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I really wanted to get to that meeting and ask the mayor and council some questions. I was told that if he doesn't like the direction you're going, he blows you off and gets to the "next" person. I am curious to see how many contracts have been written on Lumberyard units since the beginning of 2011. They are advertiseing heavy but I don't see anyone lining up. I think the prices are still
too high for the amenities and s/f. Not to mention the locale on the PATCO. Liquor licesnses and retail are the only options left apart from tax breaks to the storefront owners on Haddon Ave. I keep hearing that the leases are too high for the merchants whose mom & pop wares are moving too slow to keep up.
I do have to give props to My Little KupKake which just opened 2 doors from Il Fure. If you haven't gone there yet, you need to try it. We've been there far too many times already and have never been dissapointed by the cool variety of cupcakes they make.
That empty storefront on the corner of Haddon and Collins would be the perfect spot for a neighborhood pub. Imagine heading up there to watch a Phillies game on a Sunday afternoon and then heading out to the restaurants for dinner and to My Little Cupcake for desert. Perfect. Never happen though.
I don't think it'll happen with the current mayor, at least when he refers to Collingswood as "his Mayberry". I personally think we can strive for something a little more. Besides, didn't Mayberry have Otis - I imagine he was drinking somewhere in town.
They empty storefront / former florist is slated for...drumroll please...another Italian restaurant!! I believe the going name is Knight's Bistro. Salute!
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Originally Posted by Tangled Threads
I don't think it'll happen with the current mayor, at least when he refers to Collingswood as "his Mayberry". I personally think we can strive for something a little more. Besides, didn't Mayberry have Otis - I imagine he was drinking somewhere in town.
Really dry towns don't bother me, but maybe someone should tell Mayor Gomer that they sell booze in Mt Airey (Andy Griffith's home town).
Well, my only response to the mayor would have to be if Collingswood is such a Mayberry why don't more formerly lifelong residents choose to settle there with their families? Of my graduating class of around 150 from Collingswood High, at our 10 year reunion in 2008 there were exactly 17 people who still lived in Collingswood, 12 of them lived with their parents. Only 5 had chosen to actually locate themselves in Collingswood and only 2 of them actually bought homes. Of those 5; 2 were teachers in the Collingswood school system, 1 was a Collingswood policeman and 1 was a fireman. That leaves 1 whose employment wasn't tied to the community who chose to live there and she was renting.
GOAT, I happen to think statistics like that are HUGE in what it says about the direction of your town. Probably the most simplest form of determining if you are going in the right direction. You were born here, you lived here all your life and you know the fabric of the town yet, the majority have chosen to live elsewhere. I know people move places for a myriad of reasons, family, job, school etc, but in the best areas, people stay and/or find reason to return. If the trend is for the locals to move, you need to seriously evaluate what you lack.
Collingswood is no Mayberry and I hope Mayor Maley isn't seeing it that way. Mayberry never built condos on the railroad that were a bust from the get go. Even Gomer knew better.
GOAT, I happen to think statistics like that are HUGE in what it says about the direction of your town. Probably the most simplest form of determining if you are going in the right direction. You were born here, you lived here all your life and you know the fabric of the town yet, the majority have chosen to live elsewhere. I know people move places for a myriad of reasons, family, job, school etc, but in the best areas, people stay and/or find reason to return. If the trend is for the locals to move, you need to seriously evaluate what you lack.
Collingswood is no Mayberry and I hope Mayor Maley isn't seeing it that way. Mayberry never built condos on the railroad that were a bust from the get go. Even Gomer knew better.
I think most of us who grew up there would fall back on saying that the image of Collingswood has improved greatly, while the reality of Collingswood has changed little. I think that is an important distinction.
The "Collingswood Renaissance" has been focused on the Avenue and making the downtown look great while largely ignoring the actual neighborhoods. You can have all the Italian restaurants with Mercedes parked out front that you want, but it doesn't change what the town really is.
I personally think the revitalization of the Avenue is great and is an excellent resource to Collingswood, but when people look at picking a town to live in, having a nice downtown is not nearly as high on the list as affordable taxes and good schools. In those areas Collingswood could do a lot to improve. They are willing to pour thousands into parades and fairs that attract people from all over, but they are seemingly unwilling to do what is needed to make the town more attractive for more people to stay.
The town may be Mayberry at the christmas tree lighting, holiday parade and May Fair, but there are a lot more days in the year when it's just regular old Collingswood.
Right. I don't mean to take shots at the mayor, either. I'm actually in favor of what he does. It's not unlike Rendell coming in as mayor to Philly and working on the image of " Pine to Vine" and not getting much done in the rest of the city. He had personality and attracted the biz that the city lacked...until Street's winning personality destroyed it all.
I think the school issue is tough. Families use school districts as reasons to move in an area but the Woodlyne situation hurts the HS stats which scares people from moving in; even if you or I know better it's what the standardized scores say that make the papers.
As far as the stuff they can control, I still maintain that the "dry town" thing has to be reconsidered.
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