Newspaper Page Text
Thursday, November 12,1981
The Red and Black
Page IIB
Downtown alive, kicking
The changes in and
the evolution of
downtown Athens are
not ending with the for
mal opening of College
Square. The future will
be shaped by a variety
of factors, including ris
ing costs of transporta
tion, the economy, hous
ing demand and the
University just across
the street.
“There will be a con
tinuing move toward
more residential
development
downtown.’’ said Joe
Burnett, director of the
Athens Downtown
Development Authority.
The Atrium project, the
conversion of the park
ing garage on Broad
Street into 42 con
dominiums, is just one
example.
Athens is just beginn
ing to experience a na
tional trend of typical
suburbanites back to
the downtown. Burnett
foresees living quarters
springing up in space
above retail area and as
part of mixed-use
developments.
Another future trend
will be toward more
space taken for office
use, he said. The Col
lege Square Building
should be just part of an
expected pattern. As
part of the increased de
mand to live downtown,
people will want to
work near their
residences. Both
demands are a reaction
to rising transportation
costs, particularly
gasoline.
Burnett predicted a
move away from chain
stores back to small,
locally owned specialty
shops and restaurants.
“People are getting
tired of the chain-store
treatment,” he said,
which includes exten
sive procedures for ac
cepting checks and im
personal service.
"These local mer
chants have their
businesses on the line
every day,” Burnett
said. “They’re going to
g^t to knuM^Knit treat
you well. They’re going
to take your check and
not treat you like dirt.”
Another important
trend will be an em
phasis on serving what
Burnett called the
"high-ticket market.”
“The downtown will
provide the expensive,
exclusive, high-ticket
fashionable shopping of
the city,” he said. As in
other towns and cities
across the country, dis
count stores have
located in the middle of
residential areas in the
suburbs. Downtown,
Burnett said, should not
try to compete with
that, but should strive to
provide a separate,
distinctive service while
still serving the dis
count demand of the
area.
Greater appreciation
for and continual
upgrading of the distinc
tive turn-of-the-century
architecture is another
expectation of Burnett.
The nostalgic theme of
downtown Athens is
both a device for mak
ing a unique identifica
tion and an increased
awareness of the
character of the
downtown architecture,
Burnett said.
The scarcity of park
ing is another situation
Burnett expects to
change in the future.
“We definitely need to
do that,” he said. The
trend in the crowded
downtown area will be
towards high-density,
decked parking areas.
Local business leaders
are already looking for
opportunites in this
area.
The future, however,
must reflect careful
planning, Burnett said.
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From page 10
Another local
businessman, Hugh
Fowler, has begun
restoration on the
Franklin House, the
dilapidated building at
Broad and Thomas
streets. Built as a hotel
in the 1840s, Franklin
House is also on the Na
tional Historic Register.
Fowler said the
restoration. which
could run two years and
cost up to $1 million,
could result in another
hotel, office space or
condominiums.
Five local
businessmen took out a
90-day option in early
October on the old Belk
building to further study
it as a possible conven
tion center.
The Lucy Cobb is
also available for
charter to groups, both
during the day and
night. Burnett said this
DOWNTOWN
is an expected source of
revenue.
Discussions are also
continuing on expan
ding the trolley’s route
on campus to serve all
the University’s dorm
areas, Burnett added.
Joe Burnett, director
of ADDA, said feasibili
ty studies indicate the
market could support
the convention center.
He said two problems
the project faces are in
financing and the
ownership.
The J.C. Penney
building, whose lease is
handled by CBL and
Associates, the firm
which manages Georgia
Square, is still vacant.
The lease on the
building runs through
1984.
Sales of units have
begun for The Atrium, a
multi-use conversion of
the high-rise parking
deck around the corner
from the Square. In
fact, the funding for the
mall came from the sale
by the city of the park
ing garage to The
Atrium Corp.
Work is scheduled to
begin before the end of
the month, said Mary
Wathen, who is handl
ing sales of the units.
Three additional floors
will be added during the
one-year construction,
with the condominium
units selling from
$85,000 to $150,000.
Just when construc
tion is coming to a close
in the College Square
area, more traffic pro
blems will come with
the condominium pro
ject. The construction
will probably require
the closing of a lane on
Broad Street, Burnett
said, but he considered
the problem a welcome
tradeoff for the develop
ment it represents.
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