Suttree's High Gravity Tavern coming to 409 Gay Street!

Matt and Anne outside the future site of Suttree's High Gravity Tavern

Husband and wife team Matt Pacetti and Anne Ford are ready to announce something that has been in the works for quite some time: They will manage and co-own (with several other investors) Suttree's High Gravity Tavern at 409 S. Gay Street, which is next door to Downtown Wine. That makes it a short move for Matt who has been a well-informed and welcoming face at Downtown Wine since its inception. Anne, who was featured on this blog recently, will move from her long-term post at Bliss Home.

Plans are still taking shape, but some things are well in focus and preparations are being made for a spot unlike any other downtown. Matt says the name of the tavern will likely be the only tip of the hat to Cormac McCarthy, with the inside being "rustic," Matt said, "but with lean modern lines." The bar is being lovingly built by John Phillips, who works at Morelock Music, from boards which had to be removed from the floor to build out the restroom. It promises to be beautiful.

409 Gay Street: Interior space under construction 

As for the beer plans, Matt said, the tavern will serve, "craft beers with a focus on high gravity beers." Readers of this blog know I'm no expert on hops, so I asked what that meant. It means the beer has a higher alcohol content than other beers and most places in Knoxville are not allowed to serve it as it requires a different license. The emphasis will be on enjoying a quiet brew with friends who appreciate specialty beers. A great block that also includes Yee Haw Wine and Morelock Music has just gotten better.

The bar, in addition to a great variety of specialty beers, will  be fully stocked and also will offer wines, which one might suspect will also  be excellent given Matt's knowledge and association with Downtown Wine. Helping out with plans for the beer and perhaps serving some of it up will be one of the most knowledgeable people in Knoxville as far as specialty beers go: Ratchet. He has a post up on his blog Ratchet Brews about the plans.

Matt and Anne

Also offered will be light foods and, while the menu is far from set, hummus, cheese plates, meat plates and soups are all possibilities. Smoking will not be allowed inside, but outside may have a spot for those who need to step out for a minute. Up to ninety patrons will be able to enjoy the inside seating and Matt noted that the tavern will include, "as much outdoor seating as possible."

Plans call for an opening the last weekend of April or soon thereafter, assuming all goes well. Sounds like a great bet for a stop on First Friday in May. And like I said in the previous post about Anne - It's the people who make a place and these are two of the warmest human beings in the city. Stop by and see for yourself.

The quote in yesterday's tease blog was, of course, from Suttee by Cormac McCarthy. If you haven't read it, stop by Union Avenue Books and buy a copy. It's possibly the best book ever written with Knoxville as a setting. Reading it will give you a spring in your step every time you enter Suttree's High Gravity Tavern, just to know you won't have to drink quite like old Sut:

     "Where's the whiskey?
     Here ye go. Get ye a drink, Bud.
     What is it?
     Early Times. Best little old drink in the world. Get ye a drink, Sut.
     Suttree held it to the light. Small twigs, debris, matter coiled in the oily liquid. He shook it. Smoke rose from the yellow floor of the bottle. Shit almighty, he said.
     Best little old drink in the world, sang out J-Bone. Have a drink, Bud.
     He unthreaded the drink, sniffed, shivered and drank."

Organized Play: Has Gaming Come to Knoxville?

Organized Play 131 S. Central, Old City, Knoxville, 2012

I've not been big on games since the days of the distant past when I would convince my younger brother he should sell me all his property when we played Monopoly. In the years since I've mostly played the occasional late-night domino game with my father and a pretty steady stream of chess online and, in recent years, with Urban Son-in-Law. I predate most of the computer game era, so that doesn't hold a great attraction for me.

Attractive displays in Organized Play, Knoxville

I first noticed and took a quick walk through Organized Play when it was located at 221Cumberland Avenue just east of Gay Street in, what I'm told, was previously the space inhabited by Deka Bakari Gallery. It wasn't so much my sort of thing. I haven't collected comics in many years and computer games and Dungeons and Dragons never caught my interest.

















Once I began writing this blog I've tried to think in larger terms than my own narrow interests and I've taken a second look at things that didn't so much interest me before. Organized Play took its comic books, graphic novels, computer and board games and moved to the Old City where you will find them at 131 S. Central Street with expanded hours from their previous incarnation.

Morgan Hardy, Organized Play, Old City, Knoxville

Owner Morgan Hardy will likely greet you at the door and offer to help you find what you are looking for. He tells me the the Old City is a good fit for his business which seems to attract a younger audience. It includes the aforementioned items and games such as Warhammer, which seems to be quite the thing and many other games both new and traditional. Wednesday appears to be release day for new comics, so you can get them while they are hot.

Games new and traditional

It's not unusual to walk by late in an evening and see a group gathered around a table playing an elaborate board game, faces intense and concentration obvious. There are worse things we could all do than play games with friends new and old around a table. Of course, Preservation Pub also hosts trivia games and Rita's on the square has board games often in use. Maybe we've become a gaming town. Go by and meet Morgan and buy yourself a game for these long winter nights.

This weekend there are four events built around the pre-release of Dark Ascension. I do not have any idea what that means, but if you do, there is probably an event for you this weekend. I'll just take a little pleasure in knowing that on a cold snowy night if I get the jones for a good game of monopoly, I know where I can buy the game right here in our little city.

2011 Business Review, Part Four: Final Thoughts

Knoxville Skyline

So we've looked at all the businesses that left, the ones that re-invested and the ones that took the plunge and opened their doors for the first time this year. What does it all mean? When you put it all together and shake it up, what kind of cocktail do you get?

If you look at the numbers in straight terms, I get fourteen closures, thirteen re-investing and eighteen opening. That's pretty optimistic on the face of it. While fourteen didn't make a go of it, thirteen are doing well enough to pour more money into their investment and an even larger number decided the situation was favorable for making money. But more specifically, what types of businesses failed, changed and opened?

We are still clearly bullish on restaurants: Five closed, six re-invested and three opened. We did lose two major destination restaurants and we've not really replaced these. We're also very bullish on bars: One closed, one expanded and six opened. That's one more open than I mentioned in the openings post, because I forgot to note that Ink has opened where Organized Play used to be on Cumberland. We like to eat and we really like to drink.

We drew about even on clothing, losing two businesses, moving one and opening two. The same hotel closed and re-opened, so that was a wash, except in the sense that it is much improved.

36 Market Square should soon have tenants

We lost a couple of arts and gift stores and a tattoo parlor and didn't replace those. We lost a couple of industrial or corporate offices and didn't replace those. The number of jobs lost with these departures is a significant blow, particularly Kimberly Clark.

The most encouraging trend I see in the numbers is the expanding variety of stores that opened or re-invested. The re-investments included a florist, a hair salon, a game shop and a bank. Some of the new businesses filled real needs downtown. We gained a bus line and a school. We added two public event venues, an athletic supply store and a re-opened all-purpose business. We expanded our limited grocery offerings by adding two grocery stores and a convenience store. We finally got one of the long-rumored beauty schools. We added a full-service, independent book store at a time when Nashville did not have a single secular book store (Ann Pachett later opened one).

There are always rumors floating, some of which turn to reality and others which never come true. Current rumors or promised openings which I've heard mentioned include three new restaurants and "something completely different" in the Old City. Josh Flory noted yesterday that Tupelo Honey may be coming to 1 Market Square. A bedding store is rumored to be moving into 2 Market Square. Another bar should soon be open on Gay Street near Morelock Music. Tenants should soon be announced for 36 Market Square.

Former site of Volunteer Ministries being redeveloped

Tenants have already been found for the Arnstein building upper floors and Urban Outfitter rumors have really picked up again as a potential tenant for the lower floor. Spaces at the corner of Gay and Jackson and along Union Avenue beside the Hotel Oliver are slated for face-lifts or are undergoing renovation with the idea of adding businesses.

So I remain very optimistic. We've had startling growth for the last several years during a time when few areas could say as much. If the economy heals how exciting could it get? Could we finally begin to see major new construction rather than renovations downtown? Could the Penny's building finally become something more than an eye-sore? I think so. I see great things ahead for our great city and I hope you do, too.

2011 Business Review, Part 3: Welcome to the City!

A History of Reading: The first book ever sold at Union Avenue Books

For those of you who read Monday's post about closed businesses and contemplated moving out of the city, I hope Tuesday's post about all the downtown businesses that have increased their stake in downtown by renovating, moving and expanding their businesses cheered you up a bit. If not, I think I may have just the antidote you need: New businesses rocked all over downtown in 2011! Let's take a look.

Some of them are not obvious at first for various reasons. For example, I consider the Peter Kern Library (use the whisper in your head to read, "it's really a bar") to be a new business. I realize it is housed in the Hotel Oliver, but it wasn't there in their pre-renovation configuration and it didn't open when the hotel re-opened, so it's a new business in my mind. And a pretty cool one, at that. This really gives the Hotel Oliver a clean sweep of my categories in that they closed, changed and opened a new business. In my world they count.

Megabus service came to downtown Knoxville

Another one that might not readily come to mind and doesn't precisely fit is the new Megabus service. For me it has been a game-changer and I'm not alone. It's pretty cool to drag my suitcase across the city, catch the bus, make one connection and be on the gulf coast, leaving my car in its usual spot for a perfect holiday. Again, it's my blog and I say it counts.

Like a zombie, it cannot be killed: J's Megamart re-opened

There were other oddities that sort of fit: The STEM school isn't exactly a business, but it's a significant event for downtown to have a public school. When was the last time that happened in Knoxville? The Sunsphere also,was opened for public events for the first time in a while. What about J's Megamart? Who among us saw that coming?

One encouraging sign I noticed when gathering the information for this article: new businesses were spread all across the city. The eastern edge got stretched a bit with the opening of the Public House on Magnolia and Marble City Brewing Company opened The Quarry, their tasting room on Depot. While the two are quite different, they are near neighbors and both immediately became favorite gathering spots in a part of downtown that has been off-the-radar for some of us.

Carleo's opened on Central in the Old City

Jackson Avenue Market brought food and convenience

Working from there back toward the center of downtown (Jack Neely is right, it's time to bring back the name "Uptown" for the core of downtown. It's becoming too confusing as downtown grows.), brings us to the Old City. I've already mentioned their extensive losses, but they had some impressive gains as well. Carleos bar opened on Central as did Old City Entertainment Venue just across the street. Just around the corner on Jackson, Crush opened its doors selling retro-clothing with an attitude and the Jackson Avenue Market served its first customers. Word is a new Sushi bar will open soon on Jackson across from Barley's.

Crush on Jackson Avenue: Clothes with Attitude

Boyd's Jig and Reel took Manhattan's old spot

The biggest news in the Old City had to be the opening of Boyd's Jig and Reel. A Scottish pub with a great feel and excellent music, the most critical thing it brought to the Old City was that the two most prominent buildings were no longer both empty. With the spot previously occupied by Manhattan's in business again, we need to get something underway in the previous Patrick Sullivan's across the street.

On the 100 Block several new businesses opened and an interesting trend exhibited itself. It's a good trend. I noticed here and another place we'll get to later that almost as soon as a business announced its departure the space was being cleared for the next business excited at the opportunity to open. When Eleven on the 100 block announced its closure, the space was grabbed and renovations began immediately to open 11 Cafe. Across the street on the western side of the 100 block the same thing happened when The Unarmed Merchant vacated 129 S. Gay. As quickly as arrangements could be made, Lululemon, an athletic supply store, opened at that address. This has to be a good sign.

Harry's Deli opened at the site of Harold's

Also new on the block and connecting to the past very nicely is Harry's Deli at the site of the much loved Harold's, making excellent fresh foods and maybe the  best bread currently baked in the city. Word has it that Cru Bistro will open where Nama vacated, showing that the company which owns them both did not lose faith in the 100 block, they just felt they had a different idea that would work better there. "Shucks," a raw bar, is also supposed to be coming soon on the block.

The Market at Union and Gay: groceries in the city

While the number of new businesses weren't very high on the upper number blocks of Gay Street, there was some very important pieces. The last post I wrote was full of movement on our main downtown thoroughfare: Dazzo's was purchased, Regions Bank moved, Nama opened its new location and, as I mentioned earlier in this post, J's Megamart re-opened. Additionally, The Market at Union and Gay opened and Aveda took over the former S and W. Each was very important in its own way.

The Market answered the long-term downtown complaint about a lack of a grocery store. Now we have one on our main corridor. Aveda found a use for a building that was nearly destroyed not so many years ago and which had become one of the symbols of downtown redevelopment. While I wish the S and W had been able to survive, for this building to sit empty would have been a silent counter-point to all the good news going on in the city, a prominent failure. Aveda helped avert that.

Blue Coast Burrito at 37 Market Square

Crass Couture replaced Black Market

Bella Luna took 15 Market Square, previously home to Abode

On Market Square there were reversals as mentioned in the earlier post, most notably the loss of the Market Square Kitchen. A major opening at the other end of the Square helped keep the corners going. Blue Coast Burrito opened in the spring after a beautiful rehabilitation of the address left only the original facade. Toward the center of the square the trend mentioned earlier was on display when Black Market went out of business, but within, I think, a day or two, Crass Couture opened in the same storefront leaving a clothing store on the square. 15 Market Square had been empty since the departure of Abode the year before and it was filled nicely with a new northern Italian restaurant, Bella Luna.

Co-owner Kristen Faerber sits outside Just Ripe

West on Union Avenue from the square a new center of retail activity came into its own in the Daylight building. John Black Photography and the Happy Envelope had taken each end of the storefront in 2010, but a gaping hole remained between the two. Those spots were filled in exciting fashion by grocery store Just Ripe and Union Avenue Books, Knoxville's only independent book store featuring new books. Union Avenue is now on the retail map of downtown and the coming year looks to extend this trend with the re-working of the store-fronts beneath the Residences at Market Square.

So, there you go. It's tough to know whether to count some of the openings as businesses, but I count twenty-two openings. In the next post I'll put the closings, re-workings and openings all side by side and speculate a bit about what it all means.

2011 Business Review: What We Lost Downtown

In this, the second year I've written Stuck Inside of Knoxville, the pace of change continues to be breath-taking. It's sometimes hard to see as events happen, alterations are made, new faces emerge and old ones fade. In retrospect, however, a simple listing of business losses, changes and additions highlights the intense comings and goings in this relatively small patch of earth. Today we'll look at what has been lost. I doubt my memory and limited time for research will prove exhaustive, so you'll have to note in the comments additional closures I failed to recall as I wrote this.

Arby's on Gay Street closed December 30, 2010

Two closures happened just before the end of 2009, but together with another early closing, they felt like the beginning to the new year, and they were big in different ways. The closure of Arby's on Gay Street on December 30 was troubling both because of its long tenure in that location and because the location is so prime. The fact that this centrally located corner continues to be vacant a year later is troubling.

Regas closed December 31, 2010 after Ninety Years

The next day, after ninety years at the same location at the other end of Gay Street, downtown institution Regas closed its doors for a final time. Just days into the new year an emblem of downtown's resurgence, the S and W announced it was closed "until further notice." Further notice never came and three major landmark businesses were gone.

It was a pretty staggering beginning, maybe enough to make one wonder if the momentum downtown had faltered or the recession was finally asserting itself in an area that had seemed largely immune to its effects. There was enough bad news through the rest of the year that, when viewed alone, seems to support that question.

Patrick Sullivan's in the Old City Closed in June 2011

If we had known, for example, at the beginning of the year that the two most visible buildings in the Old City would be empty by summer, no doubt it would have seemed the apocalypse was certainly upon us and indeed, that's just what happened - the emptiness, that is, not the apocalypse: Manhattan's had closed the previous summer and still sat empty when Patrick Sullivan's announced its closure at the beginning of the summer. One of the first buildings rehabilitated by Christopher Kendrick in the long march that has been the return of Knoxville's downtown, it had been Patrick Sullivan's for eighteen years and was previously the lovingly remembered Annie's. With that closure the central corner in the Old City featured two empty businesses.

Notice of Night Owl's closure, December 2011

The Old City would also see the departure of the Fortunate Traveler for the Turkey Creek Public Market. In the last days of the year - and I haven't seen this mentioned elsewhere - Night Owl in the Old City also closed its doors for the final time. Just a couple of blocks up the hill, the 100 Block also saw losses. Nama vacated, Unarmed Merchants cast their lot with the aforementioned Turkey Creek Public Market and late in the year, Eleven, a women's clothing store announced its closure as well.

1 Market Square sits empty, 2011

Market Square Kitchen closed April 2011

Meanwhile, Market Square was no stranger to losses during 2011. 2 Market Square was placed on the Market, leading Reruns to vacate and across at 1 Market Square, in a surprising development, long-term restaurant Market Square Kitchen closed. This meant that three corners of Market Square were vacant. It came very close to being four had Blue Coast Burrito not opened the previous month. For the jewel of downtown re-development to have three of four corners empty did not seem like a good sign. In a related development (to 1 Market Square), the Hotel Oliver, in the same building, closed for renovations. Black Market also closed on Market Square.

Ace High Tattoo closed December 31, 2011

Another closure I haven't seen reported elsewhere: As of the last day of the year, Ace High Tattoo on Clinch Avenue closed it's doors for the last time. We're told Kimberly Clark is leaving downtown as is the Revenue Recovery Corporation which employs over one hundred people in the Mechanics Bank and Trust Building on Gay Street.

Revenue Recovery Corp. announces departure, Dec. 2011

It doesn't look good. By my count that is fourteen businesses closing or announcing that they are moving and it isn't just the fact that businesses closed, it's the major brand names we lost. Take into account the prime locations losing businesses and that some still sit empty and it is disconcerting. So, do we all need to rush to escape the city before the rest of the sky falls? 


Not so fast. Tomorrow I'll look at businesses that adapted this year and become stronger as a result.

Black Market Closes, Crass Couture Opens on Market Square

We lost an old neighbor and immediately gained a new one at 23 Market Square on August 19. Unlike other transitions downtown which have resulted in a temporary vacancy before a new tenant could be found or could re-design the space to their needs, this transition happened almost seamlessly. I'm thinking it was more like a hand-off than your usual closure and opening.

I never found much occasion to enter Black Market after welcoming them to the neighborhood because I was very clearly not their demographic. Crass Couture is so cool I'm not sure I'm worthy to even mention them in my blog. If I understand what they are doing, which is not an insignificant question, I believe the idea is to take vintage clothing and re-purpose or slightly re-design it.

You'll have to check out the designs for yourself, but suffice to say Urban Guy will probably stick to the uniform that has served him quite well from sometime far back into the previous century. I'll leave it to you hipsters to check out the too-cool-for-Urban-Guy fashions. Here's wishing them the best.

Bella Luna Opens on Market Square!

Yesterday marked the opening of Bella Luna at 15 Market Square. Thanks to my friend Buddy Ray, who, after catching the Blueplate Special at WDVX offered to treat me there. He thereby became the official sponsor of this blog post.

Entrance to Bella Luna on opening day

Bella Luna is the project of chefs Donna Parang and Christin Love. Christin greeted me at the door, a bit curious about the shabby looking guy taking pictures. She was perfectly gracious and offered to help in any way. Later when I returned, I met Donna who was equally pleasant. Donna and Christin are both graduates of the Culinary Institute at the University of Tennessee. Their venture is focused on simple Italian food in the tradition of northern Italy, which is the area where Donna's maternal family originates.

Much about the restaurant is still in development. Our lunch was taken on the first lunch shift, so not everything has been worked out. A full bar will open soon and the small stage at the rear, which some of you may remember from the space's Abodes' incarnation, will feature live music, with jazz mentioned as a likely possibility. The seating area is very spacious and open and would likely accommodate a small space for the dancing enthusiasts among us.

After walking beneath a painter and his ladder at the door, the signs that the restaurant is still in development were few. The seating, like the food, is intended to be simple. The lighting was lovely, though it was daylight out, so I'm not sure what it is like in the evening. The walls have room for art to be added as they grow. Our waiter was attentive, though not intrusive, and seemed very comfortable with the menu. The combination of lighting, menu font and my fading eyesight (I forgot my reading glasses) rendered the menu a blur and he was very kind to read a good bit of it to me. The menus are temporary, so that may be improved upon later or, more likely, I need to remember my reading glasses, though that brings up my fading memory.

Piadina con Gamberi Gigliati e Pesto

The food? Very good and very reasonably priced. Buddy Ray ordered the Piadina con Gamberi Gigliati e Pesto $7 (Grilled Shrimp and Pesto Flatbread) which is "House-made flatbread with pesto, roasted red pepper, and grilled shrimp topped with arugula and herb greens." It was very good. The flatbread had an excellent taste and consistency, crisp and easy to bite. The tastes of the ingredients on top mixed wonderfully and there was a spice on the shrimp which served them very well. If I had a small criticism, it would be that the shrimp could have been more flavorful. Being from the Gulf Coast I'm a bit picky about my shrimp. I'd love for them to purchase shrimp from the Shrimp Dock, but I don't know if they sell commercially.

Taglatelle con Pomodoro

I ordered the Taglatelle con Pomodoro $7 (Pasta with Tomato Sauce) which is "House made tagliatelle with pomodoro sauce and fresh basil." It was also excellent. I had them add sausage for a little extra spice and that made a great difference. I'm not sure what kind of sausage it was, but it, the pasta and the sauce were excellent.

I did wonder about bread, which wasn't brought to the table. I was told that fresh bread is coming, but the details weren't worked out before the opening. The potential vendor is a local baker who is a friend of the chefs and with whom downtown residents and customers of the Market Square Farmer's Market and Just Ripe are very familiar. His bread will be a great addition. Christin and I agreed he needs to open a bakery downtown.

Interior of Bella Luna on opening day

We concluded our meal with cups of espresso ($3.95 per cup), which is something I got into the habit of doing in Paris and will probably have to limit now that I'm back in my normal financial mode. It was, like everything else, very good. True to the theme of the restaurant, it was Lavazza Espresso, which is Italian coffee also served at the French Market.

Our final bill was run up a bit by the fact that the espresso was pricey and I added sausage to my dish, but otherwise lunch may be eaten at Bella Luna for a fairly modest price by downtown standards. With a little art, open bar, jazz on the stage and fresh bread, this restaurant is set to be an excellent addition to downtown. Please go by and give them a try.

100 Block, Unarmed Merchants and What's What, Part Two

Gorgeous, hand-crafted mirror from Unarmed Merchants: $18

Yesterday's post regarding the closing of Unarmed Merchants on the 100 block elicited several comments which then led to a post on Spiniffy by Andrea, who often comments on Stuck Inside of Knoxville. Her post, in turn, generated an agreeing comment from yet another blogger. Several things about this provocative elaboration prompt me to respond. I appreciate the additional thoughts. Andrea lives on the 100 Block and knows the residents there much better than me, obviously, and I appreciate her input.

Her original comment stated in part:

"I live on 100 Block and I’ve been in Unarmed Merchants . . . it was way overpriced to what the residents on this end of the city can afford. And the products aren’t that different from what you can find at other shops in downtown. And it seems like they cater to an older demographic . . . when businesses open up here, they need to keep in mind that the 100 Block is full of young professionals and college students. Typically people without a lot of money, who like to stay up late, and who like to go out to eat or hang out in bars . . . Those are the types of businesses we need on 100 Block. More late night restaurants and bars/coffee shops and younger, funkier retail . . ."

Interestingly, Andrea echoed some of what I heard from the person I spoke to in the store: The 100 block residents are often just starting out and would have a hard time buying some of what the store has to offer, which is why they had hoped for more foot traffic. I disagree in some respects, however. I don't think the prices were that much different than many other downtown stores and I think what Aaron was trying to do was offer quality products which would be different than what one might find at Target or World Market as Andrea later mentioned in her post.

There is a basic dilemma at work here: Life in an urban environment is more expensive. Any small store not owned by a chain cannot get the deals from vendors that Walmart or Target or Kroger can get. So, to open up a small store in an urban environment, retailers have to charge more because they pay more and deal in much smaller volume, meaning they have to make more off of each purchase.

The only ways that I see for urban residents to avoid paying this higher price is to have Target come downtown or to drive to Target in the suburbs. What happens in each case? In the first we have a bunch of chain stores downtown that take the soul out of the place. We look like any other suburban shopping center. Didn't we move downtown because we wanted something different?

What if we live here, but drive out to get our groceries, clothes and furnishings? Then businesses won't come downtown and eventually neither will new residents. The city will become the ghost town it was twenty years ago.

Both Andrea and another commenter suggested more bars and other places to hang out late at night, but I wonder, how many bars can the downtown population support? On Gay Street we have Sapphire, Downtown Brewery and a rumor of another coming across the street. On the Square we have Preservation Pub and Oodles Wine Bar. The Old City, which is only a block from the 100 Block already has seven bars, a pub, a wine bar and an additional bar to open soon. Bars also do little to attract people during the day or on many weekday nights. Can a successful portion of the city be based on weekend nights? Also, how can people who have such a small amount of money afford to much spend very many nights out at bars? It's not cheap to pay cover charges and drink.

Andrea has developed a great list of potential businesses that go beyond bars. I'll suggest that you go to her blog to read the complete list. I'd love to see many of the same businesses she wants on the 100 Block in any part of downtown. It seems likely they would be successful. I do maintain what I said at the beginning, however: these things would be more expensive in a city. A bakery, bagel shop, butcher shop or cheese shop would be more expensive than a suburban counter-part. Why would residents of the 100 Block not simply drive to Walmart to get cheaper versions of all these items?

The reason I try to spend as many of my dollars in the city as possible is because I know each of the businesses improves my quality of life downtown. These people took a risk so a service or product I would otherwise have to drive to get is available to me in my neighborhood. Bars and restaurants are great, but we need clothes, art, food, books, electronics, hardware and much more. The only way we get it is if we support the people who provide it.