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NEWS
Pullman working as catalyst
HUNTINGTON -- Bill Moore and Kim Sarka Lake have downtown businesses trying to fill entirely separate niches.
Moore's aim is to make sure there's quality clothing for men and women at the 100-year-old Wright's Clothiers, and with Lake wants to offer a variety of fun and quirky gifts for women at her gift shop Mug and Pia, which opened just two years ago, as well as fun and helpful culinary supplies at the new Simply Whisk, which opened two days ago.
Their experience as business people varies greatly and their products are totally different, but they have one key characteristic in common: They believe in the downtown. And it's a trait that seems to be a bit contagious since the opening of Pullman Square, which is nearing its sixth anniversary in Huntington this fall.
The entertainment complex, run by Metropolitan Partners of Columbus, was opened with the vision of it becoming not only a center of leisure activity, but a catalyst for small business development downtown.
It started in 2004 with a movie theater, bookstore and coffee shop.
Today, it's home to 17 retail, restaurant and entertainment businesses. It also marked the start of a renaissance of sorts for downtown Huntington. While many empty storefronts remain in the downtown area, a string of new businesses have opened in the past four years.
Moore renovated and reopened Wright's under his ownership in the spring, after the previous owners had closed it about six months prior.
"I wouldn't have started back up if I didn't have all the confidence in the world about the downtown," said Moore, a longtime manager of the store at the corner of 4th Avenue and 10th Street. "It got off to a far better start than I projected. I feel blessed. We'll go into the Christmas season and take it one day at a time."
Sarka also takes that cautious approach to business success downtown. Mug and Pia, which stands for Most Unique Gifts and Paper Items Anywhere and is on 3rd Avenue, and the new Simply Whisk is at 901 4th Ave.
She said Huntington deserves to have some of the same items that can be found in larger cities.
"We deserve to have fun, quirky stuff downtown," she said. "There is so much out there, and I feel we deserve the opportunity to showcase it. Whether or not it will fly, time will tell."
She urged local residents to help out.
"I want to be excited and I want people to know that all the downtown businesses need the support of everybody (to continue to offer the unique merchandise they have). It's OK to travel, but if you're going to buy it, why not buy it locally. You don't have to buy something every time you walk in our stores. ... Word of mouth is priceless. Tell a friend, 'I saw this here,' or, 'You can get this there.'"
An informal survey of downtown storefronts indicated a solid mix of businesses in the 800 and 900 blocks of 3rd and 4th avenues, and the 300 block of 8th and 9th streets. There are roughly 25 retailers and roughly 24 food and drink establishments open now or soon to be open. Along with those, there are about 20 businesses with a storefront that provide a service or a form of entertainment, and about 20 empty storefronts.
"There's no question that Pullman Square had a huge impact on downtown," said Mark Bugher, president and CEO of the Huntington Regional Chamber of Commerce. "...Before Pullman Square was built, this downtown was definitely dying. We certainly have a lot of work ahead of us downtown, but I think it would be hard to find somebody who hasn't said this isn't turning around and getting better."
Pullman was a roughly $60 million project that was a public-private partnership to fill the long-empty Superblock, a nine-acre parcel on 3rd Avenue that was purchased in 1971 with hopes of urban renewal. Chi Chi's and the Holiday Inn were the only businesses to locate there, and it wasn't until the 1990s. Chi Chi's was closed and demolished in 2003 as Pullman Square construction got under way. Holiday Inn remains just to the square's west.
Ownership of Pullman Square is actually shared by Metropolitan Partners and the Tri-State Transit Authority (TTA), which was instrumental in rounding up federal dollars for the project and its parking garages. TTA owns the two parking garages there, along with the movie theater, streets, sidewalks and public commons areas.
Before the complex opened in November 2004, both parties agreed that TTA would lease its portion to Metropolitan Partners, which in turn leases space to business owners at Pullman. Some recent additions include The Pottery Place and Thai House, both of which opened this summer. The Funny Bone Comedy Club is closed temporarily but is expected to open under new ownership in the fall.
To gear up recruitment of retailers throughout downtown, Huntington Area Development Council has hired a consulting firm that specializes in retail.
The company, Buxton, analyzes data for the area and produces an in-depth report, and that information can be used to recruit retailers that match the demographics. The result is a list of good possibilities.
"This will help us target retailers who are going to be a good fit for the market," said HADCO President Marc Sprouse. "That's not to say we can get them all here, but we'll be honing in on that."
The Ashland Alliance hired the company a couple years back. At least two new businesses in town were on the list provided by Buxton -- Panera Bread and T.J. Maxx. And there have been others looking at the area because of it, said Bob Hammond, director of business development for the Alliance.
"When you start bringing them in, you feel like it's worth your investment," he said.
Two goals in Huntington are to fill the handful of empty spaces remaining at Pullman Square and to fill those speckled throughout the downtown. It also could recruit some restaurants and another hotel for KineticPark.
"This company also has a niche in that they do a lot of work with college and university towns, and we thought that also was a good fit," Sprouse said. "Another question was, 'Are there areas close to the university campus that would make a good spot,' or 'What could we reasonably try to attract to the area to enhance retail offerings for the Marshall University student population.' "
When all is said and done, it will be HADCO's job to go out and get the companies, "but this is a start, and this company has a good reputation nationwide and their studies carry a lot of weight with the retailers," Sprouse said.
Having local entrepreneurs like Moore, Lake and the host of others downtown who have taken risks and done well helps a great deal, Sprouse said.
"That's always a big plus when they see other retailers," Sprouse said. "They like to congregate.
"...I think we have things that are positive, and I hope we can take the results of this study and it will result in action," Sprouse added. "I am encouraged by what's happened so far and by the fact that we have local entrepreneurs willing to open new stores.
"Success always breeds success, and it will weigh in to any retailers, whether national or not. They're going to look at this market and see if it's growing or shrinking, and local businesses opening is a plus."
