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Stone Avenue Projects


gs3

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In order to think about plans for the North Main area at Stone Avenue, I think we need to consider the problems that have prevented the Main Street experience that Greenville is known for from expanding past the Hyatt. Looking at things such as current land use, orientation, and psychological barriers are a start. At that point, I think we can begin to plan anything we want for the area and enjoy success...

My observations -

  • Main Street goes downhill - literally
  • There is a graveyard - as historical as it is can this put a "downer" on things. Obviously it can't be moved but is their a way to make it more interesting? Improved Landscaping at the entrance, etc?
  • How about redoing that courthouse on N. Main?
  • Speaking of a graveyard another "dead" thing is the Mortuary near Stone Ave.
  • The architecture ranges from very Gothic (the Lutheren Church, VFW, etc.) to very 1960's blah post modern building past Park Ave.
  • It would be nice of the shopping center with the Little Bi-Lo and McPherson Park both face Main or at least had entrances to Main.
  • Two Apartment complexes that seem to be worlds apart demographically facing each other.
  • The Landmark Building is still know to many as the Daniel Building - at one time this was the crowning jewel of Main Street? Why did it lose it's pride when it was renamed?
  • Why not continue the landscaping with trees like you see on the Main part of Main up past college street? When you get past the Hyatt it gets wide open and loses the current downtown "feel"
  • Any chance some major retail or eating place could locate in that area?

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Of the items in your list, I think the topography of the area is definitely a fairly major factor. Once some money is invested to redevelop some of the non-pedestrian friendly parcels, more trolleys with greater frequency could assist in the movement of people on that hill.

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As a North Main resident (albeit a new transplant), I couldn't agree more. I have nothing against Waffle House per se. Just not in this particular spot. A Waffle House on Stone would be step backwards or laterally, at best. If Greenville really wants to promote future smart, sustainable, walkable development in the Stone/North Main area (as they have in the West End) then Waffle House is a mistake.

On a related note, I'm curious what people would want at the Collins property at the corner of North Main and Stone. Certainly, mixed-use is desired, but what kind of tenant mix? How much residential vs. commercial? What do people in this area need nearby?

It seems to me that if you want a Walkable environment then businesses should be in places they can be walked too. Seems to me that for people that live in the N. Main area that haveing a Waffle House on Stone where they can walk to it makes alot more sense then putting in elsewhere where they have to drive to it.

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It seems to me that if you want a Walkable environment then businesses should be in places they can be walked too. Seems to me that for people that live in the N. Main area that haveing a Waffle House on Stone where they can walk to it makes alot more sense then putting in elsewhere where they have to drive to it.

I doubt there is much demand or desire for a Waffle House from North Main residents. Unfortunately, the bulk of the clientelle would come from outside the North Main area i.e. people in cars.

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I agree that most people would be driving to the Waffle House in the North End. If there were a non-chain type place (i.e., better than Waffle House) which served diner/breakfast type food until at least 3 or 4 AM closer to the downtown core it would be much better. That way, people could easily walk there from the other downtown nightspots after last call to sober up instead of getting behind the wheel.

If the Waffle House in the North End becomes a reality, I would like to see a late night trolley service to take people between City Center and the North End.

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I doubt there is much demand or desire for a Waffle House from North Main residents. Unfortunately, the bulk of the clientelle would come from outside the North Main area i.e. people in cars.

Good point. I know my parents and a lot of our neighbors would never eat there. (not because of it's [not so] classiness or whatever, my dad honestly thinks the place is disgusting as do others I have talked to...so why would they go?) If a Waffle House at that location is going to get many customers from the N. Main area it's going to be mostly high school students. I can see it now...lots and lots of drunk Greenville High students will be there often. They can even walk there from the party!

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I doubt there is much demand or desire for a Waffle House from North Main residents. Unfortunately, the bulk of the clientelle would come from outside the North Main area i.e. people in cars.

Residents shouldn't be the only ones who have a say in the matter. How about hose of us who work in the area and have our offices in the area?

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Residents shouldn't be the only ones who have a say in the matter. How about hose of us who work in the area and have our offices in the area?

What about you? You're there from 8-5. The rest of us have to LIVE here. If it's a place to go to lunch you're looking for, then certainly we can do better than Waffle House! I personally would love to see more restaurants in the area.

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The quality of food is irrelevant. If we are going to look at food quality as a deciding factor then every meat and three in town should be shut down.

Its about fairness, if you have a set of rules and someone is trying to follow them and you want to change them after the fact, that's just plain immoral and wrong. Now if you want to change the rules for the future that is fine, but you can't go doing it after the fact.

This is the same thing the city did with the Multi-Family building codes in response to the Apartment Complex planned for Augusta Rd. and I promise you that has already had undesired consequences. Turns out under the new rules multi-family projects on small parcels may not be possible any longer. I know one developer that bought a MF site in the city and is having to build SF houses on it because of the new code even though the city prefers MF on that site.

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Moderators, is there a way to merge the Waffle House discussion into one of these threads? We currently have two Waffle House conversations going at once. Thanks. :)

WOW......the Waffle House issue seems to be getting just as much (if not more) discussion, as Piggly Wiggly did a few years back. :lol: Wonder what it is about Waffle and the Pig that so many of us Greenvillians dislike?

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... Its about fairness, if you have a set of rules and someone is trying to follow them and you want to change them after the fact, that's just plain immoral and wrong. Now if you want to change the rules for the future that is fine, but you can't go doing it after the fact....

"Someone" was so dead set on getting that Huddle House restaurant out of the neighborhood, and now we're talking about putting in a Waffle House in, just a block from where the Huddle House used to be?

It's not just ironic, it makes no sense. I'm not taking a position for or against the Waffle House with this statement (I've eaten at one many times), but what's the point of urban planning if this sort of thing is going to happen?

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The parking lot at E. Stone Ave. and Bennett Street (former SCN bank branch location) has been repaved and new lines painted in the past few days.

I wonder if this is for the use of patrons at the Handlebar?

Maybe temporarily, but I assumed it would be for whatever goes into that building on that corner. A lot of work has been done and there may be plans for additions to it as well if I remember correctly. I've been thinking a small restaurant might go there, but who knows.

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Maybe temporarily, but I assumed it would be for whatever goes into that building on that corner. A lot of work has been done and there may be plans for additions to it as well if I remember correctly. I've been thinking a small restaurant might go there, but who knows.

I've been told that a tapas restaurant was slated to go in there. The plans included an addition with a second floor, I believe. However, the current economic climate has put a stop to those plans. I think the upgrades to the property are to simply make it more attractive to potential buyers/leasees. The guy doing the work(who had planned on developing the tapas restaurant) also did the adaptive re-use on the Orange Coat building and the salon around the corner.

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The parking lot at E. Stone Ave. and Bennett Street (former SCN bank branch location) has been repaved and new lines painted in the past few days.

I wonder if this is for the use of patrons at the Handlebar?

Answering my own question, I asked around and was told that the owners do not want their parking lot used by patrons of the Handlebar. Last night the lot was enclosed by a tape and no one was using it.

I was also told the owner wants $40,000 a year to lease or $600,000 + to buy. Both of those figures seem high for that property to me. Nice location, but the building is relatively small.

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  • 1 month later...

has any one seen the renderings for the Waffle House yet? Please, no more flamming about the merits of a WH on Stone, it's coming one way or the other. I will get mad if they go with a, "next to the freeway" design though. If that happens I think I'll try to get involved in helping to push them to build an urban design. Does any one have a picture of a WH in a big city's downtown?

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has any one seen the renderings for the Waffle House yet? Please, no more flamming about the merits of a WH on Stone, it's coming one way or the other. I will get mad if they go with a, "next to the freeway" design though. If that happens I think I'll try to get involved in helping to push them to build an urban design. Does any one have a picture of a WH in a big city's downtown?

I saw some renderings some months ago. To their credit, Waffle House made some attempts to incorporate what might pass for some as "urban design", as well as a cursory nod to landscaping and site issues. The building still looked like a giant Lego block with windows – a gem perhaps in the world of Waffle House, but typically banal corporate chain architecture to me at least.

I have searched for images of a Waffle House in an urban environment and have found none. There is no reason a Waffle House could not be part of an urban street scape, but most if not all Waffle Houses are freestanding buildings sitting in a parking lot. That’s because they are essentially a suburban or roadside enterprise. A Waffle House on Stone would do most of their business not with local employees or residents, but with passing motorists.

I’m not sure why you think a Waffle House is coming to Stone, despite the fact the site has been cleared. The company has not purchased the property to my knowledge. Also, to operate their business 24-7, they will have to apply to the BZA, which to date they have not done. If Waffle House doesn’t want to operate 24-7, then they can open restaurant with no further ado under current zoning – but they had indicated that this was not an option. I suspect the property owner cleared his site of a dilapidated building in order to sell the property to someone else. Hopefully to someone sensitive to the great possibilities and future of this underused commercial corridor.

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I saw some renderings some months ago. To their credit, Waffle House made some attempts to incorporate what might pass for some as "urban design", as well as a cursory nod to landscaping and site issues. The building still looked like a giant Lego block with windows – a gem perhaps in the world of Waffle House, but typically banal corporate chain architecture to me at least.

I have searched for images of a Waffle House in an urban environment and have found none. There is no reason a Waffle House could not be part of an urban street scape, but most if not all Waffle Houses are freestanding buildings sitting in a parking lot. That’s because they are essentially a suburban or roadside enterprise. A Waffle House on Stone would do most of their business not with local employees or residents, but with passing motorists.

I’m not sure why you think a Waffle House is coming to Stone, despite the fact the site has been cleared. The company has not purchased the property to my knowledge. Also, to operate their business 24-7, they will have to apply to the BZA, which to date they have not done. If Waffle House doesn’t want to operate 24-7, then they can open restaurant with no further ado under current zoning – but they had indicated that this was not an option. I suspect the property owner cleared his site of a dilapidated building in order to sell the property to someone else. Hopefully to someone sensitive to the great possibilities and future of this underused commercial corridor.

The news paper said the site was cleared in order to fullfill part of their purchase contract with the Waffle House franchisee.

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The news paper said the site was cleared in order to fullfill part of their purchase contract with the Waffle House franchisee.

The newspaper may have said that. But does it make any sense for Waffle House to purchase the property before obtaining the needed special exception from the BZA so that they can operate 24-7? And if they don't want to operate 24-7, then there's no real issue with Waffle House. Except for maybe the aforementioned ugly building and what might be charitably described as the chain's "branding problem", all of which set the wrong example for the future of Stone Avenue. But those issues can’t really be addressed until Stone has a master plan in place to help guide development.

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  • 2 months later...

The newspaper may have said that. But does it make any sense for Waffle House to purchase the property before obtaining the needed special exception from the BZA so that they can operate 24-7? And if they don't want to operate 24-7, then there's no real issue with Waffle House. Except for maybe the aforementioned ugly building and what might be charitably described as the chain's "branding problem", all of which set the wrong example for the future of Stone Avenue. But those issues can’t really be addressed until Stone has a master plan in place to help guide development.

Anyone heard anything about this recently? My understanding is that we will be seeing some work starting very soon...

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  • 2 months later...

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