Big turnout for a meeting of folks opposed to the proposed shopping center project at Friendly and Hobbs.

Comments

[Billy Jones]

That would be another great site for a performing arts center, nearby the people who can afford to go see the shows.

[liv]

I think for every shopping center they build in Greensboro, they should be required to bulldoze another one, somewhere in the city limits, and turn it into a park. Balance the sprawl. It could be like carbon credits. Build another shopping center at Friendly, build a park on Randleman road. Could work.

[Billy Jones]

Good idea, Liv! Or, instead of a park, turn the old shopping center into a performing arts center or site to incubate business start-ups with rents based on bottom lines and not market rates.

[michele]

I like Liv's idea! But let's switch it around. Build a shopping center on Randleman and make Friendly Center a giant park. Oh, yeah.

[Billy Jones]

But Michele, Randalman Rd is full of empty shopping centers...

[Ron]

My take on this is that the zoning board will ok the re-zoning and city council will support this. Some city councilpersons are already hinting their support for the project. Residents of this neighborhood have been successful before at keeping commercial projects away but when you factor Trader Joe's into the equation, its a different ball game. There is just too much support for Trader Joe's opening in Greensboro and people from Thomasville and Burlington have been asking about the opening.

[Brian]

The zoning commission and City Council would do right if they rightly separated the desire for a Trader Joe's with the desire to rezone a residential neighborhood. Smart move by Regency, but if it works, then we might as well throw out the Comp. Plan. Everyone in favor of a Trader Joe's should actively request the City's economic development staff not sit on their hands and instead work proactively with the corporation to find a suitable location.

[Bill Goddard]

Just a thought: for every shopping center they build in Greensboro, it appears that there is a group to oppose it. Ditto the Fedex hub/airport expansion, the downtown ballpark, etc., etc.

Looks like the makings of a Banana Republic to me (Banana = Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything). Is this really a good idea in the long run?

Seems to me, if that really was such a terrible location for a shopping center the developer would build somewhere else. And, if those empty spaces people are pushing were so great, they wouldn't be empty...

Just a thought!

[Brian]

Bill - I wish there was a regionwide group that would focus on bad planning, but neighbors aren't TREBIC and so they work with what they have. It may seem inconsistent, but we are fortunate that there are neighborhoods that care about their pocket of the city. I'd rather live in a Banana Republic than in a city that just sits back and lets developers build anything they want absolutely anywhere they please.

There are many reasons why storefronts are vacant - with location only being one.

[bubba]

"The zoning commission and City Council would do right if they rightly separated the desire for a Trader Joe's with the desire to rezone a residential neighborhood."

Exactly.

There is no guarentee TJ will be part of any development that results from re-zoning.

This situation reminds me of the ludicrous attempt some 14-15 years ago to raise the sales tax rate to fund a major league category ball park in anticipation of luring the Montreal Expos here.

There was absolutely zero chance of the Expos relocating here. Fortunately, the voters rejected the issue at the polls.