Recently, Dr. Unk’s (the bar where we meet) has met some opposition with the city zoning board. I won’t go into why I think why for a while. I did, however, write a letter to the local newspaper about the issue, and it was published today. Check it out here:
Letter: Zoning Enforcement Should Be Objective
The basic premise is this: Dr. Unk’s has been singled out because they don’t fit a pre-existing image of downtown, and is now being forced out. Little does the city realize the true impact of such a venue in the downtown area. Here’s the text if you can’t get the link for some reason.
Since our church started meeting at Dr. Unk’s this year, I couldn’t help but notice the value the restaurant brings to Uptown. Dr. Unk’s is not a center of Uptown culture, but is a vibrant contributor to the economy as well. It seems to me that the zoning issue at hand is a well-intentioned, but near-sighted move by the Planning Board.
The restaurant brings an eclectic music venue to the residential area, providing a hub for creative-class individuals such as the young professionals and students of Greenville. According to the research of Richard Florida of “The Rise of the Creative Class” fame, the informal and unorganized interactions between the young professionals and the rising generation form the backbone of a city’s economy. These interactions just don’t happen in homes or boutiques at the same level that they happen in a restaurant/music venue such as Dr. Unk’s.
Dr. Unk’s Oasis not only provides a great source of entertainment, food, and yes, alcohol for the young professionals, but perhaps most importantly it acts as a “third place” where relationships are formed, away from the desktops and fax machines.
I would humbly suggest that the Board consider the possibility that the interactions made possible by Dr. Unk’s contributed to the recent recognition by Forbes Magazine of Greenville as one of the top ten small metropolitan areas in the country for business and economy.
If one punishes local businesses simply because they are hard to categorize, one may unintentionally punish the local economy as well. I say allow Mr. Spengeman’s proposal for 30% food sales quota….and then enforce it objectively, as opposed to the seemingly arbitrary enforcement of the 50% quota now. The Uptown area may be able to keep a place more than a decent restaurant and music venue because of it.