"World of Beer" proposed for Social Security Building - public meeting Wednesday 4/17

[ron_newman]

I got this e-mail from Ward 6 Alderman Rebekah Gewirtz:

I wanted to update you that I have now had two meetings with the proponents of a place called "World of Beer" that wants to go into the Social Security Bldg space [240 Elm Street]. The lawyer for the new owner of the space, Mike Amato, is Rich DiGirolomo. I have told them that I am VERY concerned about this as a possible use since I don't want to see a drinking hole in Davis that allows you to bring in your own food and barely serves any food of their own. They have told me I have the wrong idea and it will be craft brews geared towards an "upscale" crowd. I am highly skeptical.

In response to my concerns, the proponents have now said they are going to partner with a restaurant to come into the space to share adjoining spaces. I'm not sure how that would work. They would like to have a community meeting ON SITE on Wed April 17th at 6:30pm. Can you please help me spread the word far and wide so we can get a large turnout of people who will ask key questions about what they are trying to do?

Comments

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

That's kind of a silly argument to make when there's a place less than a block from that location that lets you buy 32oz beers, which is also just one of six locations on that street that serves alcohol. Oh, and one of the most extensive liquor stores in town.

[ron_newman]

Which place is that?

[drew smith (from livejournal.com)]

I have many more serious questions about why Rebekah Gewirtz has power if what she's using it for is to harass businesses that want to come into Davis Square, than I do about World of Beer.

[somerfriend.livejournal.com]

In general she's against anyone who owns a business or wants to build something. I'm all for getting the best business in a space that we can, but she tends to go too far. That social security building needs some work and has been vacant for too long.

[redcolumbine.livejournal.com]

A "drinking hole?" (checks calendar and map) I don't even have the 19th century ON here - and what sort of "undesirables" could afford to drink in Davis Square? This is silly. We've got students who are going to get plastered anyway - why not take advantage of the fact that they can afford GOOD beer?

Looks like it's a live music venue, too. I wonder whether that's the real objection. My only qualm is that it's a franchise, so it's not clear how much of the take would stay in Somerville.

[ron_newman]

Edited to add link. I didn't realize this was a national franchise until other folks started commenting on my cross-post in Facebook. I do wonder what it brings to our area that Redbones doesn't already do better.

[axedmoon.livejournal.com]

I agree about the franchise part. I like more unique and local flavor to Davis Square - not another cookie cut business.

[maelithil.livejournal.com]

If I wanted to get plastered I can think of a dozen other places in the square where I could do so. I'm not sure the "drinking hole" objection is a particularly valid one and I'd rather see a bar in there than an (enormous) retail space that has now been empty for years.

[wintahill.livejournal.com]

What exactly is wrong with going out to a bar just to have a beer, instead of going to have food and a beer?

Most bars make the majority of their money through liquor sales. It is pretty ridiculous when cities try to force a bar to have a certain percentage of their revenue come from food sales. Cambridge did the same thing to Lord Hobo. A nice space with a large selection of different beers would fit in just fine in Davis Square. If the bar and its' clientele prove to be a nuisance there are mechanisms already in place to deal with that.

Rebekah Gerwirtz seems to be suffering from a strong case of NIMBYism.

[pakoo.livejournal.com]

^ I second that.

[pierceheart.livejournal.com]

Nothing new on your last line.

[gmg-1.livejournal.com]

So, dumb question maybe, but how come the Aldermen don't have official email addresses?

Personally, between this, the froyo thing, and the parking lot/hotel, I'm concerned about the anti free-market stance of city government and whether it is really acting in our best interest. There is very little business in Somerville to begin with, and we should be welcoming people who want to invest, not harassing them.

[davelew.livejournal.com]

Rebekah Gewirtz' gmail adress is on her blog: http://www.rebekahgewirtz.org/blog.php

[ron_newman]

All of the aldermen have e-mail addresses, which you can find on their individual pages linked from here.

[ron_newman]

In what way is selling the parking lot to a hotel developer "anti free-market" ?

[achinhibitor.livejournal.com]

So, dumb question maybe, but how come the Aldermen don't have official email addresses?

Partly because governments are trailing-edge adopters, whereas the aldermen have an incentive to be reachable however their constituents demand. And I suppose if you're paranoid, you don't have to worry about the city management spying on your e-mail if you're using Gmail.

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

I'll side with the crowd that has no interest in another big chain place in Davis. Don't know if there's anything to be done about it with prices how they are, but there ya go.

[ron_newman]

The one thing that tips me slightly in favor of the proposal is that it will be a live music venue. More live music venues are always a good thing if you're trying to promote the city as a place of art and culture.

[kgradow1.livejournal.com]

It is insanely difficult to find space if you are a small business in somerville, particularly if your space needs are at all idiosyncratic. This post doesn't seem to acknowledge that reality. While this might not be the iconic small business use- and yes, while it may wind up directly competing with redbones - there are few other places that are going to be able to afford $45 sqft for that location and that amount of space, and it's a fair bet that world of beer has space needs that are going to be hard to accommodate elsewhere. If the city is going to insist on it staying vacant, it should at least be making proactive steps to get other kinds of businesses in there rather than simply saying no to a proposal that would at least put the space to use.

It reminds me a lot of the mayor's blocking use of the star market space on broadway. They wanted to turn it into a dollar store and were midway through signing a lease when the city stepped in and said "not in my town.". Froyo place another example. City says no, then lets the property sit vacant for months. It's not fair to midsize retailers and it doesn't do anything to actually encourage of make it possible for small businesses that everyone says they want to be able to afford space in these areas. City says they want more diversified use, but doesn't quite acknowledge the economic realities that prevent such use from taking hold. The aldermen may not singlehandedly be able to lower rents, but they could certainly help steer initiatives that encouraged small business development and built in incentives for landlords to keep these leases affordable.

I would be excited about a proposal that helped world of beer find suitable space (or alternatively, seemed like it was addressing the reasons why more "desirable" business hasn't already moved into the Davis square space - namely pricing and affordability). Ths post seems to indicate a lack of awareness of the realities of running a small to midsize business in Somerville, namely, that there are very few commercial spaces available at any given time that meet the magical location + code + affordability formula - and just saying no without addressing that is tantamount to saying "actually, we just don't want your business in Somerville, why don't you try just outside the city lines?". Which would be too bad, given that if a craft brew store went in here it would surely be patronized.

[ron_newman]

That space is a former department store. The only way it could ever be made affordable to a small or startup business would be to subdivide it. I don't know if city zoning codes encourage that -- but perhaps they should.

[i-leonardo.livejournal.com]

living next to a buncha bars (magoun, not davis) has some distinct downsides: i like having occupied storefronts, but i could do without people deciding that my driveway is a good place to turn a trick, take a leak, or test the car doors to see if i'd remembered to lock them. and these are "upscale" joints, too. for the most part i view it as the cost of living in a city (who wants to be the asshole calling the cops every other night for some dumb thing like drunks peeing on the retaining wall ?) and i can understand the "there's already so many, what's one more" argument, but i can also imagine that neighbors might have reservations, and neighbors are the one re-electing the alderman.

[achinhibitor.livejournal.com]

Personally, I like the rule that I've been told applies in the two counties around Buffalo, NY: An establishment that serves alcohol must make at least half its money from selling food.

[emannths.livejournal.com]

I think Cambridge has a similar rule, though I don't know if it applies to all licenseholders--didn't it become an issue when Lord Hobo opened up?

My sense is that rules like this tend to contribute to high food prices--if you get two beers and a $10 burger there's a good chance that you're going to actually hurt the ratio under that rule. I wonder if you could accomplish something similar by simply requiring all patrons to be seated when served, or some other approach...?

[achinhibitor.livejournal.com]

geared towards an "upscale" crowd. I am highly skeptical.

Seems hard to imagine anything truly "upscale" surviving in Somerville. It's got one of the lowest per capita incomes of the Boston burbs, though I suppose it's moved up since I last saw the figures. People are gonna go there to drink...

[emannths.livejournal.com]

Don't tell Journeyman, Bergamot, Backbar, Casa B, etc. And those places aren't even near the T.

[rethcir.livejournal.com]

Where are complaints about a new "drinking hole" for the new Painted Burro bar? How bout for the Dave's Fresh Pasta bar? Foundry? Five Hourse? I fail to see how this place would be any different than those other than the expensive food served at those places.

I don't think Davis is in any danger of turning into Allston/Brighton any time soon.

[ron_newman]

Other than the food (which I do think matters some), the big difference is that those are all local places, not national chains.

[el-cubano-15.livejournal.com]

Seems like Meadhall, but w/ live music. Another reason to walk over to Davis...

[bluesauce.livejournal.com]

Local good, national bad! Always, all the time. Nosiree, we can't be having these damn chains coming in and forcing their vile craft brews down our unsuspecting throats. Better stick to respectable local smoking rooms like the Joshua Tree, Sligo, and Diva.

[serious-noir.livejournal.com]

Guess you never had the opportunity to experience Harvard Sq. before it got turned into a mall of franchises.

[pbockelman.livejournal.com]

NOTE: The meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. - not 6:30...