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JUST A STREET
Closing off the last block of Hancock Avenue seems a small
consideration measured against the need to keep the Classic
Center growing and expanding to serve larger conventions.
That block is sort of an afterthought to the rest of Hancock,
because it only drops down the hill to intersect at Foundry
Street, and there's been nothing on it since Wilfong's fragrant
old fish market was torn down, along with the storied Rock
Fisn Palace that morphed into Boneshakers, and Crawford
Coal and Mattress around the corner, not to mention Sparky's
Seafood Cafe and the flea market and The Mad Hatter in the
old Lyons Textile building torn down for the Classic Center
itself.
The Classic Center Authority has been holding that land
vacant for a while, waiting for SPLOST to get around to provid
ing the money for expansion. Now, those funds are in the hop
per, so it's time for the Classic Center to expand.
If the plan were to close off Hancock, say, down at Pulaski,
that would raise a big stink, because that's a main route going
west out of downtown. People wouldn't like to have to detour
over to Broad Street, even though Broad is a wider, faster
street.
But East Hancock only goes to Foundry, so what difference
does it make to shorten it by a block? Especially what dif
ference does it make when weighed against the fact that the
Classic Center insists that they've got to expand their exhibit
space in order to bring in the big conventions and the big
bucks and the big spenders into down-
..a matter Of town restaurants and the bars, (though
of course not the Methodists).
life and death. One reason is traffic flow. Hancock
is not the high-volume route it is on
the other side of town, but if you're coming into downtown
from the east—say like all the police cars and sheriff's cars and
vans, not to mention people who work downtown—the dogleg
down Foundry Street to Hancock is a vital shortcut. Shut that
valve, and the East Broad/Oconee/Thomas intersection will
start looking a lot more like Atlanta.
But a street is not just a street. As Athens Rising columnist
Kevan Williams points out, a street is also a place, and our
streets are the only public places we have downtown. Tie them
off and the body politic withers. Take a look at * u e old down
town map in Kevan's column this week on p. 7. Look how much
connectivity we used to have: Strong, Dougherty, Hancock,
Washington (Market) and Clayton streets went straight through
downtown to Foundry Street, then a thriving railroad and resi
dential area. Now, only Hancock remains. Sever Hancock, and
Foundry withers and becomes the Classic Center's back alley.
Hancock is our last chance for a viable place on that end of
downtown, where people want to go to eat, to shop, to hang
out. That's really the point here. Close Hancock, and we stran
gle the last bit of life out of downtown's eastern edge instead
of beginning to resuscitate it. Hancock is the last tendon hold
ing Foundry to downtown. Cut it, and Athens ends at a con
crete mausoleum that entombs the bright city life that could
have danced down to Foundry and set up lively shops and cafes
overlooking the River District.
Crazy, you say? Remember how, a short time ago, the
Gameday developers were going to tear down the Adcock
building on Hot Corner at Hull Street and Washington? Do you
remember how close they came, when only Vince Dooley could
stop them, because the Athletic Department was involved in
the deal? Think about the Washington Street area without
all the restaurants, bars anu shops now in the Adcock build
ing. Take a look at the Gameday building and imagine that
fortress where Hot Corner used to be, the Morton orphaned
between the new parking garage and the Gameday monolith,
lower Washington cut off at Lumpkin. Farm 255, if it even
existed now, would be jammed up against Gameday: same with
Clocked. There would be no easy flow from Trappeze down to
the 40 Watt: there would only be a two-block trek through a
concrete canyon.
The Classic Center's extended barricade will close off forever
any chance of life at the other end of downtown. That's why it
is so important right now for everybody to stop and try to find
a way to grow the Classic Center without stunting the town.
For downtown Athens at its eastern extremity, tying off this
last artery is a matter of life and death.
Pete McCommons editor@flagpole.com
THIS WEEK’S ISSUE:
MEWS & FEATURES
City Dope
Athens News and Views
Paul Broun, Jr. probably thinks you’re an enemy of the State. Why? He's Krazy!
City Pages
Overview Commission Turns in Its Report
The citizens’ panel’s recommendations for improving ACC government.
ARTS <§2 EVENTS
2010 Film Review
Sex, Social Networking and Centipedes
Drew Wheeler lists the highs and lows of last year’s cinematic offerings.
Film Notebook. . . .
News of Athens’ Cinema Scene
Dave top-10 films of 2010.
12
COVER DESIGN by Kelly Ruberto
featuring a photograph of
Drive-By Truckers by Jason Thrasher
Threats & Promises 14
Music News and Gossip
E6 Holiday Surprise Tour! Athens businesses rock for Nugi’s Space! AthFest CD submissions due Feb. 1!
The Drive-By Truckers’ Jay Gonzalez 15
Guilty (of) Pleasures
This Q&A explores Gonzalez’s songwriting style and how he’s grown as a member of the Truckers.
CITY DOPE 4
CITY PAGES 5
CAPITOL IMPACT 6
ATHENS RISING 7
2010 FILM REVIEW 8
MOVIE DOPE 10
MOVIE PICK 11
FILM NOTEBOOK 12
GRUB NOTES 13
THREATS & PROMISES 14
RECORD REVIEWS ‘ 14
JAY GONZALEZ 15
MARIA BAMF0RD 17
THE CALENDAR! 18
BULLETIN BOARD... 24
ART AROUND TOWN 25
COMICS 26
REALITY CHECK 27
CLASSIFIEDS 28
ATHENS BURNING 30
EVERYDAY PEOPLE 31
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MUDS /M (FUMMILi,
Join Ort as he takes a ramble through some new old
. 45s
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EDITOR l PUBLISHER Pete McCommons
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WEB DESIGNER Kelly Ruberto
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VOLUME 25
ISSUE NUMBER 1
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