Scott Armstrong at the Allentown Commentator message board has posted some info regarding the vacant Shanty Restaurant, once a popular nightspot, restaurant, and venue for local bands in "The 19th St. Theatre District." According to Scott, the iconic Shanty on "La strada 19th" will become Les Auto Parts Centre. Is this really a done deal? http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheAllentownCommentator/message/9895If it is true, how tres' chic for our upscale boutique and theatre distreect! But those new banners that mark the area may have to be changed to say "Theatre and Auto District." Hey folks, drop your car off for an oil, lube and filter while taking in a foreign film at the historic 19th St. Theatre. We specialize in foreign cars. The city can market this as "Fellini and Fenders." It's so European. I must commend the city for this multicultural and surrealistic vision. This really does show the importance of the arts in Allentown's Renaissance. Or, maybe I'm just dreaming too. Nothing really makes sense to me anymore. C'est la vie!
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16 comments:
Why is Allentown so flighty and unpredictable? The Shanty Restaurant was a dining and dancing and music listening-to institution for decades. It has a great location with plenty of parking. Hmm, what to put in there now, let's see ... i got it! A RESTAURANT! But of course! No, wait. Auto Parts. This makes much more sense ...
this is not a done deal...and there is a restaurant interested...cannot say any more but the city does realize how important this location is as a restaurant and has worked to get one in there...it's always a race against the clock though.
Glad to hear it's not a done deal yet!
"there is a restaurant interested..."
There should be 10 local restauranteurs fighting over it! Same with the Saylors Diner site at 19th and Tilghman. Our locals have no vision. Zero. Thank God for the transplants to our area who come from places where things actually GET DONE. I can only imagine their frustration ...
Fellinis and Fenders is ACTUALLY a hot name !! Maybe it can be used for SOMETHING. Good luck on the restaurant deal.
Alfonso
"I must commend the city for this multicultural and surrealistic vision." Too funny!
I think the Auto Parts thing is an ugly rumor. A new auto parts store just opened on Tilghman around the corner from 19th. I can't see the need for yet another store of this kind. But, you know commercial developers, if it works once, let's do it a zillion times til it freakin' kills us!
By the way, nice image from "La Strada." I love Anthony Quinn and Giulietta Masina. She was great in Fellini's "Nights of Cabiria" as an impish prostitute.
If you're using "Fender", as in the guitar, I can surely see a great name for an accordion toting Italian rock band.
Anon 12:53,
You make a good point about locals lacking vision. There are, unfortunately, a lot of city natives who feel "if it's not broke, don't fix it" and as they sit and wait, things have and are deteriorating.
Some outsiders have completed good projects in A-town, but it seems to me there are even more of them operating properties and slumlords and letting our historic buildings deteriorate. (Colonial Theater, Americus, Neuweiler, etc.)
Sorry - operating properties AS slumlords and letting them deteriorate...
Sarina, true, there is that side of the outsider issue ...
LV Film,
As someone who plays a Fender Telecaster, I appreciate the humor! Actually I meant car fender.
It's the only car word I could think of starting with an F.:D
Speaking of dteriorating buildings, Anyone know what is going on with the vacant Schoen's building on Hamilton St? I heard it was supposed to become an upscale art gallery on first floor. The city owns it now.
The Schoen's building is being purchased (or has been already) by Nic Zawarski, the developer that built townhomes on Walnut St. They're renovating it for lofts and a downstairs restaurant/retail space. They plan to build a 6 or 7 floor building on the vacant lot next door for their new corp headquarters. I think that would have commercial space downstairs, too.
I just remembered, the developer mentioned that he wants to place a sculpture garden in front of his new building that would connect to the Arts Walk right across the street.
Sarina,
Didn't Joyce Marin mention the building at our meeting, I forget what she said about it.
Maybe she could tell us more if she's reading this. It just seems like those plans have been in the works for a while and the paper today said that the AEDC is overseeing the redevelopment of the building, and that's the dept. that Joyce worked for before becoming Director of Economic and COmmunity Development.
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