[identity profile] mdisles.livejournal.com posting in [community profile] davis_square
Hello.

Just an FYI about a local business closing, in case it was previously unreported here. The Consignment Galleries, on Highland, will be closing in February. They've been there since '03, and have been in business in the area since '89 (http://www.theconsignmentgalleries.com/). The owners/operators are really nice people and were recently told by their new landlord that their lease will not be renewed. Their building stretches between Highland and the bike path, and houses 8 other businesses including a dry cleaner. I spoke with the owners the other day and they said that the new owner is likely planning on eventually taking down the building and constructing anew, after the other current leases expire. In the meanwhile, short term leases will be granted in the spaces of current businesses, once their longer-term leases expire.

I bring this to the attention of DSLJ for a few of reasons:

1. If you're looking to do some holiday shopping, The Consignment Galleries is always a great spot to look for gifts, and the owners and consigners could use the income.
2. When long-time local businesses close, I think it's always of note.
3. The owners have no idea about whether they'll be able to relocate, and, being of somewhat advanced ages, are probably concerned about employment prospects and retirement security. Therefore, I've thought the DSLJ community might have ideas for them about potential storefronts where they could relocate.
4. I imagine that some users of DSLJ (I'm new) are members of the press or blogging communities. If so, I thought that the closing might warrant a piece in a local publication, given the uniqueness of the store, the charm of its owners, and the development narrative that their forced closing fits into, vis a vis Davis Square's trajectory in the past decade or more.
5. As a consignment gallery, the store offers a curated space where locals (and non-locals) can sell their goods. It's like a craigslist in the flesh, where you can inspect and hold items before buying them. I suspect that quite a few Davis Square residents or denizens earn money on the side from selling wares at the galleries. So it will be unfortunate when the galleries close, as that income will potentially be lost for those residents.

Thanks for your attention. I should note that I have no connection to the Consignment Galleries, other than as an occasional customer. I'm always impressed with the solicitude of the owners, and with the variety and uniqueness of the items they and their consignees sell.

Cheers, M

Date: 2015-12-09 09:59 pm (UTC)
smammy: (Default)
From: [personal profile] smammy
"craigslist in the flesh" sounds terrifying. ;-)

Date: 2015-12-09 11:10 pm (UTC)
smammy: (Default)
From: [personal profile] smammy
Not at all!

Date: 2015-12-10 02:59 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] prunesnprisms.livejournal.com
I always figured that place was an antique shop. Interesting to know what it really is.

Date: 2015-12-10 06:03 am (UTC)
From: [personal profile] ron_newman
Isn't that laundromat pretty essential to the neighborhood? If it is torn down or closes, where will people go?

Date: 2015-12-10 09:22 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] serious-noir.livejournal.com
This is cool Davis Square, we don't need no laundromats. . . or grocery stores.

More burritos! froyo! sushi!

Date: 2015-12-10 05:23 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tartarylamb.livejournal.com
I've also bought things occasionally at the consignment shop and like to just stop in to browse, too.

The florist building a bit further up Highland is still unused; I wonder if the shop could move there -- unless there's a plan in the works for that building too...

I guess Davis Square will be spreading. I hope Q's Nuts isn't imperiled next!

yard Clean Up Needed

Date: 2015-12-10 09:51 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dogzzarecool.livejournal.com
anybody interested in a job raking the leaves in my back yard...name your price (within reason of course).

Date: 2015-12-11 08:25 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] somerfriend.livejournal.com
Sad for anyone when doors close (and hopefully another will open, literally or figuratively), but villainizing the owner of the property is not appropriate. There are risks/rewards to owning versus renting in both a commercial and residential sense and so long as leases are being honored, the landlord is behaving within his/her rights.

Date: 2015-12-13 01:33 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] somerfriend.livejournal.com
Kind of hard to paint the picture of the store owners being victims without their being a villain at the same time.

If you support the property owner's rights to do with the property what he/she wants when the leases are up, feel free to provide a clarification expressly affirming that and reconcile that to your post. Perhaps my reflexes are inaccurate, it is just a common narrative that is out their that I feel must be countered.

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