ONCE-THRIVING DISTRICT IS LOSING BUSINESSES …
There’s been no shortage of sad news recently regarding the Five Points region of downtown Columbia, S.C. Three restaurants in this once-thriving shopping district have recently closed: El Burrito (one of our founding editor’s favorites), Harper’s and Rise Gourmet Goods and Bakeshop.
A little over two years ago another Five Points mainstay – Garibaldi’s – closed its doors.
Harper’s stated that they are not generating the necessary revenue and that the dining environment in Columbia has changed in recent years.
Is that it? Or has Five Points lost its focus?
For decades, Five Points was the entertainment district in Columbia. It boasted a good mix of professionals of all ages as well as students from the University of South Carolina. It was also safe. In fact while our founding editor was enjoying his time at USC, he never felt unsafe moving around Five Points – and you never heard gunfire.
Things have obviously changed …
What happened?
There seems to be plenty of blame to go around. Some merchants blame the Five Points Association for kowtowing too much to the district’s bars and nightclubs – or of promoting festivals at the expense of the overall community (or village as they like to call it in their promotional literature). The association is also accused of not being aggressive enough in its dealings with the city.
Like many groups that depend on taxpayer money from the City of Columbia, the association is not very vocal in its criticism of city council or the mayor’s office. Consequently, it is often ambivalent when there is a tough issue to address like zoning reform or the need for increased police protection. For the association, everything seems to come down to protecting its funding from the city.
Perhaps if this group were privately funded by member businesses, it might more aggressively lobby for the best interests of those businesses?
Others blame city leaders for the problems. When crime first became an issue in Five Points, the city failed to take meaningful action until things had gotten out of hand. Remember the news stories of gunfire, gangs of young people roaming the area looking for victims, etc.?
These issues should have been dealt with quickly and decisively. Instead city leaders seemed to bury their heads in the sand.
[timed-content-server show=”2017-Apr-24 00:00:00 -0000″ hide=”2017-May-16 19:00:00 -0000″]Sponsored Content
[/timed-content-server]
Columbia’s zoning and enforcement also seems to be deserving of some blame. Are there too many bars that bend the rules to serve underage patrons bunched too closely together. According to our sources, a club which was recently in the media for putting a young man in a chokehold and then throwing him to the ground has more than fifteen violations for underage drinking.
Why is it still open?
Bar and restaurant owners say the blame lies with the police for misappropriating law enforcement resources.
“The are trying to entrap people selling beer to a 20-year-old instead of making sure the area is safe,” one local bar owner told us.
Others blame Five Points property owners for note keeping their buildings in good repair – or being willing to sell them at market rates.
“Many owners having been getting fat and happy on big rent checks for substandard buildings for years,” one concerned citizen told us.
Where have Five Points paying customers gone? To the Vista across town, to the revitalized Main Street Corridor and even up the road on Devine Street. In fact there are several bars and restaurants located just outside of Five Points that are seeing an uptick in business including The Publick House, Devine Foods, Burger 77, Nightcaps, Henry’s, Cantina 76, Za’s and others.
Five Points has a lot going for it. It is ideally located next to the University and to several of Columbia’s most upscale in-town neighborhoods. And while parking in Five Points can be a challenge at certain times, that can be said of parking in Columbia in general.
Five Points needs to concentrate on brining patrons back to the area – especially at night.
Having grown up in the area, this website is pulling for the district to make a comeback. But there is lots of work to do, first and foremost making it safe again.
Banner via iStock