Taking Care of Business

If there is one constant downtown, it's the flux. Businesses come, businesses go, businesses get proposed and forgotten. Here are updates on a few that I've spotted:

New windows, 37 Market Square, Knoxville, September 2010

Framing for the entrance at 37 Market Square, Knoxville, September 2010

37 Market Square seems to be coming along in fits and starts. It was previously reported that it would be a two story restaurant, but now we know which one. Josh Flory got the scoop today on what is going into the space: Blue Coast Burrito, though the indication is that it won't open before January.  That makes two Mexican styled restaurants on the square with this and Soccer Taco, plus the Spanish influenced foods at Sangria's.

A view through the front entrance, 37 Market Square, Knoxville, September 2010

Soccer Taco seems always packed, though I have to say I've eaten there twice and not been very excited by the experience. The service was not exactly rendered with a smile and the food was adequate, but not delicious. I like Sangria's a bit better, but they don't seem to be packing in the crowds. Maybe there is a place for them all. It will be interesting to see.

Nouveau Classics and For Sale sign side by side, 100 Block Gay Street, Knoxville

Nouveau Classics, 100 Block of Gay Street. You may not look until Thursday!

On the southeast corner of the 100 Block of Gay Street, furniture store Nouveau Classics is set to open September 30. This is also interesting because they are right around the corner from long-term Knoxville furniture store, O.P. Jenkins. While they are both furniture stores, one is more traditional and the other store is targeting young urbanites.

Their door was open when I last passed there and I took a couple of pictures through the open door from the sidewalk, but a lady quickly emerged and asked what I was doing in a stern sort of way. I told her I was taking pictures and told her about the blog and she insisted that I not post the pictures because they aren't ready. She looked as if she considered grabbing my camera. I told her I wouldn't use the pictures and she looked skeptical.

I guess I get it that you want your business presented in the best light, but it is free publicity and, as you might guess, the store has to be pretty close to what it will look like thirty-six hours after that conversation. Besides, isn't being friendly to a blogger more likely to get your store presented in the best light?

Carleo's, 117 Central, Old City, Knoxville

Down on Central in the Old City I had a slightly less intense conversation, but also not so warm and friendly. This business has been spotlighted on The Bottom Line. A bar called "Carleo's" opened last weekend, but has its official grand opening this week. A guy working outside described it as a neighborhood pub. He also seemed guarded as I asked him about the place. I'm not sure who I spoke to, but Duane Carleo is the owner and he's had a number of other ventures including Southbound and Da Vinci's Pizza in the Old City.

Am I the only curious person in the city and so I stand out as dangerous? I wonder if these folks have considered that people passing their soon-to-be-opened businesses are their potential customers? I don't mean to exaggerate the interactions, no one was extremely rude, and I do want people to check out new businesses downtown, but a little friendliness goes a long way. John Black was so friendly that it made me more likely to use his business and to encourage others to do so. That's how it works. I'll end with a picture from a shoot he was doing as I passed.

Boy with a spectacular Mohawk is photographed by John Black

Open for Business in the Daylight Building! (plus a tease for more to come)

Many of us have waited, sometimes patiently, sometimes not so much, for the Daylight Building to finally assume a semblance of the vision dictated by David Dewhurst. I've been walking past it for a year, crossing to the other side to avoid portable toilets, construction vehicles and varying types of electrical, appliance, plumbing and other debris. I know the people who live in Pembroke (across the street) have gotten tired of looking at the mess. On the other hand, I think everyone understood when this started that the end result would be an (hopefully) attractive building and, most importantly, a building with some life, and that has to be worth some pain in the interim.

John Black in front of his new studio, Union Avenue, Knoxville, September 2010

At the beginning of last month the promise began to come to fruition, with the first residents moving into rented apartments. Interestingly, while I've heard that they are pretty expensive as rentals go, they seem to be filled with UT students. Another surprising note is how many of them have a pet - or more. The tiny patches of dog-duty grass in the area are struggling. I couldn't help thinking as their parents moved them in that even that act took no small amount of faith: the building was still a construction zone across the front, resembling an aging warehouse more than an integrated portion of a vibrant downtown.

The faith seems to be paying off: John Black Photography will slowly begin to ramp up their business on the southeast corner of the building this week. John is originally from Scotland, but grew up in Ireland and has lived in the US for many years, giving him what has to be one of the most interesting accents in the metro area. He has a degree in photography and seeks to apply an artist's eye to the most simple portrait. Beginning with a commercial shoot this week and ramping up from there, the business will be the first long-awaited sign of commercial life for the Daylight Building.



John Black Photography, Union and Walnut, Knoxville, Tennessee, September 2010

 It will not be the only sign of life for long . . . John tells me that an invitation and engraving shop will also soon join the line-up and - Big News - an organic food shop will be opening, with the possibility of a few tables and a small cafe! It may not be a full-service grocery store, but it's another piece of the puzzle. I didn't get a precise time-table, but I got the idea that everything was set for opening when the spaces are ready. From what little I know about construction (approximately nothing), it looks like the spaces could be ready in the next few weeks. An attempt was made to bring in a wedding shop, but that appears to have faltered. We could have had one-stop shopping for your big day!

John hoped to have an open house for First Friday in October, but said he will not likely be ready for the crowds in time, so he's anticipating hosting people First Friday in November. Magpies, for whom he's photographed their First Friday crowds, will probably join him that night as a co-host. Photographs and cupcakes sound like a recipe for a great night! Watch for announcements and join us for this celebration of a building once on a fast track to a future as a stunning parking lot converted instead to homes and livelihoods for a fresh group of downtown residents.