October 4, 2007 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Visions tackles questions of Avenue health
by Jennifer Katz

Can a neighborhood divided into two distinct segments, the residential and business communities, bridge the political divide and create a healthy sustainable plan for the future?

That was the question at the heart of a discussion of the viability of Chestnut Hill as a shopping district Sept. 26 sponsored by the Chestnut Hill Historical Society and the Chestnut Hill Business Improvement District — the first in a new “Visions” series of panel discussions focusing on the future of Chestnut Hill.

The discussion was led by panelist Jim Hartling of Urban Partners, who gave an overview of the retail and market analysis that was conducted in 2005 for the business association.

“Most places would love to be Chestnut Hill,” said Hartling, who has worked with many other communities to improve their business corridors. “Other communities point to Chestnut Hill as a place they would like to be like.”

And yet there were serious concerns expressed by both business and community leaders about the health of the Avenue. Ellen Grady, president of the historical society, pressed for more leadership in recruiting retailers.

“Why can’t we be proactive,” Grady said. “We control our own destiny. Can’t we put together a team and approach Whole Foods or Stephen Starr?”

According to Urban Partners’ analysis, critics of the Avenue share Grady’s frustration. Surveying what people dislike about the Avenue, the number one complaint was the vacant stores, followed by parking and the lack of variety among the retail options. Crime and traffic rounded out the top five.

Patricia Cove, a local interior designer and CHCA Aesthetics Committee chair who moderated the discussion, pressed the issue with panel member Bob Previdi, executive director of the business association.

“The number one problem is the empty stores,” she said. “I don’t understand why we can’t get a professional. OK, it’s too expensive, but a group of very smart people can’t get together and recruit businesses?”

Joanne Dhody, a member of the community association, who has worked on recruiting desirable retailers with the business association, blamed community opposition.

“People oppose everything because they don’t understand,” Dhody said. “We need to educate the community.”

Another member of the panel, CHCA Community Manager Martha Sharkey, said in the four months since coming to Chestnut Hill she also has noticed the gap between the community and the businesses.

“The main thing I’ve noticed is this discrepancy between the perception of things versus the reality,” she said.

Both Sharkey and Hartling alluded to the widely held feeling that the CHCA’s approval process was cumbersome and off-putting to many would-be Avenue business owners. Hartling acknowledged that it was an obstacle when looking at how the Avenue can make room for progress.

“There is a perception that it is difficult to get things changed,” he said.

Hartling said, business leaders need to focus on creating a new small anchor somewhere on the Avenue and that means finding both a location and a property owner that are accommodating.

“You need to find space to accommodate larger stores,” he said. “If you look at things that have boosted the economy here — Border’s, Staples, the farmers’ market — changes had to be made.”

Hartling said that recruiting desirable businesses was a first step, but there needed to be a place to put them.

”It’s a beginning, but the property owners need to be engaged in the process,” he said. “And then the community needs to be on board.”

Another panelist, Michael Dobeck of Acadia Realty Trust, the company that purchased both the Talbot’s strip and the Border’s site in June 2006, urged Chestnut Hill to find a balance.

“It’s not a science, it’s an art,” he said. “One negative I see is that there can be too many chefs in the kitchen.”

Hartling said the market analysis showed that for the immediate future those who wished to help the Avenue needed to do two things.

Referring to development objectives, he said one was “to preserve what’s here, to keep the Avenue what it is.” The other, he said, is “to mitigate perceptions of slippage.”

With that idea in hand, Hartling said, there is a lot of business to be had from residents within a couple of miles from 19118. Citing 2000 census data, Hartling estimated that with 69,993 residents in Mt. Airy, Springfield and Whitemarsh with a median income in the mid-$40,000, there was a potential market of about $1.6 billion worth of revenue for Avenue businesses.

“You need to reinvigorate customer street traffic,” Hartling said. “Proactively recruit desired retailers and market into the nearby customer base.”

The next Visions panel discussion, which will focus on transportation and parking, will be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the Chestnut Hill Library.

Contact Jennifer Katz at jenn@chestnuthilllocal.com or by phone at 215-248-8804.