Hey KJ, do you remember the Wegmans on East Ave? I think you used to shop there when you lived in the city. Was it crazy busy then? With an impossible small parking lot and none of the bells and whistles of the larger, mega-Wegs , we've come to know and love (and seriously, crowded 24/7), they are in the midst of totally renovating that entire block and building a brand new store.I have to admit that most city-dwellers, like myself seem genuinely excited. It is the closest Wegmans to my house, by far...actually it's within walking distance (though I do pass a Tops along the way...3 guesses why I NEVER go in there) and I jumped for joy when I heard about the proposed plan. But, with progress, goes resistance and of course factor in that this is Rochester...bottom line, some people are complaining and I have to tell you, aside from totally burning me up, it completely mystifies me. That market serves a huge swath of the community and there are plenty of folks, just like me, who won't set foot in there because it is just impossible to deal with. The community has outgrown this Wegmans completely, so when they decide on the obvious...that they must improve the store, what do they get...a bunch of sentimental drivel about how the evil 'big business' has pushed out small business and torn down 'historic' buildings (you would think they tore down the Eiffel Tower the way these people go on). It's just all so naive and small-town...and exactly why, in 15 years Rochester has not gotten any better...it hasn't gotten any worse...but certainly no better.
There is so much more to say...let me know what you think. Right now, I'm pretty peeved.
i totally recall the first time i stepped into this location!...i kept thinking, "there has to be something better!"....and i can't believe rochesterians don't want a new & improved wegmans...a store that was started there!!! it's not like walmart coming in and pushing out the little guy! come on!!! i can't stand people like this... there are very legitimate cases where this is happening and is pushing out the little mom/pop stores...but i hardly doubt wegmans is really going to topple the business at Tops! and boy do i remember tops! remember how we used to always wonder why in the hell anyone would shop there when they had one of THE BEST grocery stores right in town!!!!
ReplyDeleteOK....maybe my memory is bit foggy..since when is that property a "historic" area? good god!
well, keep me posted on what happens.....
some people love being stuck in a time warp!
gotta love it!
Oh man...thank you KJ! Thank you for understanding my complete and total frustration. It's so typical of some (and I do mean some, not all) people here.
ReplyDeleteYeah, historic...meaning 1950. Some are acting as though these building are architectural masterpieces that must be preserved. Well, you can't even remember them. Frankly, neither can I.
Oh and this another favorite retort. So there was one business owner in that area who was a real hold out (it was some sort of salon). Finally the business owner and Wegmans reached an agreement and he sold out. You want to know why...because as a good businessperson, they realized that the land they owned was infinitely more valuable than the business. People who are crying for that person are insane. Wegmans paid them top dollar for that land. They are NOT suffering.
By the way, we already went through this with the new Henrietta Wegmans. Those residents bitched and complained forever. Now they have this fantastic new store and could not care less about the old one. Also, Chris' house is across the street from the new store and his property value has gone up.
I will keep you posted. Thankfully there is no way it will not go forward. Wegmans already owns the whole block and is just trying to work out the detail. Common sense prevails.