About Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 14, 2011)
WHAT'S UP IN NEW DEVELOPMENT I'd like to thank all of the 3,000 folks who have taken the survey I helped create about downtown Athens. I'll be the first to admit that that survey, developed with help from Amy Johnson and Katie Goodrum, isn't a perfect one. It was deployed online, which carries certain limitations, and the audience it reached is a somewhat self-selecting group, as are online commenters on daily paper websites, or forums, or blogs. However, the intent of the survey wasn't to produce a perfect set of statistics, but to start an informed conversa tion about what Athens is and could be, and to give a voice to the community that Selig—the Atlanta firm seeking to anchor a mixed-use development on the Armstrong & Dobbs property with a 100,000-square-foot Walmart—has so intentionally and successfully disenfranchised. With those caveats out of the way, here's some of what we learned. For one, the volume of responses was impressive: again, some 3,000 in a week's time. Interestingly, 65 percent of respondents were female. Eighty percent of those surveyed said they visit downtown at least once a week, and so are likely to have a fairly informed take on downtown's strengths and weaknesses, the opportunities and potential pitfalls. Eighty percent, or approximately 2,400 of the respondents, were Athens-Clarke County residents. Attempts to downplay the People for a Better Athens petition have focused on the fact th3t 40 percent of the signers are from out of town, sug gesting that those folks, combined with a couple of fake names, invalidate the signatures of 10,000 Athenians (about one in 10 local residents!). Supporters of the project, whom I'll call People for a Downtown Walmart, don't seem to have any signatures collected, and haven't held any meet ings open to the public, though project supporters Mayor Nancy Denson and Chamber of Commerce President Doc Eldridge, among others, did take an illegal one that helped to facilitate the project. Of course, the perspective of out-of-towners shouldn't be counted out. Tourism is an important part of our local econ omy, as evidenced by the substantial investment we re making in the expansion of our Classic Center. If those out-of-town folks are saying th;.t a Walmart will make them less likely to visit, we ought to give that a closer look. Here's what they're saying: • "Athens is known as a distinctive town, but there still is not as much tourism as there should be—as there is in other Southern towns known to be distinctive. Putting a Walmart jowntown could ruin any chance of us ever establishing a tourism-drawing charm.” • "Although I never lived in Athens, I have visited often and enjoy the small-town atmosphere. I go to Athens to get away from Corporate America—putting in a Walmart or other big name big box store will simply detract from the charm and grace that Athens exudes." • "I have fallen in love with Athens and its vibrant down town. I have now purchased a home in Athens and I hope to retire here soon. If I'd heard about the sterile Walmart devel opment, I'm not sure we'd have purchased this home!" • "While I am not a current resident of Athens. I grew up there, I own property there and I am a frequent visitor. The charm of Athens has always been in its ability to produce local talents whether in art, music or even football. We have a Walmart in my town and we fought against it and lost. It Is "quirky” ing if local giving way to “corporate" in downtown Athens 7 Will tourists and conventioneers businesses give way to chains in the downtown? agreed to a smaller square footage and 10 years later it is now expanding to a supercenter. Local businesses have been negatively impacted and the landscape has suffered. Walmart is not a neighborhood store. It is a big box store. People shop there and they do not go to other stores. [With] all the his toric preservation that has occurred in Athens surrounding the downtown area, it would be a shame to lose its center to big box wholesalers." When asked what they liked most about downtown Athens residents and visitors were nearly unanimous: • "Unique, small businesses!" • The vibe and eclectic, unique group of shops, restaurants and businesses." • "The charming variety of independent small busi nesses that makes Athens downtown very distinct and unlike everywhere else, USA—Athens has a warm and inviting feel to it and the downtown is the heart of it all." • "The atmosphere. There are so many different person alities, but it all blends together so well on those streets. Strolling through the area, picking up a coffee, and browsing all the unique, independent shops is so great on a weekend afternoon." • "The local flavor." • "Local color, vibrant small town feel, safety, unique shops." • "The small town familiarity." • "The local flavor. The historical appearance. The music, food, and art." • "The uniqueness of the town itself. There is no other place in the South that has as much character and rich culture as downtown Athens. This can only be attributed to the small businesses and the customers that keep them going." • "Its funky, local vibe." Equally unequivocal were elements that were liked least: • "The smells that emanate from the college bars on Sunday morning." • "The increasing number of chain restaurants and businesses (Pita Pit, Starbucks, etc)." • "Smell of bars being washed out. Amount of panhandlers." • "To be honest, the chain businesses. I grew up in a bigger city with so many chain stores. Having lived in Athens for five years now, the privately owned businesses downtown are what make Athens something special and original." • "Traffic." "Parking." "Traffic and parking!" • "The number of bars and the resulting smells." • "The filth and muck. Also—panhandlers scare away potential paying customers." • "Dirty sidewalks." Other interesting results: When asked whether they would "support a new county ordinance that limits the square footage of retail stores in the Downtown area to exclude 'big-box'-sized stores," 88 percent of respondents said yes keep com- and 7 percent said no. That backs up findings from the ACC Planning Department in its recent Oak-Oconee Corridor Study. Eighty-two percent of respondents would prefer a grocery store smaller than the current Alps Road Kroger for downtown. Perhaps commission ers should listen to the people on that one. Athens' favorite downtown building? The Georgia Theatre was the most consistently chosen. It's an interesting com parison, too, given that Selig is proposing the exact opposite approach from the one taken by the Theatre's owner, Wilmot Greene, after it burned. Rather than razing a building that was in much worse shape than the National Register struc tures on the Armstrong & Dobbs property, he chose to take a risk and do something special. The result is broad com munity support and national recognition If Selig followed the Georgia Theatre's example, a renovated Dixie Canner or Jittery Joe's Roaster could top the list for Favorite Building in Athens in a couple of years. Kevan Williams athensnsing@tlagpole com sits# mmm r MEXICAN G R I LL Bs?l SEED LOCALLY VlllVfvvv FREE CHEESE DIP with purchase of 2 Entrees & 2 Drinks Eh*** 12 21 11 Nol »afetJ any om«* CV** m only £ Apple Specialist months same-as-cash financing available thru Dec. 24 see store for details peachmac ipads • macs • ipods • software • service 1850 Epps Bridge Pkwy • 706 208 9990 • Athens • peach mac.com II 6 FLAGPOLE COM DECEMBER 14, 2011
