Independent stores / Underground music in metro area? (Phoenix, Tempe: houses, neighborhood)

[Azalea City Man]

Outside of Mill Ave, is there anywhere in the Metro area that has a "subculture and/or college culture" street worth walking that would contain a few bars, independent shops, and maybe an underground/independent music store? In fact, does Mill Ave. have a non-chain music store on it? Only been to Phx and Tempe one time and I can't remember. Thanks.

[HX_Guy]

There is an independent music store in downtown Phoenix on Central Ave called Circles.

[exit2lef]

Near Mill, but not directly on it, there is an outpost of Zia at University & Maple. East Side Records is just a block or two away. There are some interesting bars, restaurants, and shops nearby, but there are also some unappealing chains. Zia has a variety of other locations throughout the Phoenix Metro Area, but the rest are all in suburban shopping centers. The near-Mill location is the most urban in setting.

There are also two possibilities in Central Phoenix: At Camelback & Central, there is Stinkweeds, which has a smaller selection than Zia but great customer service. The same little strip mall that houses Stinkweeds is also home to collectible toy store Red Hot Robot and vintage boutique Frances. The area isn't all that pedestrian friendly, but within half a mile, there are good places for food and drink like Lux and Pane Bianco (http://www.pizzeriabianco.com/pane/index.html - broken link).

Also in Central Phoenix, the Melrose on 7th District, along 7th Ave from Indian School to Camelback, has a new store called Revolver Records. The emphasis there is supposedly on vinyl, but I think that CDs are being added gradually. I have not visited this shop yet, but hope to do so soon. It's near a good coffee bar called Copper Star. Like Camelback & Central, it's not all that pedestrian-centric, but it's moving in the right direction.

As for Circles, I have the utmost respect for HX Guy, but I've never been impressed much with Circles. I admire the store for hanging in there in Downtown, but the prices are high and the indy rock selection limited.

[vegaspilgrim]

I recently explored 7th ave for the first time, about a month ago (after hearing about it on this forum from SierraAZ), and there's actually quite a number of unique stores along that one mile stretch. Everything from chicken & waffles places to coffee shops to home & garden stores to retro 70's clothing stores, and a blues club or two. A lot of car mechanics and auto shops too; it's not all glitz and glitter. One thing I noticed, it seems like the city made an attempt to promote the area as a destination street, some kind of cool district they're calling "Melrose on 7th." But like many things that Phoenix does, they did it half-assed. They put up a bunch of flagpole banners on the street lights, and if you look carefully, on the intersections with the side streets they repaved the sidewalk as it heads towards the neighborhood. They put in some quirky metal chairs, each facing a different direction (creative, but totally stupid). But on 7th ave itself, the main sidewalk, they did absolutely nothing. What they should have done is knock out a lane on both sides, convert it into on-street parking, lower the speed limit for that mile stretch, blow out the old sidewalk and build a new widened one, and actually install trees lining the street, like what Tempe did to Mill Ave.

Even with nothing more than the existing businesses and no additional buildings, they could have turned it into a new destination, something Phoenix could be proud of, but instead they half-assed it. It's no more fun walking along 7th ave than any other major arterial road in Phoenix, with cars whizzing past you at 40mph blowing fumes in your face every two seconds, and zero shade. And why is this area called "Melrose"? Is there a neighborhood nearby known as "Melrose"? Even it that's so, the name is a huge mistake, IMO-- it sounds like Phoenix is trying to copy LA's famous "Melrose" district. They need to come up with a different name that doesn't sound like a wanna-be LA copycat.

[exit2lef]

The 7th on Melrose area was once more pedestrian-friendly, but 7th Ave was widened so as to serve as a commuter throroughfare before the freeways were built:

Planning Livable Communities » Blog Archive » What Killed a Phoenix Neighborhood Business District?

There is discussion right now of removing the reversible suicide lanes on both 7th St and 7th Ave. That would be the first step in making the actual 7s, rather than just the side streets around them, more friendly. Actual street narrowing is something I support, not only on 7th Ave, but in many locations around town, but there are a lot of issues and costs involved. I think it will happen, but slowly. One place where it has occured is on Grand Avenue. On the stretch from 7th Ave to 15th Ave, there is now parallel parking during non-rush-hours. That tends to make the new businesses sprouting there more accessible and creates a barrier between pedestrians and traffic speeding by. We definitely need more projects of this sort in Central Phoenix.

As for the name, Melrose (actually Woodlea-Melrose) is the area's historic name. If there was any copycatting of LA going on, it occured decades ago and is not part of the new effort to spruce up this area.

[vegaspilgrim]

Thanks for the information, silverbear. I totally agree, the "suicide" lanes on 7th st and 7th ave need to go. I had no idea those streets were originally slower and more pedestrian friendly. Problem is, the transportation planners are single-mindedly focussed on one thing: getting the traffic to flow as smooth as possible. They typically aren't interested in things like "streetscape" and pedestrian-friendliness; it isn't the nature of the trade. Even things as simple as putting in a couple of stop signs on various intersections around downtown Phoenix end up taking months. 7th ave does have potential; the businesses are there, it's the other stuff that needs to be cleaned up. Since we're on the subject, do you know of any other comparable streets in Phoenix, perhaps currently undiscovered area, like "Melrose on 7th"?

[exit2lef]

There are a few potential up-and-comers:

The Madison on 16th District. It uses the same naming convention as 7th of Melrose by combining the area's historic name of Madison with the name of 16th Street, its major thoroughfare. It's the area around 16th St. & Bethany Home. There are lots of interesting businesses there like Richardson's, TEXAZ Grill, Hobe Meats, etc. It's nowhere near as far along, though, and the first issue that needs to be addressed is the redevelopment of the abandoned Basha's shopping center on the SW corner.

Plugged in - Deanne Poulos - 2007, week 8

Third Street near Osborn. A developer has announced an interesting plan for this area:

Chains not in plans for The Shops at Third (broken link)

The Sheridan Square area on 7th St. just south of Thomas:

Dining news: April 5-11 (broken link)

And, as previously mentioned, Grand Avenue from 7th Ave to 15th Ave:

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