Boarded Up and Forgotten

Michelle Worley here, blogging briefly about our short walk further down Central Avenue today. My daughter Kelsey and I didn't hit the road until afternoon and it was hot today so we parked in the almost empty parking lot of the almost empty strip mall on the northeast corner of Juan Tabo and Central and walked back to where we left off last Saturday -- Western Skies. Only a couple of blocks but eye opening, starting with the strip mall on Juan Tabo. 

There is a Lota Burger on the corner, which seems to get good business. Then there are, on the other side of the lot, a few small shops that are in business, including a sandwich shop, a pet salon, and a people salon. 

Everything else is closed and boarded up. When we were there, there were parked cars scattered about the lot and in many of them, there were people sitting inside. Just parking somewhere for lunch?

We then headed back up Central toward Western Skies and tallied up in- and out-of-businesses on both sides of Central. Altogether, including the strip mall, we found that there were 10 in-businesses and 9 out-of-businesses. We visited the Salvation Army thrift store, a very nice store, to cool off a little. Then we headed back to the car. 
Summing up
The first day we explored Central, we counted 55 total businesses, 40% of which were out of business. When we add today's numbers, we have a total of 74 businesses. Forty-three are in business and 31 are out of business. That's almost 42% out of business. 

In one short walk of only two blocks, the number of out-of-businesses has grown by 2%. This project could get depressing. 

How can we turn it around and create something positive from it? Can we do something for the homeless? Are the owners of these out-of-businesses hurting financially, too? Is there a way to help them get out from under? Things to think about. 

That's it for today. Another spectacular fall day in the Land of Enchantment. Enjoy!