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FROM THE RECORD (North Jersey Media Group)
Wednesday, January 3, 2007
By EVONNE COUTROS
STAFF WRITER
A little more than a decade ago, downtown Glen Rock offered something of a picture-postcard mix of mom and pop storefronts.
There was a five-and-dime on Rock Road stocked with fun toys. The windows of the Mandee Shop were filled with seasonal frocks. John's Barber Shop was a fixture, and children could bike to the coin shop or pet store.
Change has come, and those businesses are closed or, in the case of the barbershop, no longer in town. Meanwhile, Glen Rock gained two more banks. A video store gave way to an insurance office. A phone store replaced a beauty supply shop. Starbucks and Subway came to town.
"There were more places where people would shop as opposed to some of the service businesses we see today," said Bob Brown, the owner of Books, Bytes & Beyond in the downtown for 15 years. "People used to go from store to store. There's less of that than there once was."
Robert Garibaldi, the borough attorney, owns the building that housed the five-and-dime. To the delight of neighboring business owners, it will be replaced by a children's clothing boutique. Garibaldi also owns the former garage along Rock Road that houses the local Starbucks.
"I grew up in Glen Rock, and everyone used to go to the five-and-ten," Garibaldi said. "But sometimes a store just can't meet the product or the prices."
Robert VanLangen, 52, who was raised in town, said he does not want to see more banks or nail salons dominating the landscape. But some of the downtown's newer arrivals simply answer today's needs, he said.
"You can't have the technology and not have the places that service the technology in town," VanLangen said of the phone store. "People today do and buy different things than they used to 30 years ago."
Landlord Jim Burns lost his tenant, a video store on Rock Road, because of the public's changing buying habits.
"Some of these businesses are the mastodons ... videos are being replaced by mail order," Burns said.
The businesses that have held on and those with hopes of still being around in another 10 years must adapt to changing times, competition -- and rising rents, owners and others say.
Burns said he raised the rent 15 percent on the 1,500-square-foot space now occupied by an insurance company. The eight tenants in Burns' four buildings in town pay between $18 and $28 per square foot, he said.
Jeffrey Checkley, assistant manager of Weichert Realtors in Ridgewood, said rents generally range from $20 to more than $50 per square foot in Glen Rock depending on the building and location.
In neighboring Ridgewood, storefronts rent for between $40 and $50 per square foot, again, depending on location and other variables, Checkley said.
"Storefronts are at a premium in both towns," Checkley said of Glen Rock and Ridgewood.
Rents in another neighboring borough, Fair Lawn, also depend on location, Checkley said. A low rent is $2,420 for a 1,100-square-foot building near Routes 4 and 17, or a tenant could opt for a $5,600 rent for a 3,500-square-foot space on Fair Lawn Avenue, he said.
Eli Omar is moving Glen Rock Bagels out of a strip mall on Maple Avenue near Route 208 in Glen Rock to a building he purchased on the same street in neighboring Fair Lawn. Omar said staying in the Glen Rock complex would have cost him 33 percent more in rent.
"I decided to leave because I can't afford the rent," he said.
John's Barber Shop also took refuge in Fair Lawn. After 35 years in the same strip mall as the bagel shop, John Giudice recently relocated his business a half-mile away. Giudice, who said he was paying $2,500 a month rent, was given notice in December 2005 to vacate.
The strip mall is being overhauled, with new tenants yet to be announced.
"At this point in my life, I didn't expect to move," said Giudice, 61. But he said most customers have stuck with him, and he's paying roughly the same rent at his new, more spacious location.
Beyond coping with rent issues, business owners must be resilient, creative and responsive to flourish in the borough's downtown, said Michael Stewart, vice president of Glen Rock's Chamber of Commerce. Stewart added that he believes the local presence of national names such as Starbucks and Dunkin' Donuts helps strike a balance with mom and pop stores.
Geno Paolucci of Glen Rock Paint & Hardware has worked to make his store a household name in the three years he's owned the business.
It's stocked with hardware and paint goods to the tune of 16,000 items, but Paolucci has added a touch of the now-gone five-and-dime, selling candy, soda and a smattering of toys.
"The candy's not for the kids, it's for the adults," said Paolucci, 36. "The model cars are a quick gift, and the balloons are for kids whose parents say they can't have any candy." Paolucci said personal service and free delivery have helped him compete with highway big-box stores.
Jozsef Hirs, of Glen Rock, altered his business plan at European Meat Market on Rock Road. Hirs has begun opening on Sunday for customers stocking up for football tailgate parties and barbecues. He added prepared meats for parents on the run.
"Glen Rock is a convenient, friendly town with a hometown feel," Hirs said. But the downtown, he said, "could use more foot traffic."
Even as businesses adapt, Mayor John van Keuren said the borough is always anxious to see new ones that will enhance the desirability of the town.
"The [new children's] clothing store is a great example of a business we like to see," van Keuren said. "We don't need any more pizza and coffee shops. We've got those."
Through all the change, the downtown still boasts an occupancy rate of close to 100 percent. Today's business district, merchants and town leaders say, may have somewhat less charm and shopping appeal, but it is prosperous nonetheless.
Still, some yearn for the good old days.
"I'd like to see more boutiques," said Nancy Catanese, who has lived in the borough for 20 years and works in a hair salon on Rock Road. "If there were more boutiques, people would shop here [all day] rather than get on the highway. I miss being able to come downtown and pick up a quick gift."