And the Rest?

[vinemp]

I'm glad the pedestrian-friendly/mixed-use/urban development seed is being successfully spread through Downtown and its adjacent neighborhoods.

I just wonder...

Where will all the new Downtown tenants buy food? Clothing? Fill perscriptions? Where will children and teenagers go to school?

Let's hope they won't have to venture far just to go see a movie.

[Claws]

Well, Viridian's going to include an H.G. Hill's Food Store, so if that one succeeds, I'm sure more will follow.

[Onyte9]

If you build it they will come! As in if you build numerous residential complexes in a area and the demand for a certain business, like a department store or a restaurant becomes high and there is money to be made the stores will soon follow. And it probably wont take long. It crosses my mind almost daily that if I were to start a nice restaurant close to the Viridian I would be sitting on a gold mine. If I had the back or the money to get started I would love to do it, and I'm sure there are many more people with my ambition that are in the position to take action on their ideas.

[doormanpoet]

Downtown Nashville was the hub of shopping from 1930 to the late 1970's and then everyone fled to the suburbs with the opening of 100 oaks mall. Actually that mall opened in the late 1960's, and it started the suburban shopping mall trend. I grew up in Bellevue which at that time, 1967 when we moved in, it was still a farming community. Going "uptown" is what people did at night and on the weekends. Unfortunately the Church Street Center Mall did not make it because of the crime by thugs in the area. Also, Richard Claypool ran over and killed a pregnant mother in front of the mall a few days before christmas several years ago. No-one would go back. She was a promenant Nashville attorney.

The last men's good clothing store was Petway Revis when the Pan Asian restautant is now. That was owned and operated by the Minton family for over 50 years. I think shopping downtown will come back. I think people are sick of the Ward and June Cleaver suburbs of which I live! I want to move into the city, but some concerns are shopping, the homeless, crime and most of all expence. A two bedroon in the Viridian is almost $300,000. I have a three bedroom house with a 1/4 acre of land and I paid $149,000 for it. There is no comparison for the cost savings. However, when gas prices reach the $3.00 to $4.00 per gallon price (and they will) I may consider West End as an option. My wife and I can both walk to work!

[it's just dave]

I know what you mean, dp, my house is 5 miles from the center of town in an up and coming neighborhood. The neighbors are second to none (some, I can do without), but when I go out into my yard which I've landscaped to the point of having my own personal park, I can't quite justify selling it and ending up in a one-bedroom condo while I'm still capable of doing the work it requires to maintain my own lawn madness. Besides, I'm 5 minutes from Edgefield and all it's trendy little spaces and only a couple of more minutes from downtown. And with my half-done $500 a month house payment, I would be a bit nuts for letting that go at the moment. I like to shop too much. What I really need is a new vehicle.

Someday, I can see placing my little old man self downtown for convenience, but not quite yet.

If my Powerball ticket pans out (lol), I can have the best of both worlds. But I'm far, far removed from the typical suburban type of existence, and I like that.

[nashvol85]

If they build a few more highrise condos close in DT, I would like to see someone take a risk (Publix or Kroger) and build a medium sized grocery right DT. As far as the classy clothing stores, I think you'll just have to be satisfied with going to Green Hills...