Habitat ReStore to Move?
There's scuttlebutt around Midtown that Habitat ReStore is moving to or opening at a location near 31st and Troost. Some Hyde Park residents are reportedly unhappy with the move, wanting an actual business on Troost rather than a non-profit venture. As a nearby resident myself I'd welcome them with open arms. The amount of traffic they generate would make the other retail spaces around 31st and Troost more viable. At their current location that traffic is wasted.That makes me wonder. Is there anything else in this city that could assist with economic development if we could just move it? We wouldn't necessarily need City Hall to encourage this. Perhaps an enterprising property owner might see this as an opportunity to increase his profits and offer a location to some organization for a pittance. Just a thought.
Talboy and the Next Mayor
Update: I read a little too much into the Talboy questionnaire. For a full explanation, see my later post.
I've recently been speculating on who our next mayor might be. I don't think Riederer or James are likely to step up if Funkhouser is ousted. A friend of mine mentioned to me this week that the most recent constituent survey from State Representative Mike Talboy had one question asking Midtown voters if they supported recalling the Mayor. I mention this because I think it's unlikely that Talboy did this out of curiosity, or even out of the goodness of his heart. Someone has asked Talboy to do this, and Talboy wants to be in his or her favor. I've tried to find out who this might be. So far, Talboy's campaign finance reports have been little help.I've considered the possibility that Riederer or James asked Talboy to do this just to satisfy his own curiosity. It wouldn't necessarily mean that either of them would run in a recall election. A friend of mine recently bumped into Riederer's niece, a local Democratic insider named Amy Gramowski, at a grass roots event. My friend reported that she didn't think James or Riederer would run, citing logic similar to that in my earlier post.
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4 comments:
I find it ironic that someone like yourself who espouses walkability and transit friendly development would support a Habitat Restore at 31st and Troost. I myself love Habitat Restore and patronize their Deramus store often but an auto-truck-centric business does not fit in an urban neighborhood. Especially when they're looking to do property swaps to expand their parking capacity. Frankly Casey I'm disappointed in you on this one.
I'm with you on this one. Having Habitat Restore convenient to houses that need restoration cannot be a bad thing.
Disclosure--this move would bring HR closer to my house and I would love that.
I didn't know they were looking to expand their parking capacity. That's not what I want at all. Maybe they should try Linwood and Prospect instead. Those properties are set up auto-centric businesses, and I think they have the space.
The meeting smelled like a setup to me. Barely advertised. I only found out about it at the last minute from a connected friend. Then Habitat shows up with presentation materials and a board member/politico prepared to do a full presentation. What was supposed to be a public input meeting was turned into an exclusive pitch for the Habitat Restore people.
An architect from the Hyde Park criticized Restore's plans as they showed the building on the SW corner of 31st & Troost completely covered in ivy. He correctly pointed out that ivy is extremely destructive to brick. I found it ironic that an organization centered around housing would produce a plan that damages a classic structure like the old Katz drug store.
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