Gene Kansas Development tweets…
GKD hired by Pope & Land to sell/lease 542 Church Street in Decatur…anyone wanna buy a building?!
And that would be this property…
I know I’m not the only one that’s dreamed about the revitalization of Church Street between Ponce and Commerce.
If you had a big wad of cash, what would you do with this property?
h/t: The Ginger Fox (a.k.a. Squirrel McBusinessperson)
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Trader Joes!
If I had a big wad of cash….if I had a BIG WAD of CASH….CASH….Hmmm.
I’d put in a water feature….like a moat.
Then install a drawbridge to seal up that huge hole in the middle of the building.
Instead of those evil “Iron Sky” cameras, I’d install archers at the corners of the roof.
I’d tear up the parking lot in the back and make a garden and an area for livestock.
Then I’d throw some wicked parties!
I’d put on my cowboy hat and nifty black and red boots and ride my trusty wrecking ball right down the middle of this mother. Then I would plant an enchanted garden full of pixies and fairies and dancing pigs.
“Dancing Pigs” sounds like some weird mash-up between Iberian Pig and Dancing Goats…
MONORAIL
Movie theater
OK, it’s clear I need some of what Nelliebelle & PMcG have been smoking…but for real: if the wad of cash was just ridiculous, I’d gut the place & make half of it offices for my non-profit foundation, then make the other half of it into a grocer’s dream & go to Trader Joe’s headquarters, prostrate myself before their BOD, and offer them half-price rent for 2 years if they’d agree to open a store in Decatur. If they said no, then I’d do that fairy/pixie/dancing pig/livestock garden/party thing.
Tear it down and put in a single-screen movie theatre. You know you want it.
T-R-A-D-E-R J-O-E-S
What a great spot for a little forum or civic center for indoor shows and special events.
Tear … it …down …
The Decatur Cricket Club needs a pitch.
I would NOT tear it down. I really like the architecture of this building. It has a nice, retro feel. For the bottom space, I would do what I hope for anytime a store front empties up in Decatur: a bakery. A European style, open early in the morning, fresh bread smell around the block bakery.
I’m with you, Penny. I like the low-slung look of the place and I like the breezeway.
Love that structure too. Ooh the tiles!
I can’t believe nobody’s thought of putting a Trader Joe’s there.
An awesome place for a rooftop bar.
A Trader Joe’s AND a Trader Vic’s!!!
Hubby wants to turn it into a loft, just as he wants to do with the bank building at Clairmont and Ponce.
It used to be a Kroger, from about the ’50s to mid-70s, I think.
Might not be enough parking, by today’s standards, to satisfy T. Joe’s. But maybe — since there is a sizeable body of “walkable” customers nearby (assuming people who live above Ted’s would walk, which may or may not be the case).
As long as we’re on the Trader Joe’s topic… A friend and I were at TJ’s Midtown the other day, and we couldn’t find a particular item. We asked a very helpful staff person about it, and he explained that they now have a dedicated Georgia warehouse to serve the Georgia stores, and that re-stocking has been a little disorganized while they are getting the new system worked out. My friend piped up with, “Well if you have a Georgia warehouse now, that must mean we’ll be getting a store in Decatur soon, right????” He hemmed-and-hawed, but allowed that it was possible in the future. We told him we considered that answer a promise, and that we would be spreading the news far and wide that the Decatur store was as good as built.
Trader Joe’s , Trader Vic’s ,single-screen movie theatre,little forum or civic center for indoor shows OR A PARKING LOT tear it down, what an eye sore I walk by this this old wreck every day, tear it down and put in a park with flowers and trees just please do somthing with the space ……. did I say tear it down????
Trader Joe’s is Aldi with higher prices (check it — I’m not making this up). We don’t need another chain. We need an incubator for local small vendors and craftspeople — some of the same folks who set up shop at the farmer’s market across the way. It could run on a consignment basis. Decatur is the right place for something like this. The challenge is how to manage the mix so it’s not just a flea market…
Trader Joes would be welcomed. I’d also take a Midtown Arts Cinema-type theater.
I think this space would be perfect to split between a hobby shop (with r/c aircraft and hello kitty modeling supplies), a head shop, a railroad museum, second location for yogurt tap and a daycare. Though I’d be willing to trade them all for trader joes. Incidentally, I’m not that happy with Joe tonight as i found a caterpillar frozen in my edamame, but I’d still welcome him into this space.
A Friendly Local Comics Shop.
I do have to say I don’t get all the Trader Joe’s love. I can’t actually COOK using Trader Joe’s products. Mr. Nelliebelle, who is a a furiner from an agrarian nation and therefore thinks all American food is made in labs by odd little men who themselves are made in labs, has minor cardiac incidences every time he reads the labels (the preservatives in the yogurt sent him into spasms and screams of “In my untouched homeland, the yogurt is so fresh and pure it is delivered by the cow who makes it five minutes after it’s done”). I go there to buy certain cereal (Weetabix is $2.99 and both Baby Nelliebelle and Mr. Nelliebelle love the ‘bix) and flowers and the ocassional convenience item, but can’t say I can actually really prepare dinner from scratch using the products there.
Bring on the enchanted garden, dammit.
Agree 100%. I have never understood the appeal of Trader Joe’s. A high quality bakery would be absolutely awesome.
A real bakery, with sausage rolls and meat pies…………………….. and cakes with cream. And fairies…
OMG– you’re British! LOL! Seriously– I can see your point to a point. But for meself, I don’t want to have to cook from scratch every night, and their frozen veg selection is awesome (as is their selection of vegetarian meals). Plus, I like a lot of their sauces (which let people think you cooked from scratch), and their vitamins are inexpensive but very good. And, most importantly, they carry Dr. Bronner’s Peppermint soap, which I loooooooooove!!!
Decatur needs another music venue to anchor the evening/ nightlife scene. A place like the Earl in East Atlanta, but perhaps slightly less seedy would be awesome. The rooftop bar is a great idea. We have plenty of little shops (with the obvious exception of a Trader’s Joe’s type place, which is not so small). I would bet that the most revenue in Decatur is generated in the evenings from restaurants and bars, and lots of that is from people outside of Decatur spending their money in our wonderful city.
what about City Schools of Decatur Administrative offices?
Perfect! It’s much more centrally located than Westchester and would offer more options for staff at lunchtime. Many CSD staff could take MARTA instead of needing all those parking places. Staff could walk to all the schools and get excercise. Westchester could be used for whatever the need of the day is–preK classrooms, elementary school, whatever. During periods that it’s not needed, perhaps Decatur Active Living could use it for children’s or adult activities. There’s nothing like the Decatur Rec building or the Girls and Boys Club or the large city parks in that part of town.
But the cost might be prohibitive.
A nursery like Pike’s or Gardenhood
And throw in the new 5th Earl Market/Sandwich Shop and permanent spot for Organic Garden Market
Does anyone know how much it’s selling for?
Really good children’s shoe store, not too boutiquey, but with a wide selection of styles and sizes (including narrow and wide) of high quality children’s shoes that won’t disintegrate after 6 weeks in the playround mud (mud seems to be a standard feature of most of our CSD playgrounds), PLUS staff who have been trained to fit children–i.e. measure feet well and check the fit carefully when the shoe is tried on and tested. I’m basically thinking Coggins Shoe Store but the Roswell/Marietta based company has not responded to my entreaties to open a store here.
My top choice would be a bakery like Alons!
The Trader Building
First floor: Trader Joe’s
Second floor: Trader Robbie’s (combination bowling alley, belgian bar (I think this could really be a hit in Decatur))
Rooftop: Trader Vic’s
How about a rooftop strip club? Trader Nellie’s.
What we really need is another smoothie shop.
Yes!
Or a combination taqueria/smoothie/sushi/yogurtcoffeeshopwinebeerbar.
Awww… my mom used to take me to the doctor in that building! Good old Dr. Trotter. I can almost smell the alcohol swabs and lollipops just looking at the picture. It’s truly a little mid-century gem. If I had a big wad of cash I would restore it to its original modernist splendor and live in it !
THEATRE THEATRE THEATRE!!! Like with a stage and all. Can show movies most times, but used for performances at other times.
I vote for a shooting range. I’m tired of hoofing it up to Norcross to put holes in targets.
Awesome! Probably wouldn’t fly though….how about a compromise – LASER TAG!!!
I’m in! In fact, that’s even better, because we could get exercise running around like a bunch of teenagers.