Vending Carts Get Approval for MARTA Plaza
Decatur Metro | May 20, 2008GoDeKalb gives an update on our hotly debated vending carts posting and reports that last night the Decatur City Commission voted unanimously in favor of giving the program a trial run.
The blurb also has a little more info about what the program thru Lyn Menne…
Decatur Economic Development Director Lyn Menne told city commissioners that she has been approached on numerous occasions from residents who wanted to set up vending carts on the MARTA plaza.”
Residents have said they wanted to sell hotdogs and pre-packaged ice cream, [Lyn] Menne said. “We want to try for six months and see it how it goes.”
Jim Baskett has his doubts. See the full article for his comments.
h/t: InDecatur
Is this proposal referencing the TOP of the MARTA station or the front entrance facing Church? If its up top, I like it a bit better. There is a lot of dead space on that level when there’s no function going on. Now I understand some of the general confusion from the comments of the last post.
Can’t we come up with a better name for that plaza?
Latest from Decaturish
How about (Elizabeth) Wilson Plaza?
When do they plan on putting up a Big Red & White Tent ?
It’s actually known as the Roy A. Blount Plaza
Menne needs to go. She must really think this place is some kind older mall with no roof.
Why should Decatur be like every other crap filled retail area in the city? Why can’t one part of Atlanta be a franchise, crap retail free zone. If I were the restauranteurs around the square I’d be up in her face so fast the Decatur tornado siren would go off from the breeze alone. Menne move to downtown Atlanta and peddle it there. Oh right they’ve already done it there. Well then why not Omaha? I hear they’re dying for help there.
We’ve got to take the city government out of the hands of people who would even propose things like this. They’re killing the goose that laid golden egg for Decatur and they’re not smart enough to realize it. People come here because it’s different not with pushcarts covering every square inch of open space like every mall in town.
Follow the money here folks see who gets the first franchise.
Hot Dogs? Doesn’t the Brick Store sell brats? Ice Cream? What about Jakes?
I can’t remember the last time I saw Menne in either establishment.
Thanks Carl! In the back of my head, I had a feeling that it had already been dedicated. I just didn’t have the time to dig for it.
Now if only we could start calling it by its given name!
David…I think you’re assumptions about the vending carts are a bit premature. From Lyn’s statement above I get the feeling that they won’t be selling knock-off handbags and hats (like in downtown ATL). It will be residents selling hot dogs and other snacks. These establishments do have value for those that don’t have time to sit down (or wait in line) at the Brick Store and just want to grab a quick bite.
Just returning from Berlin, I can tell you that brat stands exist in unison with countless cafes and restaurants…and each have value and co-exist peacefully.
And all I can say is that Menne walks a line between developer and resident that most would have fallen off long ago.
From what I see here they’re trying to turn the horribly designed Marta, oh excuse me, Decatur square into a food court. Even the lighting looks like a
reject from some suburban mall. The design in no way tries to integrate the space with the surrounding area. No one uses the area now except during concerts and the like because it feels like a kill zone.
The six month thing is ridiculous. Once they’re there they’re there to stay. The ACLU will see to that.
If someone has the time I believe an adhoc oversight committee should follow what happens in city business. You know file ORA requests on city contracts and the like. Keep people up to date on the soft connections between government and contractors. Let folks know who the players are. Like when somebody retires and then gets hired back to work at their old job again and taken on overseas junkets or when some developer decides to donate something to a county mavens special charity like cheer leader uniforms.
Dekalb certainly needs this. Godekalb is providing some of it but most of it’s editorial input comes from comments.
Actually it’s a good idea for a blog.
In the end we will get the kind of community we are willing to fight for. I’m sure all these folks mean well, at least I hope they do, but the citizens of Decatur need to take an active role in shaping it’s future, it’s too important to leave to professionals whose next job may be shilling for some developer.
How does Ruby Tuesday stay in business? Wonder of the age.
Like Joni Mitchell says…You don’t know what you’ve got till somebody puts it in the shade of a 5 story Tyvek and stucco mixed use community that will be a slum in 5 years.
David,
Relax. Take a breath. And look into the use of the apostrophe.
I’m assuming you mean comma. Sorry but I like the stream of consciousness rant. It has a certain fresh flow.
How does Ruby Tuesday stay in business? Wonder of the age.
Hey David ! Maybe you should apply for a position on the Planning Commission or better yet, run for City Commission.
Can’t afford the pay cut. Maybe when I retire. Whenever that will be.
David, the Planning Commission is a volunteer position. City Commission pays a nominal stipend, around $5K a year as I recall. If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.
If I join either then a priori I become part of the problem anyway, no?
How does Ruby Tuesday stay in business? Wonder of the age.
Just trying to suggest constructive, involved ways for you to address the issues you raise. Can you suggest others?
I realize people are really trying to brush up Decatur….the core has come a long way in the last 10 years…though most of it is probably due to the natural progression of people moving back into the perimeter for a better quality and more sustainable way of life. Agree the Church St corridor definitely needs redevelopment. I think the push carts could work out ok as long as they don’t turn crass. Berlin is a beautiful town, and the gentlemans post earlier was correct…the carts work nicely alongside cafes and shops. The Stucco is not my favorite nor is the new Elk’s lodge style signage welcoming people to the town, but it is what it is. What I think would be real progressive and is really needed? The parking lot in Decatur Square torn out and turned into greenspace. The top of Marta does not cut it as a public square. Too much cement. A few extra parking spaces removed from the center of town to allow more communal interaction would be a real boon. I mean…how much city revenue can be generated from these few spaces? Think about the quality of the town center experience without cars continually driving around the square trying to find spaces in that small lot. Sometimes the obvious has to be pointed out to people.
I am with Rick. In fact, I have thought about going one better – what about closing Ponce between Church street and the CVS side of Commerce on Friday and Saturday nights after rush hour (7pm onward) and creating a pedestrian zone when the weather is nice? Car traffic could be diverted towards Trinity and around Commerce. Making clear space for strolling would help Decatur capture more of the community feel that emerges during special events like the Arts festival (how great is it, by the way, to see the square full of life at 10PM?) It would be wonderful to see weekly markets on top of the square, and musicians and entertainers along Ponce.
Marketing ourselves as a “mallternative” is setting our sights so laughably low…We don’t want people to think of Decatur as just a bunch of shops; we should be a real town that gathers together in comfortable and beautiful public spaces in our free time. This weekend, during the Arts festival, I think we see a bit of that potential. If we were like that all the time (i.e., folks strolling through the square after dinner, kids playing around the gazebo, young couples eating picnics by the statue, stands selling interesting things, locals playing music, etc), people would gravitate to Decatur and – amazingly – I think we would see our restaurants and stores boost profits. More importantly, it would be really fun to just walk around and hang out (and even, perhaps, meet other people) on a weekend night and people-watch. Give people a bustling square (including the streets surrounding it) as a destination and they will spend more time there – and likely more money – than they would otherwise. But it takes several coordinated steps to make a public space into a shared living room.
Just to clarify something…
As I understand it, based on previous comments by Lyn Menne, the Church St. corridor between Ponce and Commerce has a redevelopment plan, its just a matter of getting developers to commit.
[editor's note: Personal attacks/name-calling not allowed. Therefore, the first line of this comment has been deleted.]
Have you ever meet Lyn Menne , do you know anything about the history of the past 15 years and how hard a handful of people including Lyn worked to make Decatur what it is today?
When my best friend bought a house in Decatur 25 years ago a contractor told her it was worth doing a $20,000 renovation on a house in Decatur , today her home is worth about 3/4 of a million dollars and its not because she put that much monbey into it. It’s because there were folks who were determined tomake Decatur a place where people wanted to live and raise their famies.
It just dosen’t happen that folks move back into the city. there are plenty of places in the city that you wouldn’t want to more back into, but Decatur worked with all of the residents and created family friendly and young people friendly events that drew people back. Then they especially Lyn Menne held the heart of Decatur in their hands and saw to it that the growth was beneficial and beautiful. Fund raisers through The Decatur Business Association and others like the Beer Festival Folks earmaked projects like the Greenspace iniciatives, community charities to make life good in Decatur. Things like that didn’t just happen magically . The Downtown Decatur Development Athority run by women with degrees in Managment development and marketing have made Decaur a model for small towns all over the country. They want to be like Decatur! Peggy Merris , Lyn Menne and Linda Harris and may more folks have worked to bring Decatur to where it is today.
They dedicated their lives and gave countless hours to Decatur and deserve better than to have someone, who probably never even met them or served on a committee or did anything for the communitee, make some stupid remark just to hear himself talk.
Menne must GO??? We would be lost without her.
Right on, Ibby!
Thanks Tiffany.
It breaks my heart to see people who have spent their lives being smart, dedicated and caring put down by folks who don’t know what they are talking about.