landlords and business owners of the thriving Oakhurst properties (i.e. everything but Vision properties) can and will overcome any difficulties that might result. They are a can-do, entrepreneurial bunch.
5. There’s a huge amount of potential parking behind the Intown Auto Care property, and that whole strip is owned by one landlord who could theoretically make that happen and benefit himself and his lessees. So there are other options if the Big H parking policy caused any real problems, which I doubt it will.
6.
7. Every time Bruce Cohen comes up here or in conversation, it reminds me of how awesome the Oakhurst business district is. How could our little village be so vibrant despite his huge gaping blighted Big H hole in the middle of it? Often we think of what could be, but what we’ve got is pretty awesome, especially considering you know who.
Now I really want to know what #6 is….
There is no rule #6
Nice. You got me. Ever seen Life of Brian?
OMG people!!! Ignore this man!
Can you imagine the ego boost he gets from making front page DM news every time he gets his boxers in a wad? He clearly can’t stand Decatur (particularly Oakhurst) people. I am sure he loves to see us go on like this.
How do you handle behavior like this… you ignore it, and when the behavior is no longer given attention, it ends.
Let him charge for parking. So freakin’ what? He has a right to charge whatever he wants b/c he owns the property. If you really think about it, none of us really care about what this so-called landlord does… he’s already doing his worst … and Oakhurst is thriving despite him.
His parking lot makes a great place for kids to learn to ride bikes. Plus, my dog loves to take a poop there on the way to the dog park.
Ha! Great post.
That’s a subtle way to ignore someone.
DM, You’ve ruffled everyone’s feathers with this posting!
Well said, TreeRus and MrFixIt.
For some reason, my replies aren’t being posted to the OP’s…Mises, my last was directed to your 4/12 9:14 am post…
Bruce was invited and attended last nights Oakhurst Neighborhood Associations meeting to speak to the paid parking issue. First my opinion – his property he can do what he wants regarding parking, not going to affect Oakhurst businesses. From Bruce – he has provided that lot for free for a long time and now that the business district is thriving he wants to work out a compensation model with the businesses that use the lot for overflow. He is speaking currently with them to figure out an arrangement, the present plan is an attendent on Friday, Saturday nights and possibly Jazz night thursdays, but thats not set in stone.
From meeting and speaking with him last night, he seems like a nice enough guy, a business man yes but someone who lives in the community and wants to work with it. According to him he has reached out to a who’s who of grocery tenants (Trader Joes) over the years, and the density/traffic or lack thereof is always a main factor of why they don’t proceed. I’m sure the other (based on commercial real estate friend who has brought potential projects to Bruce presently and in the past) is what Tee Russ mentioned above.
Interesting. Thanks for the report!
Very interesting! Did you.. uh.. ask him about Dollar General?
[Re the catty wonkus comments postings- Whenever DM removes a comment box, it sends the system into a tizzy. An Oakhurst Church person's comment right before Davo's was pulled.]
I believe he mentioned that they were part of the group of groceries that couldn’t justify the move based on traffic/density.
Also very interesting… and surprising. It seems that someone at Dollar General is looking only at numbers, not factors. With DG looking to expand into intown neighborhoods + go in the direction of more upscale locales, Oakhurst is the ideal market. Good income mix, walkability, pride in shopping locally (DG would benefit from that spirit even if not “locally grown”)…
From the information you’ve provided, it also means that unless there’s a united effort by the neighborhood, it’s going to be hard to attract a corporate retailer for the Big H property. Heart & other intangibles often make the difference– even in a $$$ world.
It’s not about upscale locales so much as it’s about access to customers. Plain and simple, chain discount retail cannot survive on walk-in traffic at the density found in Oakhurst. They would need it supplemented significantly by drive-in traffic and East Lake just doesn’t have the traffic counts they need.
This will be true of any chain grocer or similar. The margins are too thin. The only way to land one would be to significantly increase through traffic on East Lake. Gotta assume that’s a path most of Oakhurst would rather not go down.
It’s true some new establishment could serve as a magnet and draw additional traffic where it currently doesn’t exist. Oakhurst Market will surely do this. But nationals are much less likely to take a chance. They want the numbers in place.
Scott- You’re the VERY person who could help Oakhurst make a persuasive case to offset the traffic/density! Let’s figure out all of the WHY’s, not the why nots. Some are:
1. If you’re looking beyond a cars based model for new growth, then Oakhurst is ideal because folks are already “sold” on walkable businesses.
2. Good mix of household types: home owning familes (many are well above DG’s targeted $75k demographic) + good base of reliable DG consumers in seniors home owners/ seniors community & renters.
3. Number of nearby schools, including Renfroe Middle & 4/5 Academy that draw from all of Decatur. Parents (car poolers/Safe Routers) will make a well stocked store a regular stop due to convenience factor.
4. Numerous community events that bring in additional foot traffic.
C’mon people! There’s lots of reasons a retailer would find success in Oakhurst!
Cuba libre as a fellow Cuban I am happy to see another Cuban in Decatur.
As for parking – there are plenty of other options than paying $5
THAT’S what Decatur is missing. A Cuban restaurant! One of the very few things I miss about south Florida is the great Cuban food.
I heard that CocoLoco lost their lease, and am hoping fervently they’ll move to Decatur.
Thing is, Token, the very best Cuban food is almost always found in people’s homes– no matter how good the restaurant, it’s just really hard to get Cuban food the way it is at home. No offense, STG, but CocoLoco is only OK. I’ve had worse, for sure, but I can make you some sopa de ajo & pollo con mojo that will make you forget all about CocoLoco!
Heyyyyy!!! Good to “meet” ya!
Bruce is back for Jazz night charging $5. Avoid the big H lot