Thank you Bill McClellan
Mar 29, 2008 general food, restaurants
Spot on McClellan column discussing Ballpark Village and how “the tax breaks are going to go to the out-of-town developer who is working with the out-of-town owners of the Cardinals to give large chain restaurants an advantage over locally owned restaurants.”
No, Bill, it is not a good thing.
From the mountains of Panama and Ethiopia, to the urban-jungles of Portland and Chicago, journalist Michaele Weissman takes us behind the scenes for a look at the world of third-wave specialty coffee. How did we get to Starbucks, and where we go from here?
March 29th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Thanks for point that out. There’s tons of data that refutes the economic impact that a new stadium has, and this is just one more data point in its favor. One barren, empty hole of a data point.
March 29th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
What I find most confusing about downtown’s development is actually the lack of chains despite the fact that I much prefer to go to local establishments. Major corporations pay analysts lots of dollars to uncover markets that are economically viable. The unwillingness that these companies have to move downtown makes me wonder what they know that I don’t. Indianapolis is the perfect counter-example… rife with chains, including one that I have really enjoyed (Oceanaire), and the downtown bustles. I wonder if our downtown will require known quantities to become a focal point for the entire metro.
March 31st, 2008 at 6:53 am
Jeff – I don’t see a lack of chains downtown, and I don’t think adding more would draw more people from the ‘burbs. Why drive down and pay for parking to go to Hooters when you can go to one closer to your home and park for free?! As you point out, “Major corporations pay analysts lots of dollars to uncover markets that are economically viable.” Might our problem be that we simply aren’t “economically viable” when the big boys run the numbers?
March 31st, 2008 at 9:17 am
Jimmy,
That was my point — I am speculating that the numbers just don’t work. I guess that I am saying that I will feel better about the downtown development when I see major corps taking the “risk.”
April 8th, 2008 at 8:25 am
[...] to go to Hooters when you can go to one closer to your home and park for free?!” — comment by Jeff at STLbites.com, reacting to Bill McClellan’s column about the Centene [...]