I'm sorry to say I can't.
Instead I have to write about the death knell that has once again begun to sound in the area by the river.
For years the buildings below the Kansas City buffs sat empty. Business that once thrived had literally washed away. Those that stayed saw traffic dwindle to an intermittent drip. As the business moved out; the dust moved in. And so those old beautiful brick buildings, with their hefty wooden floors, and interesting wooden beamed ceilings, sat empty, and lonely. Until, the haunted houses moved in. Then there was, from the end of September to November 1st, a flood of teens and twenty-somethings looking for nothing more than a good scare. And boy did they get it.
The Edge of Hell opened in 1975 and relocated to the West Bottoms in 1989.
The Beast opened its bloody doors in 1991.
The Macabre Cinema also opened in 1991.
All can still be found securely rooted to the West Bottoms area. Each church of horror drawing somewhere from 3 thousand to 8 thousand fright seekers a night on the weekends. And they still are. Want some more information. Click here, if you DARE. West Bottoms Haunted houses
But that is only three buildings.
But that is only three buildings.
Then around 2007 a little store called Good Juju opened its doors on the first Friday of the month.
It was open only for that first weekend of the month and every first weekend since. Hipsters and thrift shoppers, Antiquers and re-purposers timidly sought out this new store. Filled with memories of yesteryear and the ever popular "one man's treasure is another man's junk." They liked what they saw and told their friends. And so, another store opened, and another. Soon the West Bottoms First Friday sales was an event. It was the place to be. Stores like
RE:,
Bella Patina,
Hickory Dickory,
Hello Sailor,
and Bottoms Up
were the places you'd scour every first weekend looking for that one of a kind thing you never knew you always wanted. (Yes I stole that line from "Fools Rush In, with Matthew Perry and Selma Hayek. Haven't seen it, go now, find it. You are excused from reading the rest of this blog. My husband disagrees, he said I stole it from him.)
People began to flock to the West Bottoms again.
Food trucks jostled for prime locations to snag the hungry or peckish shoppers looking for a meal or just a snack to perk them up. Street performers took to the streets for a laugh and a tip. During Halloween season these performers teamed up with the haunted houses to remind people that more was coming when the sun went down. Bands began playing on the loading docks of some of the stores, drawing crowds and luring customers in for that last minute of shopping. It was fun to hang out and meet like minded people. Perhaps run into an old friend. Young couples could outfit their new digs on dimes and dollars. Everyone was happy.
Then one First Friday in 2016 we showed up at the gravel and dirt parking lot only to discover a seedy looking individual with questionable credentials barring our way. Armed with a lawn chair, beach umbrella and a fanny-pack, he insisted that we were now required to pay for our once free parking spots.
Our group looked at each other, scratched our heads and drove down to the river to find our parking for free. Of course it was a bit of a hike, but we were there to save money, not hand it over to some scruffy looking guy standing by the parking lot, I use the term "lot" loosely, who may or may not be on the up and up. The shop owners were as equally perplexed as the shoppers. They had not been privy to this change in the status quo and it was unclear in their contracts exactly who had control over the "parking lots." There were additional opportunists and rough looking characters in the open areas under the 12th street bridge with their hands out collecting parking fees. This always gave me pause, seeing as how the area under the 12th Street bridge is owned and maintained by the city. It is altogether unclear under whose authority the parking fees were being collected. That was the first time my happy feeling was missing on the ride home with my friends. The community feeling among the shoppers and the shop owners was diminished. A part of the new West Bottoms feeling, was missing. As we talked we came to the conclusion that greed was the driving force behind the paid parking lots. It wasn't a good sign.
This last First Friday we were dealt an even bigger blow. Hickory Dickory, one of our most favored places to shop, announced it was closed. I blinked a few times as I read the announcement.
No, no, no, this cannot be true. Yes, it was. Lucky for us the reminder of the announcement held a small gold nugget,
While this is a happy ending for the Hickory Dickory owners, I believe that this is the beginning of the end. The original owner of the building the Hickory Dickory crew rented from had history with the area and seemed to understand the delicate economic revival in the West Bottom. He had endured years of basically nothing, and should have relished in the reality of tenants capable of paying rent. He certainly should have been aware of the low overhead, which was a prime factor in making the whole West Bottoms First Friday's happenin' thing possible. He owned several of the buildings around the area and when someone came calling with an offer to buy the building it was too good too be passed by and he took it. I don't blame him.
As the new owner and landlord took possession of the building, repeated assurances were made to the HD owners that he would not raise the rent. Assurances were made that they were in this together, and every effort would be made to grow the HD business and make it successful. Whatever it took to make HD a smashing success would be done. Yet, after the first few months, the rent was raised significantly. The HD owners asked the new landlord to give them a week to respond, and countered with a list of things that really needed addressed if they were going to pay additional amounts for the space. Keep in mind, up to this point, virtually all improvements to the property were done by HD, at their expense, and in good faith, in the interest of all parties. The new landlord accepted the new terms and promptly failed to follow through with the necessary improvements. Relationships degenerated to the point where a third party was required to be present at all meetings. The months went by, the list of agreed upon improvements still undone, the landlord comes to collect the rent, and with no notice, requests double the amount HD had previously been paying.
Unfortunately the new owner seems to understand none of the aspects of the West Bottoms First Fridays happening. The community aspect. The razor thin operating margins. The desire of some goodhearted, and/or civic-minded people to be there, not purely for economic gain, but simply to be a part of it all. The subtle intricacies of the knife-edge economic conditions enabling the shop owners to continue to operate are real and cannot be wished away. The new owner seems to believe there is money to be made and all it takes is to squeeze the lemon a little bit harder.
RE:,
Bella Patina,
Hickory Dickory,
Hello Sailor,
and Bottoms Up
were the places you'd scour every first weekend looking for that one of a kind thing you never knew you always wanted. (Yes I stole that line from "Fools Rush In, with Matthew Perry and Selma Hayek. Haven't seen it, go now, find it. You are excused from reading the rest of this blog. My husband disagrees, he said I stole it from him.)
People began to flock to the West Bottoms again.
Food trucks jostled for prime locations to snag the hungry or peckish shoppers looking for a meal or just a snack to perk them up. Street performers took to the streets for a laugh and a tip. During Halloween season these performers teamed up with the haunted houses to remind people that more was coming when the sun went down. Bands began playing on the loading docks of some of the stores, drawing crowds and luring customers in for that last minute of shopping. It was fun to hang out and meet like minded people. Perhaps run into an old friend. Young couples could outfit their new digs on dimes and dollars. Everyone was happy.
Then one First Friday in 2016 we showed up at the gravel and dirt parking lot only to discover a seedy looking individual with questionable credentials barring our way. Armed with a lawn chair, beach umbrella and a fanny-pack, he insisted that we were now required to pay for our once free parking spots.
Our group looked at each other, scratched our heads and drove down to the river to find our parking for free. Of course it was a bit of a hike, but we were there to save money, not hand it over to some scruffy looking guy standing by the parking lot, I use the term "lot" loosely, who may or may not be on the up and up. The shop owners were as equally perplexed as the shoppers. They had not been privy to this change in the status quo and it was unclear in their contracts exactly who had control over the "parking lots." There were additional opportunists and rough looking characters in the open areas under the 12th street bridge with their hands out collecting parking fees. This always gave me pause, seeing as how the area under the 12th Street bridge is owned and maintained by the city. It is altogether unclear under whose authority the parking fees were being collected. That was the first time my happy feeling was missing on the ride home with my friends. The community feeling among the shoppers and the shop owners was diminished. A part of the new West Bottoms feeling, was missing. As we talked we came to the conclusion that greed was the driving force behind the paid parking lots. It wasn't a good sign.
This last First Friday we were dealt an even bigger blow. Hickory Dickory, one of our most favored places to shop, announced it was closed. I blinked a few times as I read the announcement.
"After five years of asking all of our amazing customers and friends to visit us at HD at this time every month, it is with a heavy hear that I inform you that this month is different. Due to unfortunate issues with a new landlord, Hickory Dickory had made the very difficult decision to close our doors indefinitely."
"However, as you so often hear, when one door closes, another opens and our case is no exception to this well known life motto.
Join us on our NEW journey form The West Bottoms to Westport!
Opening August 2017, a new concept chalk full of uniquely curated good. Lemon Thyme will be located on Main street in Midtown KC.
Stay tuned for more announcements and details to come!
When life gives you lemons, it's LEMON THYME, folks!"
3921 Main Street
Thursday (evening): 5:00-9:00
Friday: 9:00-9:00
Saturday: 9:00-6:00
Sunday: 12:00-5:00
While this is a happy ending for the Hickory Dickory owners, I believe that this is the beginning of the end. The original owner of the building the Hickory Dickory crew rented from had history with the area and seemed to understand the delicate economic revival in the West Bottom. He had endured years of basically nothing, and should have relished in the reality of tenants capable of paying rent. He certainly should have been aware of the low overhead, which was a prime factor in making the whole West Bottoms First Friday's happenin' thing possible. He owned several of the buildings around the area and when someone came calling with an offer to buy the building it was too good too be passed by and he took it. I don't blame him.
As the new owner and landlord took possession of the building, repeated assurances were made to the HD owners that he would not raise the rent. Assurances were made that they were in this together, and every effort would be made to grow the HD business and make it successful. Whatever it took to make HD a smashing success would be done. Yet, after the first few months, the rent was raised significantly. The HD owners asked the new landlord to give them a week to respond, and countered with a list of things that really needed addressed if they were going to pay additional amounts for the space. Keep in mind, up to this point, virtually all improvements to the property were done by HD, at their expense, and in good faith, in the interest of all parties. The new landlord accepted the new terms and promptly failed to follow through with the necessary improvements. Relationships degenerated to the point where a third party was required to be present at all meetings. The months went by, the list of agreed upon improvements still undone, the landlord comes to collect the rent, and with no notice, requests double the amount HD had previously been paying.
Unfortunately the new owner seems to understand none of the aspects of the West Bottoms First Fridays happening. The community aspect. The razor thin operating margins. The desire of some goodhearted, and/or civic-minded people to be there, not purely for economic gain, but simply to be a part of it all. The subtle intricacies of the knife-edge economic conditions enabling the shop owners to continue to operate are real and cannot be wished away. The new owner seems to believe there is money to be made and all it takes is to squeeze the lemon a little bit harder.
And that, as they say, was that.
I admire the Hickory Dickory owner's nerve to give up and start another business venture, The Lemon Thyme shop. I applaud her get up and go and so glad she got up and went. Unfortunately the new landlord has purchased several of the buildings that are home to our beloved First Fridays haunts and I don't hold any hope that he will treat these tenants any better than he did HD. I fear a mass exodus of shops from the West Bottoms will begin soon. Will those owners be able to survive to fight another day, at another location? I can only hope. For now my prayers are with you all. Let's hope the West Bottoms survives and doesn't return to the Ghost Town it once was.
I admire the Hickory Dickory owner's nerve to give up and start another business venture, The Lemon Thyme shop. I applaud her get up and go and so glad she got up and went. Unfortunately the new landlord has purchased several of the buildings that are home to our beloved First Fridays haunts and I don't hold any hope that he will treat these tenants any better than he did HD. I fear a mass exodus of shops from the West Bottoms will begin soon. Will those owners be able to survive to fight another day, at another location? I can only hope. For now my prayers are with you all. Let's hope the West Bottoms survives and doesn't return to the Ghost Town it once was.
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