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A neighborhood on tenterhooks: Board defers vote on City Point Starbucks
By adamg on Thu, 08/18/2016 - 5:41pm
The Boston Licensing Board today deferred any action on a license request for a Starbucks proposed for L Street and Broadway.
Simple food-serving licenses normally are not contentious, but this request has pitted neighbors and friends against each other in what both sides say is a struggle for the very heart and soul of the once tightly knit neighborhood.
The board could take up the issue next Thursday, or it could continue to defer a decision. In May, the board had rejected a license for would be the chain's first outlet on the more traditionally minded side of South Boston but agreed to reconsider.
In a statement, board Chairwoman Christine Pulgini said she and her fellow board members felt they needed more time to adequately pour through the "voluminous" correspondence they've gotten on the issue.
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Comments
Tenterhooks!
God bless you, Adam, haven't heard the phrase "Tenterhooks" in years!!!
You would hope
more Southie residents would be concerned about the 15 year old shot on Gavin Way two days ago.
Here's the thing
I don't honestly think I can affect violence in my geographical community, and it tends to be isolated, with definite outliers, in places I don't go. I'm not saying I don't care about it. It scares me and makes me uncomfortable, but I trust the police and in general I feel pretty safe in South Boston. I don't contribute to strife between drug dealers, and I don't actually know anyone first hand who I would identify as being a risk taker, extralawfully speaking.
It is in that context that I say just give the guy his damn Starbucks. They've had plenty of time to think about it.
This comment mirrors the
This comment mirrors the sentiment of many of Roxbury residents. Only difference is...no Starbucks. Just a couple really slow D&D drive through' . It's interesting to watch the gentrification of both neighborhoods. Southie = start from water back. Roxbury = start from Dudley square and movebback.
Gavin Way is not in Southie,
Gavin Way is not in Southie, it is in the projects. Now if the shooting was on East Broadway, you might get a different reaction.
It's 02127
So that would make it Southie
Yes, like Rome is to Italy.
Yes, like Rome is to Italy. Separate entities!
You made me finally look up "tenterhooks"...
https://squirrelbasket.wordpress.com/2009/11/07/words-on-tenterhooks-and...
Starbucks stooges
Can't take no for an answer.
Why should they?
?
They have to follow the local
They have to follow the local zoning like everyone else.
What we have here
is a few local vocals who sold their neighbors and neighborhood out and their own greedy souls to the devil. And then you have some vocal immigrants who won't be living in Southie in three years. The issues these people are in favor for get stuck to the people who are going to live here long term.
Immigrants?
So moving from the South End or the North End to South Boston makes you an "immigrant"? You, or anyone else, has no idea how long someone will live in South Boston.
These local coffee shop
These local coffee shop owners should do their research. Starbucks is actually GOOD for local coffee shops:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/hey_wait_a_minute/2007/1...
"Soon after declining Starbucks's buyout offer, Hyman received the expected news that the company was opening up next to one of his stores. But instead of panicking, he decided to call his friend Jim Stewart, founder of the Seattle's Best Coffee chain, to find out what really happens when a Starbucks opens nearby. "You're going to love it," Stewart reported. "They'll do all of your marketing for you, and your sales will soar." The prediction came true: Each new Starbucks store created a local buzz, drawing new converts to the latte-drinking fold. When the lines at Starbucks grew beyond the point of reason, these converts started venturing out—and, Look! There was another coffeehouse right next-door! Hyman's new neighbor boosted his sales so much that he decided to turn the tactic around and start targeting Starbucks. "We bought a Chinese restaurant right next to one of their stores and converted it, and by God, it was doing $1 million a year right away," he said."
I can't bring myself to care
I can't bring myself to care deeply for the coffee sales at any of the outlets in the vicinity. They all offer the same smorgasbord of garbage coffee in 20 shitty sweet flavors (looking at you
Bailey'sand Boston Bagel), and none offer a fresh espresso. Oh but there's Dunkin Donuts, you say. I say take a hike, I don't drink swill. Literally the only espresso within a half mile of that corner are at the Cranberry Cafe and possibly there's one tucked into the Cafe Porto Bello somewhere, but that's not, you know, open in the morning.All of this is beside the point. If you don't like competition, don't compete. The answer is not suppressing other business. The free market only operates properly if it is FREE. If you can't make money selling coffee with your (delicious) bagels, the onus is on you to improve your business, not on the state to regulate your competition.
Move to a different
Move to a different neighborhood or buy an espresso machine, they are pretty affordable these days.
You sound way too miserable over coffee choices.
As for the coffee you called swill, it's not much different than that of the company that wants to move in comparing overall quality and price point. Some will certainly disagree.
I should move to a different
I should move to a different neighborhood because my city licensing board won't give a Starbucks a license to operate a coffee shop. In the city.
You are a fool, or a plant by Big Swill, sent here to stifle dissent.
The reason is that you want
The reason is that you want to complain that some people would like some say over what gets built in their neighborhood that they live in.
I don't actually think the
I don't actually think the neighbors should get a say. If a business meets the statutory parameters for zoning and licensing I think it should end there. That keeps jackass busybodies from stopping a fellow neighbor from legally monetizing his commercial property, and keeps more of the process in full public view.
Or maybe I should just contribute to Bill Linehan's campaignfundbeachhousepension and be done with it.
Then there are other cities
Then there are other cities and states that are more likely let people have whatever businesses they want if that's what you really prefer.
Most towns and cities have around here have planning boards consisting of volunteers that let have some influence on what businesses get opened in their town.
You little tangent is irrelevant.
http://www.caughtinsouthie
http://www.caughtinsouthie.com/news-politics/southie-starbucks-community...
Hey there's my tangent in the wild, doing good. Be free, little tangent, go forth and multiply. Suck it, anon. Don't let poor writing skills keep you from trying to make half a bad argument. You keep doing you.
"Don't let poor writing
"Don't let poor writing skills..."
You need a comma after the "Hey" in your first sentence, for starters.
The "tangent" was in reference to the way you ended your comment about donations.
You linked to a summary of a meeting.
All you're doing is complaining that people want to discuss these things. If you want to do that, fine. It is, however, the way most places do things around here. Plenty of people know there's value in having some discussion over what business open and prefer to have these kinds of meetings.
I know you are kidding about
I know you are kidding about the swill, but neither is exactly considered amazing by a lot of people.
The product from the store in
The product from the store in question is literally irrelevant. I was only using it to point out that Starbucks would be providing products that aren't actually available nearby, therefore invalidating the anti-competitive proclivities of some businesses' representatives in the area.
You were clearly implying
You were clearly implying that one was superior. Now you are just saying one is different. They are both providers of the same beverage. Some like one more than the other.
That's just one example from
That's just one example from the same city where the headquarters is located.