Saturday, September 26, 2009

What doomed the Coffee Cup?

For those who don't always see the Saturday Charlotte Observer, here's a link to my regular weekly op-ed column. Today's topic: what really doomed the Coffee Cup restaurant, the building demolished on Thursday. "It was pricey dirt that killed the Cup."

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nothing. Things change that is a fact of life.

Anonymous said...

Bad food, bad service, and an unwillingness to pay the rent on time or at all?

Anonymous said...

WAH!!!!

Anonymous said...

This story is so old! I wonder why readership is declining hmm.....

rick b said...

Greed.

Corrupt city council.

The fact that developers are the planners in Charlotte.

Shortsightedness.

Idiocy.

Ego.

Atlanta wannabeeism.

Gullibility.

Walter Fields and Bailey Patrick.

Crooked Crescent.

Crooked Beazer.

A dead-end city with absolutely no awareness of the concept that historic preservation and pedestrian scaling go hand-in-hand with quality urban development.

Anonymous said...

I don't understand why this is a big deal. It's called progress. I will never understand why people need to save every single building that is over 50 years old. That is NONSENSE!

Jumper said...

The story is notable because it was the final chapter.

The food was great and so were the people.

It underscores the importance of location to a restaurant. The restaurant offspring of the Coffee Cup did not succeed, unless there is another incarnation to come.

Anonymous said...

Hey, MARY are going to sell your house in Meyers Park and move into a condo downtown?

consultant said...

1st mistake. You let an Atlanta developer into your city.

Charlotte, beware the Atlanta developers.

They are worst than the 500 year flood that hit us.

JDC said...

Mary wrote: "To make a profit after paying a lot for land, developers must build lucrative projects."

Correction:

To make a huge, outlandish profit after paying the market price for land, greedy developers build lucrative projects. This in turn causes projects to fail (i.e. in uptown)when there is an economic downturn, and prices the average family out of that market.

Anonymous said...

How about writing an article on whatever "historic" buildings got demolished in order to build the Observer building?

And please, point me to your columns lamenting the demise of Slug's, or Epicurean, or the East Blvd. City Tavern, or Oceanaire, or McIntosh's (nee Alston's), or....

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Go Panthers!

Jumper said...

Mary, I was incorrect about who said this line. It was Craig T. Nelson, not Dr. Phil. I don't know how I could have gotten it so wrong.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTwpBLzxe4U

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Uptown closure was due to developers. University closure was due to mis-management. Food at both places was always excellent. Food alone cant make a restaurant survive. Success is dicey at best. Great concept from the originals, I knew them. But hiring friends, family, neighbors kids, cousins, etc, almost always brings a business down. Couple that with what appeared to be a need to only hire people of color didnt make sense. Some of the earliest owners were a black lady and a white lady. And they were great partners. A shame really it didnt endure.

Anonymous said...

Mary, Can I set up a tent in your backyard until I find a job? I just lost my job and my apartment. I know who really care about people by your writings.

Anonymous said...

Please lower taxes, so I can afford to live.

consultant said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Only a reject will insist on raising taxes. Prices paid for goods are voluntary verses TAXES are taken away from individuals via a gun. If I don't pay my taxes I go to jail. People need to educate themeselves about the market economy.

consultant said...

"People need to educate themeselves about the market economy."

Please educate yourself about a democracy, without which a market economy cannot stand for long.

Democracy requires taxation to fund the needs that unite us a people. Without that "common" purpose, we'd break apart.

Walmart and Goldman Sachs, private companies, don't spend time addressing our "common" needs.

If you don't know what our "common" needs are, go to a local community college and take a civics course.

Or, read a book or two. Let me know if you want some recommendations.

By the way. Pay your taxes.

Anonymous said...

Consultant you are right. How can I be so selfish. Please forgive me.

consultant said...

You are forgiven.

Anonymous said...

Thank you. My day is now complete!