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That is very interesting. Seems like there is a lot of contradiction. I believe the DR story.
They mentioned Asheville in the article, I guess visiting all of these different cities has opened Uptown Greenville's eyes about this revenue generator. Asheville has permits for outdoor seating based on the square footage of the area. They even have a $25 permit for those folding signs that restaurants put in front of their doors on the sidewalk to advertise their specials.
All in all, It's not a terrible idea, but I think that if they were going to implement this, all current businesses could get grandfathered in on a $50 permit. All new businesses would pay the $150 fee.
Asheville has a thriving downtown and has a need to regulate their sidewalks. The restaurants in downtown Greenville are just hanging on because of the issues downtown has been and is facing. At this point it is not wise to put restraints on business development. We need more people being seen enjoying downtown, so this is not helpful. In the comments section of the DR story, someone from The Tipsy Teapot said they're taking their tables off the sidewalk. We should be in a state of encouraging quality opportunities for downtown business, not restricting it.
Old Police Chief could be in some hot water up in Asheville....so glad he moved on. I can only imagine what a mess the shooting would have been if the new chief wasn't here.
I had a feeling back when the original story broke that this would be a huge problem for Anderson, but I didn't think he actually took direct part in the coverup. Hopefully his days a chief in any town are numbered. The messes this man makes! I'm quite sure last Friday we would have had an hours-long standoff with a body count if Anderson were still here.
Hopefully this is a path to close one or two of these places down. From today's DR:
City sues nightclubs
Daily Reflector, The (Greenville, NC) - Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Five downtown nightclubs owe the City of Greenville more than $60,000 for consistently failing to submit monthly reports on bouncers, according to lawsuits.
The suits, filed by the city on May 31, allege the clubs routinely failed to follow the ordinance enacted in December 2009 following two drive-by shooting deaths.
The ordinance requires nightclubs to provide to police the names of bouncers and their criminal records. It also requires bouncers to attend training classes.
The clubs, in some cases, have failed to file the reports since October 2010, the lawsuits said.
The suits name as defendants: The Phoenix Nightclub, 209 E. Fifth St.; The Other Place, 207 E. Fifth St.; Fifth Street Distillery, 120 E. Fifth St.; Rum Republic, 218 E. Fifth St., and Club 519, 519 Cotanche St.
The Phoenix owes the most to the city at $34,300 for 140 citations, the suit says. The others owe between $1,350 and $19,400.
“The amount has become a final debt due and owing the City of Greenville,” according to the lawsuits. “Defendant has failed and continues to fail to make payment on the account. The amount owed by the defendant on the account remains unpaid.”
The ordinance was among several measures taken by city leaders after the shooting outside The Other Place. It said public and private clubs have to provide a monthly report to the chief of police with names of all bouncers and criminal records reports for those bouncers within 30 days of their hirings. The ordinance also requires each bouncer to attend annual and refresher training courses.
The clubs racked up monthly and daily fees ranging from $50 to $250 because of the violations before the city filed suit to collect. The lawsuits also said the clubs made no appeals to the city in reference to any of the citations.
No official response from the clubs was included in the suits, and club owners could not be reached on Tuesday.
The city paid $850 in fees to file the five suits.
Hopefully this is a path to close one or two of these places down. From today's DR:
City sues nightclubs
Daily Reflector, The (Greenville, NC) - Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Five downtown nightclubs owe the City of Greenville more than $60,000 for consistently failing to submit monthly reports on bouncers, according to lawsuits.
The suits, filed by the city on May 31, allege the clubs routinely failed to follow the ordinance enacted in December 2009 following two drive-by shooting deaths.
The ordinance requires nightclubs to provide to police the names of bouncers and their criminal records. It also requires bouncers to attend training classes.
The clubs, in some cases, have failed to file the reports since October 2010, the lawsuits said.
The suits name as defendants: The Phoenix Nightclub, 209 E. Fifth St.; The Other Place, 207 E. Fifth St.; Fifth Street Distillery, 120 E. Fifth St.; Rum Republic, 218 E. Fifth St., and Club 519, 519 Cotanche St.
The Phoenix owes the most to the city at $34,300 for 140 citations, the suit says. The others owe between $1,350 and $19,400.
“The amount has become a final debt due and owing the City of Greenville,” according to the lawsuits. “Defendant has failed and continues to fail to make payment on the account. The amount owed by the defendant on the account remains unpaid.”
The ordinance was among several measures taken by city leaders after the shooting outside The Other Place. It said public and private clubs have to provide a monthly report to the chief of police with names of all bouncers and criminal records reports for those bouncers within 30 days of their hirings. The ordinance also requires each bouncer to attend annual and refresher training courses.
The clubs racked up monthly and daily fees ranging from $50 to $250 because of the violations before the city filed suit to collect. The lawsuits also said the clubs made no appeals to the city in reference to any of the citations.
No official response from the clubs was included in the suits, and club owners could not be reached on Tuesday.
The city paid $850 in fees to file the five suits.
What could happen if they don't pay, and when? Could they be shut down? Shut down and "change" management? It would be nice to see The Phoenix Nightclub and The Other Place shut down.
WITN has a new camera on the tower behind the new studio. It very impressive. High enough to show the hospital, football stadium, and traffic on greenville/arlington blvd. Greenville Traffic Cam
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It looks like some demolition has started for the Stantonsburg/10th St connector. One house on Stantonsburg has been demolished and a second house is being scrapped out in preparation for demo.
WITN has a new camera on the tower behind the new studio. It very impressive. High enough to show the hospital, football stadium, and traffic on greenville/arlington blvd. Greenville Traffic Cam
WITN has easily jumped up as the go to news station for Greenville with their new studio. I am no longer embarrassed by them & all the reporters seem a lot more professional all of a sudden...or maybe that's me? I dunno, but I'm very pleased with their station at this time. WNCT - I still refuse to acknowledge they exist in the world, they are an embarrassment.
Asheville has a thriving downtown and has a need to regulate their sidewalks. The restaurants in downtown Greenville are just hanging on because of the issues downtown has been and is facing. At this point it is not wise to put restraints on business development. We need more people being seen enjoying downtown, so this is not helpful. In the comments section of the DR story, someone from The Tipsy Teapot said they're taking their tables off the sidewalk. We should be in a state of encouraging quality opportunities for downtown business, not restricting it.
I mostly agree. My question is this...When/Where will the line be drawn? Once downtown grows more and starts to thrive, when will it be okay to charge for this permit? If there are 10 businesses that have outdoor seating, but 10 years from now, there are 50...do we start charging then since it's thriving?
Starting something like this is difficult, especially since this has been going on free for years. I don't think the fee should be $150. I would have introduced a small $25-50 registration fee.
Tipsy Teapot could sit a jar at their counter to collect donations and i'm sure people would donate enough to pay the registration fee.
It looks like some demolition has started for the Stantonsburg/10th St connector. One house on Stantonsburg has been demolished and a second house is being scrapped out in preparation for demo.
I will really start to get excited when that "strip mall" thing at Farmville/14th gets demoed.
Looks like some revitalization in the area by the Town Commons. These guys are smart. If Greenville reinvents the town commons, that property will be prime real estate to be sold to a company wanting to build up.
Quote:
A group of Greenville property owners have decided they can help build a better downtown if they combine talents to renovate their portion of a city area tagged for revitalization.
The Retreat at Town Common is a group of eight individually owned duplex buildings on First Street across from the boat ramp at the east end of the Town Common. Each building has two separate two-bedroom units that are being renovated inside and outside to make way for occupancy.
The owners are Jim Blount; his brothers, Hunter and Gray; Tom Taft, Graham Clark and Nelson Crisp.
The original complex was developed in 1961 by Marvin K. Blount Sr. and Hoover Taft Sr., Jim Blount said. Most of the properties were inherited by the younger generation family members. Clark said he bought his building from one of the original owners.
In recent years, tenants have typically been low-income non-professionals, the owners said.
“The conditions were very rundown and we wanted to help change that,” Jim Blount said.
“We were watching downtown Greenville develop and we wanted to contribute to the changing face of the city and make it a nicer place to live,” Hunter Blount said.
The men saw too much potential in the properties to let them continue in that condition, Taft said.
“We had a lot of vacant units, with a lot of trash laying around,” he said. “When we saw that the city was paying a lot of attention to the Town Common, that was the catalyst for us. We knew the properties could be a great place to live if the city ever decides to act on the common.”
Renovating just one building, though, would not make much of a difference, Hunter Blount said. The idea of a group effort at renovation was attractive to the men who knew each other, but some of the other owners were strangers to them, they said.
“Everybody’s busy, and no one wants to spend all their time herding cats,” Hunter said. “So I bought the remaining place from the owner, who is older and wasn’t interested in taking on new debt.”
“Our goal was to have a concept that would draw people to the property rather than go miles outside of town,” Jim Blount said. “They can see this great spot with the Town Common in sight, and this little village, not run by absentee landlords, but owners who share a common goal of making Greenville more livable for more people.”
The group decided to create a small village environment on their contiguous properties. But the buildings did not look alike, and the landscaping was different. Now, the brick buildings all are being painted white, with black trim and shutters. The grounds will be landscaped in a unified fashion and maintained together, they said. The interiors also are undergoing renovation, with new appliances, electrical, attic and flooring and central HVAC systems. The owners also must deal with some ground subsidence issues that have impacted the structures.
“Hunter really got the renovations ball rolling and led by example,” Jim, said. “He had units that were turning over regularly, so he decided it was time to go in and fix them up. Then we all got together as a group. It didn’t take us long to figure out what needed to be done.”
Key outdoor contributions came from the city, whose Public Works crew had been clearing out overgrown brush and cleaning up the adjacent city-owned property as part of a storm water management project in the downtown area, the men said.
“The code enforcement people were a real help to us, also, walking us through each step of the renovation process to make sure we get this all done right,” Jim Blount said.
The owners believe the duplexes will be attractive to young professionals starting careers.
“Most of the people coming back to this area are leaving some of the big-box type apartment complexes to live closer to the downtown area where they can walk or ride a bike to work,” he said. “And we have the Greenway right here, which people really love.”
Mayor Allen Thomas said the city will try to contribute upgrades to the sidewalk and pedestrian areas around the property.
“As a city, we all try to embrace and work together with citizens who step up and try to make an area better. This was an area that was transitioning downward; now it’s transitioning upward,” Thomas said.
The owners said they expect to have the work completed on all of the duplexes within the next month or two.
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