Saying the coffee chain would make a fine neighbor, Seminole Heights residents have been lobbying for a Starbucks to open in the historic neighborhood. It now looks like they are going to get their coffee shop, and most residents are giddy with delight. But is that the end of the story? I think not.
Let’s review.
Rules were put in place to ensure any businesses that open in the area conformed to the historic community’s standards. The city’s Architecture Review Commission (ARC) is charged with making sure interested businesses complied with Design Guidelines. Starbucks proposals came into the ARC and alterations were requested. The applications were revised (although not completely to ARC specs), and the ARC requested further changes.
The very active neighborhood association put their weight into the effort, leaning on the ARC as well as City Council. City officials complained about the bureaucracy, and Steve Otto labeled the volunteers on the commission “Officious Twits.”
Keith Roberts, a volunteer member of the ARC wrote in to the Tribune defending their review of the proposed building, saying they are just going by the rules. The same rules which are purposely set up to make it difficult for chain stores to open.
But the residents wanted a dad-gum *$, and now they have it.
So, does this mean Seminole Heights wants other chains to move in? Are we going to hear of a Home Depot or CVS opening a store in the district? We should ask the citizens:
Randy Baron, president of Old Seminole Heights Neighborhood Association says Starbucks is welcome, but Wal-Mart is not. Folks from other neighborhoods went to the public hearings to warn Seminole Heightsiens about letting chains get a foot in the door, and in return the SH residents deride them, and call them names.
There’s no question the residents of Seminole Heights have made a difference. They are proud of their efforts, and certainly have an air of confidence now. But here’s the $64,000,000 question:
Do neighborhood associations truly have influence over who can and cannot open a business? Or did this simply open the door for other chains to move in en masse?
tim
4 years ago
i’m sorry, why didn’t they lobby for a local coffee place that would keep money in the community instead of sending it out west?
sheesh. i thought better of people in SH.
Anonymous
4 years ago
Tim, it’s more complicated that. We would prefer a local coffee place and in fact there are 2 in the works. At least one and maybe both will be in operation prior to Starbucks. We had a local coffee place prior to Starbucks that failed due to poor management.
Starbucks is important for several reasons. A. It’s a gateway that will bring more people into the neighborhood, whether they be commuters, tourists or casual visitors. We hope to then eventually draw a certain percentage of these visitors into other businesses in the hood. B. We hope having a Starbucks will send messages to other quality businesses that this is a place to invest in. Whether these be independent businesses or selected regional/national stores.
Tommy said “Do neighborhood associations truly have influence over who can and cannot open a business? Or did this simply open the door for other chains to move in en masse?”
I would say it is a mixed bag. We could not stop Family Dollar from moving in, as they were not in a historic district. If someone tries to go into a historic district we do not want or if they need major variance requests, we have a better of fighting it.
However rather than simply opposing businesses, even better is try to recruit businesses we like. For example, I would like to see a FedEx/UPS store or its local equivalent.
Seminole Heights
4 years ago
Ooops, forgot to add who I was to the prior post.
tiny
4 years ago
Having a little *$’s coffee cake and eating it too.
Having it both ways…shocking! This town and most others have been doing since the dawn of time. Strip clubs for example. We’re talking about people and their dwellings.
Human after all.
t
Cara
4 years ago
I’m still disappointed about this decision. I don’t like Starbucks, either the product or the business mentality. Granted, I don’t live in Seminole Heights but I do enjoy the quirky charm it has. No coffee shop, restaurant or retail store got me interested in the neighborhood; the awesome houses did.
Seminole Heights
4 years ago
For quirky charm, the soon to open Coffee Bean Cafe hopefully will fill that spot. The Coffee Bean Cafe