Michael Gill

Thanks, for finding the right place, Ken!

I've no idea where to put this. Old buildings are coming down at a pretty good clip in Lakewood. Fast food and drugstores replacing diverse business--a dry cleaners and an empty church in one case, a theater, a deli, a sign shop in another, and in third, a hair salon, a chiropractor, a guitar studio. One of the buildings had second floor apartments, which were occupied. But fast food and drugstores pay a premium to deal in this market. That's what the density of population and the level of income in Lakewood seem to have attracted. There's money to be made here, sure. On fast food and prescription drugs. It's changing the landscape, and the city's economy, too. http://gyroscopethattakesyouplaces.wordpress.com/2012/05/03/changing-the-landscape/

Indeed, there was a big house where Edwards Park is now, and another one where the YMCA is now, and another where Johnny Malloy's is now. "The worst thing that ever happened," a woman who lived on Cordova once told me, "was when they tore down that house and put up the Beef Corral." Indeed, one of the many studies that has looked at the city's long commercial corridors has recommended the long term development of commercial nodes along the street, with new housing in between. More density, more customers, of course. The other bright side of this is that if the new housing be decent apartments or townhomes, it means less fast food and drugstore chains. But when McDonalds is knocking down mixed use theater buildings, and when other vernacular, streetcar era buildings are being demolished by neglect; when Cozumel / Ihop stands where mixed use once stood, and when Auto Zone stands in the place of Miller's, I'm not ready to concede that the loss of character was mostly about the lost housing. You probably have a much deeper knowledge of what used to be along Detroit than I do. How much housing was there?

Right? I'll be surprised, too, if what comes next has anything like the class that modest building has. I've got to say, it's heartening to read the replies here. The idea that other people could care about that building--a modest building, significant only as a part of the streetcar-era whole--is really refreshing from a lot of what I hear around here. Some eople in Lakewood, it seems, are desperate for any developer to spend any money here. Of course there are plenty who respond when something like the Detroit Theater is threatened. But this building was common always, and now it's so far decayed that no one--not even me--is arguing that it should be preserved. But I WOULD like to see something of similar character in its place. And I think that would be good for the city, too. On the bright side, the architectural review board has done well lately getting developers to step up. At least sometimes they have. The Social Security bldg is an atrocity. The YMCA is built to the sidewalk, and has a bust stop out front, but there is no front door. SO of course there have been gross failures. But then the IHOP/Cozumel is on the sidewalk, and has big front windows, and a side entrance. At least it doesn't totally turn its back on the street, like the YMCA. And the CVS ... even if it does occupy the entire block ... does at least have big windows, and some masonry details, and is built to the sidewalk. So we'll see what they come up with.

True, of course, and my first comment to the planning director was to suggest that the bank not have a drive through. Of course he points out that it's not likely that a bank would come without a drive through. And of course I assume "ample" parking. That'll be better than the Taco Bell franchise, which was the prior possibility. At least a bank won't have the 2 a.m. rush when the bars let out. I guess the ideal thing would be mixed use, or just condos like Rockport Square, or rosewood place. The YMCA once had a vague proposal about day care at that location. I'd support any of that.

Hi, Mayday. Thanks for the reply. Seems like there was a period when the city was taking pretty much whatever new construction it could get, which led to some of the convenience stores with parking lots out front, and the bits of trademark architecture (like Burger King, McDonalds, etc.) Either that or that was an era when the city believed its economic future lay in looking more like North Olmsted. Fortunately, Madison's character is much more intact than that of Detroit Ave. But on the other hand, Madison doesn't seem to have as much business. Almost as much as the architecture, I'm concerned about what the type of investment we've seen does for the commercial real estate market. I'm not in the field, so there are certainly plenty of people here who know better than I. But if the owner of an old theater can sell for a rumored 700K to a McDonalds that wants to operate on Main Street, then other property owners believe their land is worth that much money, too. And there are very few businesses outside the big fast food chains and drugstore chains that have that kind of money. I don't know what CVS paid for the old church at Arthur and the little commercial buildings that complete that block, but I've heard pretty big numbers. So now the guy who owns the corner of my street probably believes he ought to be able to make that kind of money too. And the only place you can find that kind of money for Detroit Ave in Lakewood these days is from fast food and drugstores. And maybe banks. If the rumor that he's talking to a bank for the corner of my street, I'm happy for him. And I hope he makes a whole bunch of money on the deal.

I've lived three doors north of Detroit Ave., Lakewood's main commercial corridor, for 13 years. For all that time I've watched this building get ignored. Now it's lost all its tenants and is awaiting demolition. The city will allow demolition without a replacement plan because the building has become a hazard. Soon there's going to be another big, vacant swath of Detroit available for proposals. As if the demolition by neglect weren't enough (and the subsequent loss of a chiropractor, hair salon and guitar studio that were the former tenants) we're now faced with the crapshoot of what comes next. And the only businesses that seem to have money for new construction on sites like this these days are drug store chains and fast food. I'm rooting for condos and first floor retail. Or maybe the rumor of a bank will come true. http://gyroscopethattakesyouplaces.wordpress.com/2012/03/22/detroit-avenue-demolition-derby/