We know that most suburban residents don't buy much in Youngstown.
The real problem is that most city residents don't buy much within Youngstown either.
If a Lowe's/Home Depot, a good steak house, a Steak 'n' Shake, and a JCPenney's opened in Youngstown, I'd never have to leave the city.
I've bought hats from Silvers' downtown, but haven't looked closely at their other clothes--at a glance they seem expensive, and not my style.
I realize there are various hardware stores in Youngstown, but I typically don't go to Lowe's for just hardware. I like their collection of light fixtures among other non-hardware related stuff.
I keep thinking I'd like to try the Roadhouse restaurant on South Ave. While I'm not afraid to drive through the area, I am a little concerned about spending time in the area.
Maybe we should use this post to compile a list of businesses in Youngstown.
I wish Youngstown would do something similar to what Cleveland helped plan and get moving along. They turned one of the old abandoned steel mills, into a strip mall. It was a bad area of town, and with the added focus is now a true gem with a lot of people coming in to use it. The neighborhood surrounding the are has changed in the last 2 years in response to this. It's also a block from the house used in The Christmas Story. The people really wanted change, and got it done.
http://www.steelyardcommons.com/main.asp (http://www.steelyardcommons.com/main.asp)
We seem to forget that Union Square Plaza is not only thriving but is full of stores, and the Belmont Avenue strip has all sorts of businesses and places to dine, and with WalMart going into the Liberty Plaza that is almost certain to lure even more businesses to that area.
Pat Ungaro has been doing a bang up job promoting Liberty, and with it's growth I can envision the day when we don't need to set foot in Boardman. Lets all show him just how much we appreciate his efforts by shopping and dining there, rather than in Boardman.
The big point I was making, is that the Cleveland Steelyard Commons, is in the center of the city. The took a degraded crappy area of the city, and turned it into a gem. People shop there from all areas around Cleveland. The city and the developers, took the effort to make them feel safe and want to come shop there.
Surrounding communities of Youngstown will always be trying to draw everyone there. Why doesn't the City of Youngstown, actually do something to draw more people back into the city center? There is plenty of abandoned space downtown.
I do agree that it would be wonderful if we could bring in more businesses into the city but with so many things going against us, this will not happen, and we can thank our leaders, including the Mayor and City Council. Little successes here and there won't cut it.
There must be a sustained drive that will not tolerate excuses. It shouldn't take private citizens to do what we are all paying the city to do.
Business men will not take promises before they invest their money in opening up a business in Youngstown until they are convinced that public safety is assured.
Quote from: Towntalk on June 07, 2007, 10:18:19 AM
Business men will not take promises before they invest their money in opening up a business in Youngstown until they are convinced that public safety is assured.
Exactly. Cleveland did that part the right way. They also made a true effort to make it happen. They didn't just try to make it look like they were doing something, they actually did it.