105 replies to this topic

[Hotlanta]

I have noticed over the years how Saul Centers has been upgrading Thruway Shopping Center with more and more moderate to high end income individuals. In recent years they have been able to lure stores such as Border's, New Balance, Pier 1 Kids, Bonefish Grill, C. Eyewear, Ann Taylor Loft, Chicos, Jos. A Bank, The Jewel Box, Liz Claiborne Shoes, Foot Solutions, The Loop, Bed Bath & Beyond, Moe's Southwest Grille, Fox and Hound, and Kyoto Express (note that some of these store/restaurants were added before and after 2000). Saul has been getting rid of eyesore stores and replacing them with some we have never seen in this area before. In about a couple of weeks he will open up the new Chick-Fil-A and rumors are going around that he will be replacing the old TJ's Deli with a Margaritaville restautant. He just built a new out parcel building last year and it is now fully occupied, he demolished an old gas station and replaced it, when stores have gone under he has managed to have them occupyed in a matter of months, and sometimes he will force out other stores when he has somebody bigger to take their place. So what do you think will happen to this shopping center if it continues at this pace? What do you think of its future?

Edited by Hotlanta, 11 February 2006 - 09:30 AM.

[ILoveCallingNCHome]

The only thing I find worth making the trip into the bad traffic of Thruway is Deweys.  Beyond that, I usually skip it, and probably will continue to.  I am not a shopper lured in by name brands and it being supposedly "upscale".

[Tre 4]

I see big things at the shopping center, were is Bonefish I throught gso was the only city that had one.

Edited by Tre 4, 08 February 2006 - 09:59 PM.

[StevenRocks]

Thruway is awesome, one of my favorite shopping centers

[twincity]

i love Thruway escpecially the 24 hour Harris Teeter.  Really that whole area, N. Stratford, 5 Points, Miller St. is very midtown-y.  i dont see it expanding much more since land over there is already developed.  i wouldnt mind seeing  another small parcel built near the north entrance, but then parking would become a real headache.

im suprised that the lot opposite Thruway, next to the Towers shopping center isnt developed yet.

[intcvlcphlga]

Dewey's Bakery is one of Winston-Salem's best - it's hard to top the sugarcake.

[DigitalSky]

Thruway Rocks.  Hopefully I'll get to go there this weekend

[Hotlanta]

twincity, on Feb 9 2006, 10:11 AM, said:

i love Thruway escpecially the 24 hour Harris Teeter.  Really that whole area, N. Stratford, 5 Points, Miller St. is very midtown-y.  i dont see it expanding much more since land over there is already developed.  i wouldnt mind seeing  another small parcel built near the north entrance, but then parking would become a real headache.

im suprised that the lot opposite Thruway, next to the Towers shopping center isnt developed yet.

There is supposed to be a new 5 story office building built next to the BB&T building on Stratford where the old Stratford Motel used to be. I have a feeling within 5 years we will see that lot next to Towers be developed into a VERY nice elegant shopping villiage that will compliment Thruway and Towers.

[DigitalSky]

Question- Which Harris Teeter was there first, Thruway or Cloverdale, since they are so close to eachother.  I'll guess the Cloverdale one was a Winn Dixie or Kroger in the past? Can anyone verify this? Thanks

[Tre 4]

cantnot, on Feb 9 2006, 09:50 PM, said:

Question- Which Harris Teeter was there first, Thruway or Cloverdale, since they are so close to eachother.  I'll guess the Cloverdale one was a Winn Dixie or Kroger in the past? Can anyone verify this? Thanks

The  Cloverdale store was a Kroger in the past, But it was their First I did not Noticed how close the two were that’s under a mile. why

Edited by Tre 4, 09 February 2006 - 09:22 PM.

[StevenRocks]

Both HT Thruway and Cloverdale are very popular stores, so there's no reason to close either.  I haven't been to HT Cloverdale since it was still Kroger.

[DigitalSky]

thx for the info guys.

[transitman]

When Thruway lost TJ's, that was a big blow.  When they added buildings to the parking lot by the Wachovia, the urban design was so bad the only way they could have been worse was to add a mural of someone giving the middle finger to Stratford Rd.  

This neighborhood could be really improved for a pedestrian/transit upfit.  However, I'm not holding my breath waiting for it to happen.

[redjeep77]

DEWEY'S is AMAZING.  I moved to charlotte in '87 and i miss the moravian sugarbread and cookies all the time.  You can't get it anywhere else!

[StevenRocks]

transitman, on Feb 10 2006, 10:31 AM, said:

When they added buildings to the parking lot by the Wachovia, the urban design was so bad the only way they could have been worse was to add a mural of someone giving the middle finger to Stratford Rd.

There wasn't much they could do on the Stratford Raod side of the Chico's building, save for some fake storefronts, which wouldn't have been much better.

[Hotlanta]

transitman, on Feb 10 2006, 10:31 AM, said:

When Thruway lost TJ's, that was a big blow.  When they added buildings to the parking lot by the Wachovia, the urban design was so bad the only way they could have been worse was to add a mural of someone giving the middle finger to Stratford Rd.  

This neighborhood could be really improved for a pedestrian/transit upfit.  However, I'm not holding my breath waiting for it to happen.

The area is pretty urban and walkable. While it is not the best it sure is better than nothing. What really needs to be done is to fix up the lower mall. That area is stuck in a time warp! I would say losing the library would be the biggest blow because it drew people from all over Ardmore, Buena Vista, and the Country Club Rd area.

Edited by Hotlanta, 11 February 2006 - 10:04 AM.

[ILoveCallingNCHome]

redjeep77, on Feb 10 2006, 02:54 PM, said:

DEWEY'S is AMAZING.  I moved to charlotte in '87 and i miss the moravian sugarbread and cookies all the time.  You can't get it anywhere else!

I agree.  Nothing like it.  (Thus my only reason for battling the crazy traffic from time to time to go there LOL)

[StevenRocks]

When did the library leave?

[Hotlanta]

StevenRocks, on Feb 11 2006, 02:19 AM, said:

When did the library leave?

It left in about 2000 or 2001. Along with that there have been many other closures on that same level. Those stores would include The Packaging Store (said they were to move to Country Club but it doesn't look like it yet becuase they are still there), some chinese restaurant (replaced by Fox and Hound), and a lamp store closed I believe. On the top part of the mall there have been some recent closures including Kirkland's. On the bottom level there is a rendering of what the lower mall would look like if a renovation were to happen there. To me it looks very modernish and a little bit too West Palm Beach for us with palm trees and alot of glass. So are these oppurtunities for Saul to develop these parcels into high end stores? But I like Thruway's mix of stores and I think it is cool the way it is, but just replace that Kirkland's space because it looks really crappy when nothing is there.

[SouthJersey7]

Hotlanta, on Feb 10 2006, 11:00 PM, said:

The area is pretty urban and walkable. While the it is not the best it sure is better than nothing. What really needs to be done is to fix up the lower mall. That area is stuck in a time warp! I would say losing the library would be the biggest blow because it drew people from all over Ardmore, Buena Vista, and the Country Club Rd area.

There's some things they could do. It's got the potential commuted rail line coming right through there, and there's at least 5 or 6 midrise offices, although they are in 2 different areas. I think it's kind of like Tyson's Corner in VA where they'd like to make it more pedestrian but just don't know how.