Rents Go Up, Good Businesses Move, Understandable But Still I Don’t Understand

[trymahjong]

So Chris Shepherd is moving, Georgia James, Hay Merchant his others from their Current locations. Higher rent was problem a big factor. 
it’s so puzzling…….

Businesses that barely made it during pandemic can’t afford higher rent. Land owners, who probably felt a huge blow from the pandemic, want to make back their money.

But still, losing good businesses in your neighborhood is awful.

not sure there is an answer but hard to watch this process.

[Montrose1100]

1 hour ago, trymahjong said:

So Chris Shepherd is moving, Georgia James, Hay Merchant his others from their Current locations. Higher rent was problem a big factor. 
it’s so puzzling…….

Businesses that barely made it during pandemic can’t afford higher rent. Land owners, who probably felt a huge blow from the pandemic, want to make back their money.

But still, losing good businesses in your neighborhood is awful.

not sure there is an answer but hard to watch this process.

The Culture Map article stated the space Hay Merchant was in was old, and they needed to replace the A/C. Also, construction on Waugh and the Skanska lot catty corner were major factors. I can't imagine a modern space in a luxury development is cheaper than the location they were at? Or if the owners want to sell the land and push out the renters? 

Do you have information on rent prices at their current location vs the new?

[trymahjong]

No other info— I was talking to staff during Steak Night yesterday.

The email from hospitality group said developers at Dunlevy and Dallas provided opportunity to build Georgia a james from ground up.What exactly does that mean? The Mon5rose Collective is just one block away………..is there no opportunity there to replace Hay Merchant?

[sapo2367]

1 hour ago, trymahjong said:

No other info— I was talking to staff during Steak Night yesterday.

The email from hospitality group said developers at Dunlevy and Dallas provided opportunity to build Georgia a james from ground up.What exactly does that mean? The Mon5rose Collective is just one block away………..is there no opportunity there to replace Hay Merchant?

I'm assuming that they would be able to build out the space to meet whatever sort of layout/design they would like (size/equipment in kitchen, layout of dining, overall style etc). Its a lot cheaper to build walls etc from scratch than to tear down the existing structure and replace.

I have no insider info, but I could see the folks at the new development giving them a pretty sweet deal as well (on rent or the cost of building out a new space) to be able to say 'hey we have a James Beard Award winning chef'.

[wilcal]

3 hours ago, Montrose1100 said:

The Culture Map article stated the space Hay Merchant was in was old, and they needed to replace the A/C. Also, construction on Waugh and the Skanska lot catty corner were major factors. I can't imagine a modern space in a luxury development is cheaper than the location they were at? Or if the owners want to sell the land and push out the renters? 

Do you have information on rent prices at their current location vs the new?

A/C and building expenses are understandable. They said pre-pandemic that they weren't going to renew at One Fifth because of all of the work it needed. I'll get to this a bit in a reply below. Construction on Waugh is laughable. One lane closure for 2 months while they rehab the sidewalk and bike lane?

As far as Skanska, I mean, there aren't a lot of traffic alternatives and I guess that's fine if he's worried. Maybe he has seen what they've planned.

1 hour ago, trymahjong said:

No other info— I was talking to staff during Steak Night yesterday.

The email from hospitality group said developers at Dunlevy and Dallas provided opportunity to build Georgia a james from ground up.What exactly does that mean? The Mon5rose Collective is just one block away………..is there no opportunity there to replace Hay Merchant?

I'm sure there is, but every development is different. Dunlavy developers may be offering significant cash.

3 minutes ago, sapo2367 said:

I'm assuming that they would be able to build out the space to meet whatever sort of layout/design they would like (size/equipment in kitchen, layout of dining, overall style etc). Its a lot cheaper to build walls etc from scratch than to tear down the existing structure and replace.

I have no insider info, but I could see the folks at the new development giving them a pretty sweet deal as well (on rent or the cost of building out a new space) to be able to say 'hey we have a James Beard Award winning chef'.

You are basically right on. I had a friend that was interested in opening a high-end coffee shop at a luxury-ish development and because that is what the developers wanted as part of their project, they were willing to contribute $75kish IIRC towards build-out of the space. He ended up not doing it, but in an industry like restaurants, where they are absolutely pummeled by COVID and are certainly not cash rich right now, I can totally understand Shepherd choosing to not drop the cash to renovate an old space and instead do something fresh that keeps more cash in his pocket right now and in exchange pay higher rent going into the future. 

 

[dbigtex56]

On 9/1/2021 at 7:47 AM, trymahjong said:

not sure there is an answer but hard to watch this process.

To paraphrase Yogi Berra, "No one opens restaurants there anymore. It's too much in demand."