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Show Is Downtown Sugar House Going Somewhere? A 1 5-ac- Large Chains Take Over What will happen to Sugar House? Joey Hellrung commercial complex moves into Sugar House re Staff Writer Kathleen Bratcher Staff Writer Proposed changes for downtown Sugar House are seen as a threat to the ideology of the which community, encompasses Westminster Colre lege. Within the plot of land, starting at 1040 East (McLelland Avenue) and 2100 South, a multiuse complex is scheduled to be built this fall, with its grand-openiduring the summer of 2007. It will include and groomed retail shops, office spaces, and residential housing. The developers, Red Mountain Retail Group, compare the project to the massive downtown shopping-cente- r, The Gateway, developed by The Bover Company. Today, on the west side of 1100 East and just south of 2100 South, stands local, independently-owne- d businesses that supply shoppers with an eclectic variety of goods. Business owners are skeptical of the change since they have become accustomed to doing their business in the heart of Sugar House. Likewise, patrons of the Sugar House area are not pleased with the plans. Because of the apparent destabilization of community retailers and patrons compromised by big-buprojects, officials of the project are tight-lippe- d to comment. On the east side of that same intersection stands another Boyer property, The Commons at Sugar House, which has become a neighborhood staple because of the shopping conveniences. It houses Barnes &, Noble, the historic Sprague Library', and Wild chain-store- s, include Oats. Other corporate-owne- d Petco, Bed Bath &, Beyond, Old Navy and Lens Crafters. On Saturday afternoons there are few spaces open in the parking lot that stretches the entire block from Barnes Sc Noble to Wild Oats. long-standi- ng 15-ac- ng well-landscap- ed five-doll- punk-rock-er- co-exi- well-receiv- ed - JefFMachin, The Boyer Company retail manager Finding out how sales are for the tenants of The Commons at Sugar House is not an easy task. Employees at all of the businesses, including the library, are remaining quiet when it comes to talking about the success of The Commons at Sugar House. Corporations do not, under any circumstances, give out earned-sal- es figures, unless a stockholder is asking. Retail store managers are taught that giving out sales performance information, including how much foot traffic they receive, is equal to telling company secrets. This policy is strongly enforced and includes evety employee. Not even a librarian, whose experience includes working in the Sprague Library before the Boyer renovation began, would comment beyond foot traffic is definitely up since the change. Jeff Machin, who oversees all of the retail properties owned by The Boyer Company, was less elusive. Machin says, The success of The Commons at Sugar House is a fact evidenced by the strong sales experienced by the retailers in the project. Machin was more than cooperative when asked about how Sugar House Commons was received by the local community when it was built. He said, Since its opening, the project has yblume XXXX: .Issue, 3. ' .1 1 . st. ge, foot-traff- ck ...the project has been by the surrounding community. Two patrons of Sugar House are playing guitar together outside Artopia, a small shop in the heart of Sugar House, and my place of employment. Ive never seen them before, but I allow them to continue playing outside the store. They play mostly Nirvana covers from the unplugged record. I hear the familiar tunes of Jesus Dont Want me for a Sunbeam and On a Plain. At one point one of the musicians puts down his guitar and performs a solo on a ukulele. The empty guitar case at their feet gathers a surprising amount of one-an- d ar bills. Its just a typical day in Sugar House. In the past few years, Sugar House has blossomed s, into a haven for the alternatives where the hippies, artists, musicians, and eccentrics all hapThe main strip of shops, which extend pily south of 2100 South on Highland Drive (1100 East) and include The Blue Boutique, Pibs Sugarhouse Coffee (formerly Blue Kats), and are the veteran shops of what Sugar House has become. One by one, other local business people noticed the ic accessibility of the growing popularity and area and have opened shops of their own. Today shoppers can return home with a cup of coffee, a dildo, hot-pin- k stilettos, and the new Thom Yorke record just after a quick stroll along the strip. er from Portland and owner Lee Cano, a of Artopia, came to Salt Lake four years ago hoping to start his own business. He explored several potential locales around the city for his endeavor, including downtown, but when he came upon Sugar House, he immediately knew it would be a perfect location. The series of small, local businesses that line Highland Drive reminded him of his hometown in Oregon. In light of the scheduled renovation of Sugar House, where many small shops may be replaced with chains, there is a threat to larger the Sugar House community we know today. Now more than ever, it is important to support local businesses on the Sugar House strip. Photo More corporate stores like Old Navy threaten the the Sugar House community. tight-kn- it bv Kathleen Bratcher closeness of by the surrounding community. At the time of its development, The Commons at Sugar House was a vast departure from traditional shopping design, said Machin. Retailers initially been well-receiv- ed struggled with the layout of the project, but given the pedestrian nature, retailers decided to open stores in the project. Store owners and consumers adapted, and now thrive, in The Commons at Sugar House, even though a large water feature and pedestrian area in the middle of the project were very unusual for the Utah market, said Machin. Can the locally-owne- d shops on the west side of The Commons at Sugar House play in the same league in the light sandwiched between the retail big-boof redevelopment? Since little information is surfacing about the specific proposed project, the only thing for certain is that the winds of change are blowing through Sugar House. The proposed changes do not structurally effect the buildings of the existing businesses on the west side of 1100 East and just south of 2100 South. The east side of the street has become void of foot traffic. When compared to the just one block east, and considering now that Granite Furniture is gone, it is more comparable to a wasteland. Change may be bad; it may be painful, but it is inevitable. The changes Sugar House businesses are facing may be symptoms of a larger issue. Until shoppers use dollars to support locally-ownbusinesses, national will continue to eyeball chains and neighborhoods like Sugar House. It illustrates a consumer-driven, democracy. For now, there are many Sugar House residents, s, interested in Salt Lake and City Councils final decision on renovating their neighborhood. There are strong voices on both sides of the issue during city council meetings, which may ultimately be where deals are cut and decisions will be made. ys hustle-and-bus- de ed land-develop- ers glass-blow- TCBY-yogurt-ty- pe Sugar House Local Businesses Blue Boutique: lingerie, piercing, novelties club-wea- r, adult Sugarhouse Coffee: coffee, food Orions Music: new and used music Lucky Pirate: designer jeans and clothes U.S. Tobacco and Gift Shop: cigarettes and tobacco accessories I. Kim: clothes and shoes Christian Science Reading Room: Christian Science Reading Materials Lunas: Italian ice Spark: clothes and shoes Haight: unusual shoes Pibs ge: used clothes (buy, trade, and sell) for-pro- fit land-owner- local-retail- ers glass Artopia: hand-blow- n Free Speech Zone: political and information counter-cultu- re STA Travel: travel information Herbs for Health: health food and supplements ; .pge9 |