No proposal will be belittled by the Hound. We want input from everyone. I beg you to please participate in this roundtable discussion. We want everyone to be cordial and civil, but no input is stupid no matter how large or small, no matter how simple or intricate.
Insiders and Outsiders are both needed in this process. This forum just might be what helps kickstart our city back to the progressive city that it was as little as a decade ago.
I have learned so much in the last few months and I think this solutions' forum will give everyone a better understanding of where we have been, where we are heading, and where we need to be.
If there is any information that you feel might compromise your anonymity, there are ways that these issues can be addressed without doing so. You can e-mail me and we can figure out together a way to address the issue without someone figuring out where it came from.
I am going to archive "Problems and Solutions" at the right under the Blog Archives on this page. I truly believe that doing this will help our city mature, grow, and prosper; fulfilling the potential that we all know that we are capable of.
Thank You,
Let's Get Started
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Thursday, October 30, 2008
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10 comments:
I think there are several issues that can be easily solved if addressed.
A grocery store would be great since there are none close, but there can't be one downtown until we solve the issues of security. The Fresh Air-Galaxy down there was basically robbed out of business.
That is the reason why we have to work on making South Center street and the surrounding area better and more integral to the success of downtown. There is a lot of valuable land in a revitalized South Hickory. It is a shame what our lack of city leadership has done to that area.
Fixing up this area and making it secure would create a lot of value for the African-American community. When those properties are resold into commercial property, then that money could be plowed back into that community. Lifting up a blighted area.
You can't put a grocery store on Union Square, but you could a few blocks away. I think there are several viable locations in southwest Hickory.
When you build this grocery store there is going to have to be parking. I think a grocery store would work very well near 4th street, Main avenue, and 1st avenue SW.
Later I will address gutting some of the historic retail stores downtown and leaving only the facade, so large retail units can come design their stores based upon their needs and not the needs of the early 1900's.
If you ever want to see a nuisance go down into the basements downtown or go walk down trade avenue behind Union Square.
One of the problems is the standards that mainline groceries have for new stores. You're not going to see a Lowes or Harris Teeter on South Center Street -- the reality is that the economics and income level in the area won't support it. Food Lion and some of the 2nd line stores MIGHT -- but they need about 50,000 square feet for a SMALL store. Think about it -- that's several square blocks, and that just assumes that the grocery store is the only thing going in. If you have any kind of outbuildings or other retail it takes up even more -- a problem that's exacerbated because Hickory's code requires parking that will handle the day before or after Thanksgiving for every facility -- parking that sits empty the other 360+ days of the year.
Belle Hollow (Harris Teeter) is a nicely done development. It has too much parking still, but there are other businesses to feed the grocery store. What's going to go into a development like that on South Center Street?
The other question that comes up is whether the people from outside Ridgeview will support such a facility -- how many soccer moms from NW Hickory feel safe enough to take their toddlers and go buy groceries there, leaving their Lincoln Navigator in the parking lot? It's not politically correct to say, but that's the perception of that neighborhood. Are they going to go there to get their nails done, buy crystal fru-fru like SteinMart has, or will their husbands shop at Jos.A.Banks? How many $100 dress shirts you think they're going to sell there, and are the downtown workers going to go there to shop?
I'd also point out that the numbers from HPD, slanted though they may be, don't hold up for that -- look at the crime records available for incidents and arrests. Ridgeview is a relatively safe neighborhood as compared with other parts of Hickory. The problem is that the incidents that happen there get the most press.
The need is there and the concept is fine -- but reality is going to make it difficult to entice that kind of investment into town, ESPECIALLY when there's no indication whatsoever that downtown is going to undergo any type of revitalization.
Sorry, but I don't see that happening until Sally's too old and worn out to continue to agitate.
Instead, if several square blocks of the area were bought up and razed - similar to Lowes Hardware or Yesterdays on 127 - and Hickory got much, much more development friendly, you might see someone willing to take the risk in a good economy. Right now, I don't see that happening.
No idea is a bad one, though - it's just got to be fleshed out to find out how to make it work.
Uh... I hope you don't think I was talking about a grocery store on South Center Street. The area that I am talking about is near where The Paige One (Ego's) used to be and Green's Market and there are several warehouses and old buildings. It is in the opposite direction near 4th street SW. Across from Alex Lee's offices. Down the street from First Baptist Church, but on the South Side of the tracks. there or somewhere near there would be good.
I agree that something like that couldn't go in South Hickory at this time. What needs to begin there is the rivitalization of the shopping center where Sky City used to be. Let's fix that up and increase security there. You can't be cheap and run a barebones operation with no security guards at these locations until there is a paradigm shift. But that is prime property near I-40 and 321 there is no reason for it to be blighted except that a it has not been invested in properly.
The one mentality that seriously needs to be addressed is "that's the way it's always been." I have heard that until I am blue in the face. That is the mindset of people that never accomplish anything. They always sit around complaining and waiting for miracles to happen. You have to make miracles happen.
Z. Anne Hoyle will work with the other council members. I have heard it and I have seen it, but there have to be proposals brought forth. They aren't coming forth if everyone assumes that that area must always be like it is "because that's the way it's always been."
Remember Charlotte's downtown in the 70s. "That's the way it had always been." Look at it now. That is the way I envision Hickory being -- on a smaller scale. Would that not be the nicer vision for Hickory?
Security is an issue in South Hickory. It is going to take a lot of encouragement of self-policing. It is also going to mean that we are going to have to do something about the statistics instead of just pointing to them. It doesn't always have to be that way.
Blog #2, anonymous has a point. We can't have dilapidated housing or crack houses in or around South Center street. Probably there will have to be a mix of solutions. There will have to be some buying and razing of houses. Some nicer and hopefully multistory housing would go up. Maybe a center city recreation area of larger scale and variety of amenities would be good.
I would like to point out that although the area is black, black people live all over town now and there doesn't need to be an exclusively black area. This isn't the Jim Crow days anymore. Of course a dialogue with the community will be essential for progress.
Many people will be afraid of crime until they are convinced it is safe but with good development and law enforcement we can improve it. We need to stop accepting that black and crime go together. This impedes all our progress and isn't fair to the good, law abiding black people who are most affected by crime. Easy? No. Possible? Yes!
As to timing, this is probably not the time. Until the macroeconomic climate is better no developer is going to undertake this. But my question is: Is the City ever going to show any leadership on high rise buildings or large scale, serious rebuilding projects. Unless we have new leadership we are going to continue to be a one and two story, strip mall city. We must love sprawl.
get rid of the people who dont know how those people live....police the area, clean it up...get some real people on the city council who are not worried about the nw area and the traffic jams...get some people of substance to run this town and look at the real issues. get a real man who does not worry about the rich to run this town. if we are going to have a black president, maybe we need to look that way...that will never happen in hickory but there has got to be someone in this town with a vision....charlotte did it ...it is not too late for hickory...ill vote for anyone with a vision. let him come forward....who can it be....there was a black banker at one time who had great visions for hickory...what ever happened to him..where is john watts....he had strength of his convictions for this town...
Black banker = Joe Crocker? I'm not sure that's who you're talking about, but he did have some vision. I think he retired though. Talk to the people at Exodus Homes. Their mission is a very difficult one, but they have been highly successful. I'm sure they have plenty of good ideas to presenton what could help the South Center/Ridgeview area...ideas that as was stated earlier can work, just need 'fleshing out'. I think it would be good if the old Sky City building, or the old Grants building (Kmart, Hamricks, whatever you remember, lol) could be razed and a grocery store put there...the city has the ability to look at the situation realistically in regards to how much parking would truly be required and amend the parking requirements accordingly. They simply have to be willing to do so. Outbuildings should cater to the surrounding area needs. NW soccer moms will not bring their children over there for groceries because they have convenient shopping in their area...that shouldn't be a factor. Some place convenient to both SW/Greenpark and SE/Ridgeview would be great - both of those areas are underserved in regards to retail establishments.
We've talked a lot about the upgrades needed, but one thing Hickory has to address is the loss of its base economy. A base economic provider is that industry that supports the service industries. For example, furniture factories paid people excellent wages, so they could afford to go to the movies, buy cars and homes, etc.
However, one of Hickory's base economies is as the hub for services. Thus, many people work in retail stores frequented by people living outside of Hickory, which is not a bad thing in and of itself, except service jobs do not pay well, and people who shop in Hickory demand convenience (thus the retailer must be located on 70 and not downtown) or they'll take their business to Conover, Lincolnton, wherever.
One solution for Hickory, one part of the solution, is to draw in large employers. The Target Distribution Center fits the bill but more is needed. The City Council needs to fill these empty warehouses with business. It's great that Zagaroli turns a few into super-apartments, but that won't revitalize the economy of the city.
Maybe Lenoir's tax incentive to Google was excessive, but at least they did something to bring a major business to their ailing city. And the truth is our city is still ailing. We still cater to shoppers and really we need some solid businesses to employ the people in this region, which goes hand-in-hand with education, which again points to leadership.
What a circle.
Ok, here's my idea for some of the older properties along the tracks near downtown. First, they have to be cleaned up - too many homeless, too much graffiti (some of it very sexual in nature), too many aggressive panhandlers in the area.
This area has an abundance of talent. Create an art school (part of CVCC, the museum - has to be affordable). Turn the properties along the tracks into a school site, artists spaces, galleries, etc. Teach woodworking, pottery, fused glass, metal work, jewelry. Have equipment to use at cheap rates. Start creating things unique to Hickory. Get back to an American First Attitude. Sell art, furniture, products made in Hickory! Nothing imported! No cheap key chains, hats, etc. Has to be made here! Lots of skilled Americans out of work here!
The only hope for a major draw downtown is to go artsy and make it exciting for young, old, in between. But downtown is not just the square.
I think Full Circle Arts submitted a proposal to the City for use of the Station, but 'they' weren't interested.
I am from outside the area and moved to NW Hickory 4 years ago. I was a single professional then and now am married and plan on raising a family here. I think this place has a lot to offer and I think that the days of the manufacturing of hand made furniture and textiles are over and we just need to accept it. If we had those jobs back, then they would be operated by robots. I am in the investment real estate business and I think south and west Hickory would benefit from some "high quality" affordable housing. I am in the process of buying as much as I can around here because it is an absolute bargain. The image of an area is going to be portrayed by how the neighborhoods look. The homes in Oakwood structurally do not look much different than some of the bungalows in West Hickory. The only difference is the side walks and the duplexes mixed in. This is where the city could come in and set some zoning guidelines and some rent controls up or down. Taxes will go up when property values go up. If I buy a house for $45k and I can rent it for $400 a month or $750 a month to a much higher quality tenant, then which would you put your money into. You also can look at the schools around here. Everyone crows about Hickory high, but they are average at best. The best schools need to be in the poorest neighborhoods. These are where the resources are needed. The poverty rate in Catawba County has increased since 2000 by 77%!. This is staggering. How in the world can city leadership expect to bring up the tide of the city without elevating the living standards of the citizens.
Lenior Rhyne also needs to take a more active role. In 1987 they were about the size of Elon and High Point Universities. Both were in Textile and furniture towns like us, and look how they evolved. They brought in outside leadership, invested in key "brown field" real estate and elevated the area. Elon actually bought an African American neighborhood called "Brown Town" and demolished all the old houses and built more modern apartments not just for students but for some of the same residents under Section 8. No body in the development knew who was Section 8 and who was not. This is the type of development that needs to happen downtown. We have a nice area in Union Square but that is about it.
Another thing on LR that would benefit was putting in a law or medical school. The family income here the last time I check was $39k. This is below the national average and we are #10 in the poorest counties in America. Old money is not doing it folks! "Same old ways" are not getting the job done. The big jobs are going to be in Medical, Bio-Tech, Banking and Legal. This is the future of America. You are paid for what you KNOW and not what you do!
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