Appleton's downtown can get better. Don't get me wrong - Appleton's downtown IS improving; it really is; there are lots of nice places and knick-knack stores there; however it can get better. There are a lot of things that are holding it down - both by the city and by the city's businesses.
I've talked with Courtney - the owner of the shop I'm painting the mural at - and she told me all about the stores surrounding hers and the silly state they're in. Those business owners have bought out the properties above their store, and most of them are paid off so they only need to pay utilities every month; and they only use the store's "profit" to pay their bills and maybe a little something for expenses, but that's it. In other words, they couldn't care less how much money their store makes in a day. So some shops are run down, dusty, sell old merchandise; they don't advertise to get people to stop in and sometimes they're only open for 3-4 days out of the week. And I think I have a pretty good idea that the guy who owns Appleton Imports has another kind of "business" going in his apartment above his store.
Some business owners also own other downtown properties; however they are awful landlords. Courtney is currently renting the property that her store is in, and she's been having problems with water leaking through the back door since day one. One night after heavy rain she came in and the entire back room was flooded, thanks to a leaky door. The state of the door itself is in shambles; the wood has been so water damaged I could probably kick the door down with ease. So she talks with her landlord, and almost a month goes by and he doesn't fix it. Finally after the second month he does come in to fix it - but what is his resolution to this problem? He puts a line of caulk along the threshold to "channel the water to the drainpipe".
Something that took ten minutes to do - that ANYONE could do - and the caulk didn't hold the water at all anyway. So she complains again about the water leaking in, and this time THREE months go by with consistent blowing off by the landlord; then just today a hired contracter comes in and puts a plank of wood down in the threshold and caulks it. What a fucking joke; not only is this plank of wood a tripping hazard, it's also WOOD - and wood gets water damaged just like door is right now. Seriously, the place just needs a brand new door and a brand new molding, but the landlord will never pay for one.
Some business regulations are retarded and need to be repealed - for instance, if the amount of cords running across the wall to one outlet is over a certain amount, it is against city ordinances. Some downtown building's architecture doesn't have enough outlets in a room for all the cords they use; and they have to run them along the wall into another room sometimes in order to get enough lighting. Of course another outlet can be built, but that costs money and most landlords will never do anything if it requires spending money. While I understand the nature behind these ordinances, in the end they hurt more than help.
I've talked with Courtney - the owner of the shop I'm painting the mural at - and she told me all about the stores surrounding hers and the silly state they're in. Those business owners have bought out the properties above their store, and most of them are paid off so they only need to pay utilities every month; and they only use the store's "profit" to pay their bills and maybe a little something for expenses, but that's it. In other words, they couldn't care less how much money their store makes in a day. So some shops are run down, dusty, sell old merchandise; they don't advertise to get people to stop in and sometimes they're only open for 3-4 days out of the week. And I think I have a pretty good idea that the guy who owns Appleton Imports has another kind of "business" going in his apartment above his store.
Some business owners also own other downtown properties; however they are awful landlords. Courtney is currently renting the property that her store is in, and she's been having problems with water leaking through the back door since day one. One night after heavy rain she came in and the entire back room was flooded, thanks to a leaky door. The state of the door itself is in shambles; the wood has been so water damaged I could probably kick the door down with ease. So she talks with her landlord, and almost a month goes by and he doesn't fix it. Finally after the second month he does come in to fix it - but what is his resolution to this problem? He puts a line of caulk along the threshold to "channel the water to the drainpipe".
Something that took ten minutes to do - that ANYONE could do - and the caulk didn't hold the water at all anyway. So she complains again about the water leaking in, and this time THREE months go by with consistent blowing off by the landlord; then just today a hired contracter comes in and puts a plank of wood down in the threshold and caulks it. What a fucking joke; not only is this plank of wood a tripping hazard, it's also WOOD - and wood gets water damaged just like door is right now. Seriously, the place just needs a brand new door and a brand new molding, but the landlord will never pay for one.
Some business regulations are retarded and need to be repealed - for instance, if the amount of cords running across the wall to one outlet is over a certain amount, it is against city ordinances. Some downtown building's architecture doesn't have enough outlets in a room for all the cords they use; and they have to run them along the wall into another room sometimes in order to get enough lighting. Of course another outlet can be built, but that costs money and most landlords will never do anything if it requires spending money. While I understand the nature behind these ordinances, in the end they hurt more than help.
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nattytattat:
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