Work going on at Lafayette Towers Center Mall

[stasu1213]

I was walking to Lafayette Foods and had noticed the work is being done at the former Paris Cafe site and the spot where Lafayette/Orleans nightclub used to be. Both storefronts interior had been gutted out. Does anyone know what is happenning? Lance had informed me a week ago that there are talks of opening a Laundry Mat and a restaurant in the mall.

[michigansheik]

i also heard a laundry mat was going in.
not sure about a new restaurant but hopefully it will be mexican food...could use some of that outside of SW.
i believe a dollar general going in there too.

[stasu1213]

i also heard a laundry mat was going in.
not sure about a new restaurant but hopefully it will be mexican food...could use some of that outside of SW.
i believe a dollar general going in there too.

I had heard from the seurity guard of the strip mall that a Dollar General was going in the Metro PC;s spot as well as the former nightclub spot. Metro P C will move into the former Paris Cafe spot[[ a bad move) and the laundry mat will be next to Lafayette Foods. There is no word about a coffee shop opening in the mall. I had thought that the Paris Cafe's spot would had been good for another coffee shop or a bakery/coffee shop for it sat at the corner of the mall. I had asked the security guard how would they keep trouble makers from haning out in the laundry mat. His response was "more security"

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

Is a "laundry mat" some type of rug in a laundry? Or a new term for a laundromat?

[stasu1213]

Is a "laundry mat" some type of rug in a laundry? Or a new term for a laundromat?

sorry for the mispelling

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

sorry for the mispelling

I'm just in a bitchy mood today :-)

[stasu1213]

I'm just in a bitchy mood today :-)

Take it out on the person or people that are causing you to be in a bitchy mood. Incorrect spelling or usage of words may be used on this site but hell, this is not English Studies. We develope a sense of "getting the other blogger's drift"

[canuck]

I wonder if there is such a thing as a leprechaundrymat? Never mind...

[Hypestyles]

..I remember when there was a chinese food place there.. was it owned by the same guys who run Lucky Dragon on Jefferson?

[Bagley]

Oy, not a dollar store and a laundromat. I'm really committed to shopping at Lafayette Foods but I'm not sure that either of these offerings add value for folks with choices. They need to be managed properly or they will attract the sort of littering/loitering crowd one sees half a mile east of Lafayette Park.

[stasu1213]

I don't know if the owner of the strip mall had selected these types of businesses without asking the people who live in the apartments, townhomes, and co-ops what would be needed in the community or is it hard to draw businesses such as a bakery, cleaners,pharmacy etc. Things that are needed in the community that will draw out the best of shoppers and not the worst. I didn't think that a Simply Fashion was a good fit in the community. I would rather see a Linen n Things or something like it operating in that location.

[English]

Oy, not a dollar store and a laundromat. I'm really committed to shopping at Lafayette Foods but I'm not sure that either of these offerings add value for folks with choices. They need to be managed properly or they will attract the sort of littering/loitering crowd one sees half a mile east of Lafayette Park.

I feel the same way. Other than Tim Horton's, where's the East Riverfront's coffee shop? Paris Cafe is badly missed.

[Huggybear]

It's kind of hard to separate Lafayette Market from the shopping center, since they are owned and run by the same people.

If my choice were between [[a) having a quiet, empty strip mall but driving two miles to get groceries and [[b) having a supermarket nearby and wading through the MLK projects' riff-raff, I'd take [[a) every day of the week. Chene and Lafayette is a mess of people and paper and glass pretty much 24/7. Anything that brings that situation closer to one of Detroit's highest-income neighborhoods is a Bad Idea.

Who exactly would a laundromat serve in Lafayette Park? Every high-rise has its own laundry facility, and every townhouse has its own washer and dryer. The same is true for pretty much all of Elmwood. So a laundromat would either draw from the projects or some other super-low-rent place. Or it will fail.

A dollar store is not as offensive as you may think; the Dollar Tree at Joseph Campau is a decent place to buy balloons and party decorations. But the East Jefferson Corridor is already well served with dollar stores. And despite the fact that many middle-class people shop at them, it's not retail that is appropriate to the site.

Before the renovation, this strip mall had:

1. Paris Cafe
2. Video store [[bank building)
3. Sala Thai
4. Insurance office
5. Frame shop
6. Podiatrist
7. Empty corner building [[later Intus)
8. Pharmacy
9. Supermarket

These were things that the medium-to-high income people in Lafayette Park could support. But a longer-than-expected renovation process torpedoed a number of these businesses, leaving after the renovation:

1. Paris Cafe [[now closed)
2. Video store/drycleaner/cell phone place [[now closed)
3. Chinese restaurant [[now closed)
4. Cottage Inn [[moved)
5. Insurance office [["no cash accepted")
6. Intus nightclub/abbatoir [[now closed)
7. Dollar store [[now closed)
8. Beauty Supply [[open)
9. Lafayette Market [[open)

Now it looks like we're starting to recruit anchor tenants for the inner-city-exploitative-retail mix [[c.f., East Jefferson).

Is the solution to boycott Lafayette Market until its owners come up with something more appropriate to the neighborhoods? They seem to be asking Lafayette Park residents to support them but then turn around and do things that hurt the neighborhood.

HB

[stasu1213]

It's kind of hard to separate Lafayette Market from the shopping center, since they are owned and run by the same people.

If my choice were between [[a) having a quiet, empty strip mall but driving two miles to get groceries and [[b) having a supermarket nearby and wading through the MLK projects' riff-raff, I'd take [[a) every day of the week. Chene and Lafayette is a mess of people and paper and glass pretty much 24/7. Anything that brings that situation closer to one of Detroit's highest-income neighborhoods is a Bad Idea.

Who exactly would a laundromat serve in Lafayette Park? Every high-rise has its own laundry facility, and every townhouse has its own washer and dryer. The same is true for pretty much all of Elmwood. So a laundromat would either draw from the projects or some other super-low-rent place. Or it will fail.

A dollar store is not as offensive as you may think; the Dollar Tree at Joseph Campau is a decent place to buy balloons and party decorations. But the East Jefferson Corridor is already well served with dollar stores. And despite the fact that many middle-class people shop at them, it's not retail that is appropriate to the site.

Before the renovation, this strip mall had:

1. Paris Cafe
2. Video store [[bank building)
3. Sala Thai
4. Insurance office
5. Frame shop
6. Podiatrist
7. Empty corner building [[later Intus)
8. Pharmacy
9. Supermarket

These were things that the medium-to-high income people in Lafayette Park could support. But a longer-than-expected renovation process torpedoed a number of these businesses, leaving after the renovation:

1. Paris Cafe [[now closed)
2. Video store/drycleaner/cell phone place [[now closed)
3. Chinese restaurant [[now closed)
4. Cottage Inn [[moved)
5. Insurance office [["no cash accepted")
6. Intus nightclub/abbatoir [[now closed)
7. Dollar store [[now closed)
8. Beauty Supply [[open)
9. Lafayette Market [[open)

Now it looks like we're starting to recruit anchor tenants for the inner-city-exploitative-retail mix [[c.f., East Jefferson).

Is the solution to boycott Lafayette Market until its owners come up with something more appropriate to the neighborhoods? They seem to be asking Lafayette Park residents to support them but then turn around and do things that hurt the neighborhood.

HB

I did not know the the owner of Lafayette Foods own the strip mall itself. I had mentioned the idea of opening a coffee shop in the mall to Lance for over two months. His response was that no one had stepped up to the plate. I don't think we should boycott the market but express our concerns to him on his website or facebook page if he has one. He is probably taking suggestions from people who shop at the market but don't live in the area of the townhomes co-ops and highrise-low rise apartments bldgs. LP50 use to hold meetings but I don't know what had happened to the group. I would rather accept a ":Family Dollar" than a Dollar General.

[Gianni]

Pretty sure that the Lafayette Market grocery store does not own the strip mall. Where did anyone get that idea? I assumed Huggybear meant that the retail space where the market is located and the rest of the retail space in the mall are owned by the same company -- the developer or landlord. If it is true that the Lafayette Market owners also own the rest of the mall space, then people in the neighborhood do need to put pressure on them, because these businesses are not a good fit.

[downtownguy]

Here's an update. Family Dollar is moving in. They were doing some preliminary work on the space a few days ago when I walked by. Incidentally, Family Dollar, unbeknownst to me, is not a dollar store, but a discount store. This will put them in direct competition with Lafayette Foods on some items. As Gianni says, Lafayette Foods does not own the strip mall and I would suspect having a competitor like that so close may give them a few heebie jeebies. On the other hand, a nationwide retailer like that will likely have a big advertising budget which hopefully will raise the tide for both "boats." Also, from an informed source, I am told the deal with the laundromat fell through.

Can't end this post without another plug for Lafayette Foods. The staff and management are always very friendly, the shelves well stocked, the weekly sales outstanding. Go here for a look at the current sale: http://www.lafayettefoods.com/weeklyad.html. But I'm still disappointed not to see more bodies in the store. If you haven't been yet, check it out. If you have, eat more.

[michigansheik]

dollar general/family dollar are a small step above traditional dollar stores.
what else would survive there?
cafe?
pet store? [[blondy want to take that on?)
optical? [[americas best or lens crafters?)
mexican food? [[where did the intus liquor license go luckys?)
isn't lafayette foods going to have a pharmacy soon?

[stasu1213]

dollar general/family dollar are a small step above traditional dollar stores.
what else would survive there?
cafe?
pet store? [[blondy want to take that on?)
optical? [[americas best or lens crafters?)
mexican food? [[where did the intus liquor license go luckys?)
isn't lafayette foods going to have a pharmacy soon?

I am glad that Intus had closed and that another bar/club didn't open in it's place. The mall don't need another club that would invite fightings and shootings to the mall such as other clubs in that spot had for years. I am for a pet store, cafe, optical, and probably a health food store. The mall need businesess that would draw out the residents would enjoy the amenities instead of drawing out the hoodlum partying crowd

[j to the jeremy]

Here's an update. Family Dollar is moving in. They were doing some preliminary work on the space a few days ago when I walked by. Incidentally, Family Dollar, unbeknownst to me, is not a dollar store, but a discount store. This will put them in direct competition with Lafayette Foods on some items. As Gianni says, Lafayette Foods does not own the strip mall and I would suspect having a competitor like that so close may give them a few heebie jeebies. On the other hand, a nationwide retailer like that will likely have a big advertising budget which hopefully will raise the tide for both "boats." Also, from an informed source, I am told the deal with the laundromat fell through.

Can't end this post without another plug for Lafayette Foods. The staff and management are always very friendly, the shelves well stocked, the weekly sales outstanding. Go here for a look at the current sale: http://www.lafayettefoods.com/weeklyad.html. But I'm still disappointed not to see more bodies in the store. If you haven't been yet, check it out. If you have, eat more.

Yep, great store if you live downtown.

[runnerXT]

I don't know if the owner of the strip mall had selected these types of businesses without asking the people who live in the apartments, townhomes, and co-ops what would be needed in the community or is it hard to draw businesses such as a bakery, cleaners,pharmacy etc. Things that are needed in the community that will draw out the best of shoppers and not the worst. I didn't think that a Simply Fashion was a good fit in the community. I would rather see a Linen n Things or something like it operating in that location.

How many people live in Lafayette Park? A couple thousand maybe with an average income of around 2/3 the US average. What sort of businesses do you think that a small population like that can support?

[DetroitPlanner]

Maybe it can get a Walmart?

[Dexlin]

How many people live in Lafayette Park?

The two census tracts that cover Lafayette Park proper have a population of about 3,500. You add the three census tracts directly to the east that make up Elmwood Park and surrounding apartments and such, and you can add another 7,000 residents to that number. Two of the five actually saw population growth over the decade [[i.e. the one that covers the Lafayette Apartments and the one that includes Elwood Park).

[stasu1213]

How many people live in Lafayette Park? A couple thousand maybe with an average income of around 2/3 the US average. What sort of businesses do you think that a small population like that can support?

There are many middle income familes who live in the area and are continuing to move into the area. Their children attend Chrysler Elementary or the other elementary school that is in the area. Lafayette Park is has great potential of being a little city within a city such as Midtown, Palmer Woods, East English Village, etc. You would be surprise about the type of people you would see doing business or shopping at the Lafayette Town Center Mall if shops, businesses, and restaurants/cafes open in the mall to accomadate them. Good shops, cafes, and restaurants will also draw people woh work downtown who could drive to these establishments without having to worry about parking for there are a lot of parking at the mall. Don't have to worry about meters. This mall has great potentials being that it is the only strip mall so close to downtown that also has a large parking lot. A Family Dollar would be good for the mall. Dollar General or Dollar Tree would probably not be good. Planners should concentrate on things like a card/gift shop, Pharmacy, cafe, another restaurant, and maybe an independent ice cream shop. You will see the residents come out of hiding shop at the mall

[stasu1213]

I had spoken to Lance of Lafayette Foods and he informed me that Dollar General not Family Dollar will open in Lafayette Town Center Mall. Lance had said that Family Dollar had didn't think there was enough space for their delivery truck. Lance claimed that Dollar General is a step above Family Dollar and the strip mall has to get some tenants in it. I had never been to either Family Dollar or Dollar General. The is the update. Lance had also informed me that the laundromat is a no-go.

[Dexlin]

Lance was pulling your leg, then, because Dollar Generals are actually a down-scale Family Dollar, if that's even possible. Family Dollars can actually be kind of nice. I've never seen a nice Dollar General.