The Death of the Tower District
by The Editor
I was barely 19 when I moved to Fresno, and this city didn’t make sense to me at first. It was either really poor or really affluent with not much in terms of a happy medium. I remember one time driving the entire length of Cedar from Jensen to Shepherd. I don’t know why I did that. At that point in my life it was one of the more terrifying experiences I had ever had.
One night, after being here a few months, I found myself at a party that petered out way the fuck too early--like 8 o’clock. And unfortunately for me, I had just arrived. A few of the hosts wanted things to keep going, so we all headed to the Tower District.
Up until this point, I had never heard of the Tower District. From the name, I supposed that it was Downtown, and being that it was a “District”, I sensed debaucherous times were to be had.
Unfortunately for me, I was still just a little baby in the eyes of the law, so my friends made me drive, even though I had no idea how to get there. I remember taking the 180 West even though I had only ever been on the 180 East, taking an exit marked “Tower District”, making my way through treacherous one way streets, until finally, under the cover of fog, I found myself in the first part of this city that I ever truly loved.
Speaking of one-way streets, I also found myself almost getting hit by some asshole who had turned the wrong way down the one-way street I was on. What an asshole.
I remember smoking out on the cold street, the amber glow of the old street lamps illuminating the moisture in the air, standing in the shadow of old buildings. I still look back on that night with fondness. I was glad Fresno had a place like this.
Over the next few years, I would visit Tower many times, even making it my home for a time. I was always a vocal supporter of this city within the city.
But I’ve been noticing shit; shit that I just can’t let go. And this shit is perpetuated by the Tower District Marketing Committee.
As the years have passed, Tower has lost its luster. There was once an aura of freshness and excitement to this place, but I haven’t felt that in years. There are no restaurants in the Tower worth their salt (besides maybe Casa de Tamales, but I have a feeling they won’t be sticking around long). When was the last time you had a meal in the Tower District that was mind-blowingly delicious? When was the last time you went to one of the many Tower District events that didn’t just feel sad?
The Tower District Marketing Committee has good intentions, of course. They, too, love the Tower District, and, like the Grand Ole Party, wish to hearken back to a Golden Age. But it is these policies and Golden Age Syndrome that kill the things that make Tower what it is. Tower should be a center of creativity and expression. Whatever Fresno has left of this is moving out of the neighborhood that birthed them from its swollen womb.
For my evidence, I will offer you the TDMC’s stance on Food Trucks. With the proliferation of Food Trucks these days, their success no longer relies on the gimmick of food served out of a nasty roach wagon. Their success relies on them actually having good food. Rather than investing right off the bat in a Brick and Mortar restaurant (our research team Googled a failure rate of 23% within the first year), Food Trucks allow someone who has a good food idea to create a market and base of support at a lower cost, so that when they do inevitably invest in the Brick and Mortar location they have a higher chance of success. I would say this is the ultimate goal of a Food Truck---not to be bound to the truck but to move on to better things. Look at Dusty Buns, Benaddiction, Zamore, and Raw Fresno. All of these places started with trucks and now have physical locations. Casa de Tamales also found success BECAUSE they played the Food Truck game (they had a Brick and Mortar restaurant in the worst location imaginable but sold Tamales out of a tent at any and all Food Truck gatherings they could find.) Mobility gave these businesses a chance at success despite the recession. That's fucking incredible.
The TDMC’s official position is to support restaurants that have followed the traditional Brick and Mortar path to success. This works in Tower because people go there expecting to find a ton of awesome restaurants, so there’s always a crowd no matter what. They fear that Food Trucks will steal this business and then literally drive away.
But really, the Food Trucks offer something that these Brick and Mortar restaurants don’t, which is—sometimes—good food. Eventually, people are going to realize that the restaurants in Tower suck, at which point they’ll just drive somewhere else where they can actually find good food (and there's definitely a place nearby full of options). If this is true, then Food Trucks are actually essential to the future of the Tower District. If the Tower District wants to survive past the next 10 years, they will have to return to the value that made them successful in the first place: inclusivity.
But, of course, they won’t.
And this is indicative of larger trends that exist in the Tower District. The TDMC is so afraid of changing that they’ve killed the thrill. Frankly, I’m bored with the Tower District. It needs new life. Right now it's floundering. And I'm pretty sure we're going to see it die.
I was barely 19 when I moved to Fresno, and this city didn’t make sense to me at first. It was either really poor or really affluent with not much in terms of a happy medium. I remember one time driving the entire length of Cedar from Jensen to Shepherd. I don’t know why I did that. At that point in my life it was one of the more terrifying experiences I had ever had.
One night, after being here a few months, I found myself at a party that petered out way the fuck too early--like 8 o’clock. And unfortunately for me, I had just arrived. A few of the hosts wanted things to keep going, so we all headed to the Tower District.
Up until this point, I had never heard of the Tower District. From the name, I supposed that it was Downtown, and being that it was a “District”, I sensed debaucherous times were to be had.
Unfortunately for me, I was still just a little baby in the eyes of the law, so my friends made me drive, even though I had no idea how to get there. I remember taking the 180 West even though I had only ever been on the 180 East, taking an exit marked “Tower District”, making my way through treacherous one way streets, until finally, under the cover of fog, I found myself in the first part of this city that I ever truly loved.
Speaking of one-way streets, I also found myself almost getting hit by some asshole who had turned the wrong way down the one-way street I was on. What an asshole.
I remember smoking out on the cold street, the amber glow of the old street lamps illuminating the moisture in the air, standing in the shadow of old buildings. I still look back on that night with fondness. I was glad Fresno had a place like this.
Over the next few years, I would visit Tower many times, even making it my home for a time. I was always a vocal supporter of this city within the city.
But I’ve been noticing shit; shit that I just can’t let go. And this shit is perpetuated by the Tower District Marketing Committee.
As the years have passed, Tower has lost its luster. There was once an aura of freshness and excitement to this place, but I haven’t felt that in years. There are no restaurants in the Tower worth their salt (besides maybe Casa de Tamales, but I have a feeling they won’t be sticking around long). When was the last time you had a meal in the Tower District that was mind-blowingly delicious? When was the last time you went to one of the many Tower District events that didn’t just feel sad?
The Tower District Marketing Committee has good intentions, of course. They, too, love the Tower District, and, like the Grand Ole Party, wish to hearken back to a Golden Age. But it is these policies and Golden Age Syndrome that kill the things that make Tower what it is. Tower should be a center of creativity and expression. Whatever Fresno has left of this is moving out of the neighborhood that birthed them from its swollen womb.
For my evidence, I will offer you the TDMC’s stance on Food Trucks. With the proliferation of Food Trucks these days, their success no longer relies on the gimmick of food served out of a nasty roach wagon. Their success relies on them actually having good food. Rather than investing right off the bat in a Brick and Mortar restaurant (our research team Googled a failure rate of 23% within the first year), Food Trucks allow someone who has a good food idea to create a market and base of support at a lower cost, so that when they do inevitably invest in the Brick and Mortar location they have a higher chance of success. I would say this is the ultimate goal of a Food Truck---not to be bound to the truck but to move on to better things. Look at Dusty Buns, Benaddiction, Zamore, and Raw Fresno. All of these places started with trucks and now have physical locations. Casa de Tamales also found success BECAUSE they played the Food Truck game (they had a Brick and Mortar restaurant in the worst location imaginable but sold Tamales out of a tent at any and all Food Truck gatherings they could find.) Mobility gave these businesses a chance at success despite the recession. That's fucking incredible.
The TDMC’s official position is to support restaurants that have followed the traditional Brick and Mortar path to success. This works in Tower because people go there expecting to find a ton of awesome restaurants, so there’s always a crowd no matter what. They fear that Food Trucks will steal this business and then literally drive away.
But really, the Food Trucks offer something that these Brick and Mortar restaurants don’t, which is—sometimes—good food. Eventually, people are going to realize that the restaurants in Tower suck, at which point they’ll just drive somewhere else where they can actually find good food (and there's definitely a place nearby full of options). If this is true, then Food Trucks are actually essential to the future of the Tower District. If the Tower District wants to survive past the next 10 years, they will have to return to the value that made them successful in the first place: inclusivity.
But, of course, they won’t.
And this is indicative of larger trends that exist in the Tower District. The TDMC is so afraid of changing that they’ve killed the thrill. Frankly, I’m bored with the Tower District. It needs new life. Right now it's floundering. And I'm pretty sure we're going to see it die.
Comments
Post a Comment