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Yesterday I was driving down the Berlin Tpk southbound and noticed that in the Berlin portion of the turnpike, there are TONS of abandoned buildings and businesses closed down, it's not even funny. Businesses that were open just two years ago from my memory are now nonexistent and boarded up. Even that Super Foodmart went out of business years ago.
Why is this area bad for businesses? It seems like none of them are really thriving at all and everything is just going down the tubes.
Nah, I wouldn't say that. It's still very busy...but it attracts lots of undesirable 'element' as well..with the huge Walmart and plethora of shady motels.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nep321
Yesterday I was driving down the Berlin Tpk southbound and noticed that in the Berlin portion of the turnpike, there are TONS of abandoned buildings and businesses closed down, it's not even funny. Businesses that were open just two years ago from my memory are now nonexistent and boarded up. Even that Super Foodmart went out of business years ago.
Why is this area bad for businesses? It seems like none of them are really thriving at all and everything is just going down the tubes.
Nah, I wouldn't say that. It's still very busy...but it attracts lots of undesirable 'element' as well..with the huge Walmart and plethora of shady motels.
the shady element has been there for decades - Howard Stern used to joke about it when he worked at WCCC in the late 70s/early 80s. Heck, the Grantmoor and their hourly rates (or afternoon rates?) were a running joke even in my high school.
The Berlin Turnpike has long been this way, likely since it was built. It struggled for years after I-91 was built around it. It seems to go through cycles where a bunch of new businesses come in, then some close and then other new ones come in. It deos seem though that quality restaurants (Camren Anthonys, The Hawthorne Inn, etc.) struggle. Not sure why but it might have to do with being a little off the beaten path from a major interstate. I think you will see more new things come in and replace the old. Jay
still don't understand why/how Atlanta Bread closed given their location on the opposite side of Panera which seems to be holding its own. miss that place.
also don't understand why Green Tea China Bistro closed given that Joey Garlic's is in the same location and is always mobbed. yeah JG has decent food but so did Green Tea imo. yet one draws a crowd and the other didn't.
The turnpike is doing MUCH better now than it was a decade ago. Going through there, I can remember that seedy gentleman's club in Newington attached to the same building where 2001 used to be. Now it's a Starbucks and Chipotle. The cheap motels that charge hourly rates are still there, but they've been under so much scrutiny in the last few years that you're alot less likely to hear about illegal activities now than even 5 years ago. Today I'd be more worried about bed bugs than drugs or prostitution. And many of those dingy, X-rated video stores in Newington and Wethersfield have closed. Having said that, I still don't find it an attractive stretch of road. It's still a concrete jungle. It seems like it's now being dominated by giant chain stores and restaurants in a long, continuous tape loop, and this adds to the traffic. Still, many of the elements that gave it a sordid reputation are gone.
I remember going up there in the Fast and Furious days to watch the illegal races and park in the lots like Taco Bell, or occasionally hitup Club 2001. Now if I go up to the Turnpike it's to shop at Mickey Finn's or possibly a steakhouse. Other than that there is nothing there for me.
The turnpike is doing MUCH better now than it was a decade ago. Going through there, I can remember that seedy gentleman's club in Newington attached to the same building where 2001 used to be. Now it's a Starbucks and Chipotle. The cheap motels that charge hourly rates are still there, but they've been under so much scrutiny in the last few years that you're alot less likely to hear about illegal activities now than even 5 years ago. Today I'd be more worried about bed bugs than drugs or prostitution. And many of those dingy, X-rated video stores in Newington and Wethersfield have closed. Having said that, I still don't find it an attractive stretch of road. It's still a concrete jungle. It seems like it's now being dominated by giant chain stores and restaurants in a long, continuous tape loop, and this adds to the traffic. Still, many of the elements that gave it a sordid reputation are gone.
I agree. I see it doing better, not worse. On the Berlin end more new businesses have opened than have closed. There is the huge gas station, the plaza with DD and the veterinarian, the package store. The Berlin end has always been less built up than the Newington end.
I'm not sure why Pure Pizza closed. The pizza was really good. It might have been the fact that it shared a parking lot with the strip club? But the minigolf does ok.
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