Thursday, Sep. 17, 2009
From Hobo To Boho
Is New Life Being Breathed into Superblock/5 Points District?
Photo by Bobby Altman, for Weekly Surge.
• Photos from the Superblock/5 Points District
Every city has at least one – an area where the young, hip and/or disenfranchised congregate. In Columbia it’s called Five Points and across town near the state capitol, The Vista. Atlanta has a Little Five Points area, too, and another trendy neighborhood, Virginia - Highland. The Five Points designation usually comes from many roads, like say, five, coming together at one point. Virtually all college towns have a region of similar style and function, and even our tourist destination, Myrtle Beach, has a similar spot, although it’s a bit under the radar. Also called Downtown, and The Superblock, what makes our 5 Points (merchants in the area spell it with a numeral), a de-facto hipster hangout? And how is the neighborhood surviving adjacent to the once-bustling oceanfront region near the site of the torn-down Myrtle Beach Pavilion Amusement Park, and after a major Department of Transportation reconfiguration of its main roads a decade ago, designed to speed traffic up, not slow it down?
Will work on a new, mile-long Myrtle Beach boardwalk on the oceanfront have a trickle down effect a few blocks west?
We recently spent a few days and nights in the Superblock/5 Points area and found the mix of merchants and patrons to be generally upbeat about the long-term commercial viability of the district, but not without more money and a little help from the City of Myrtle Beach.
Area businesses have traditionally had difficulty motivating people beyond their own neighborhoods, especially true in our fragmented, long and narrow Grand Strand. Though the 18–54-year-old demographic is sometimes reluctant to travel far, especially at night, there are a few who do so willingly, and regularly. Though the businesses of 5 Points have a day-time following, too, will they be able to brand the area to the masses and communicate the historical and cultural significance of this, our oldest business district?
WHAT’S SO SPECIAL ABOUT 5 POINTS?
To spend any time in 5 Points, located in the heart of Myrtle Beach, visitors must negotiate the mish-mash of intersecting cross streets, all at odd angles to one another, a hairpin dogleg turn in the middle of Kings Highway and two dead ends, Eighth Avenue North and Broadway Street. But still they come, the young, the young-at-heart, and those looking for something not found in a mall or chain restaurant.
Within the district, the bulk of the businesses are located on a one-block stretch of Ninth Avenue North, a three-block stretch of Main Street, then bits and pieces of Eighth Avenue North between Kings Highway and Oak Street. Here you’ll find an architectural firm, photography studio, gay bars, a few nightclubs, a few vacant storefronts, a comic book shop, a bakery, a clothing boutique, gift shops, an art gallery, a specialty decorative house hardware store, two hair salons, a law firm and a head shop – so stick that in your pipe and smoke it.
We’ve decided to explore the establishments only within this narrowly defined region, though the 5 Points merchants would like to see West Broadway Street, with neighborhood businesses including florists, clock repair shops and cozy little taverns, or North of Oak Street including Fresh Brewed Coffee House, Mrs. Fish, or across Eighth Avenue North to include the venerable Bodo’s German Restaurant and Pub. All fit into the broader 5 Points motif and both add to its charm and functionality as the downtown with a bit of everything.
We’ve spoken to a few of these business owners to find out just why they picked the area to open up shop and how they plan to succeed where others have failed. We also met a few patrons of these businesses and asked them why they consistently choose 5 Points over higher profile shopping/entertainment destinations such as Broadway at the Beach or The Market Common, or any other commercial district.
“I love Sun City Café,” said Larry Hardee, owner of Metro Hair Gallery in Myrtle Beach. He and his companions had just exited the small restaurant/bar at 801 Main Street on a recent Tuesday evening. The Sun City Café, at the location for eight years, has a small but loyal following that enjoy the eclectic, fresh Tex/Mex menu, full bar and signature tangy margaritas. “I’ve been coming here for years,” said Hardee, a lifelong resident of the area. He was with friend and co-stylist Greg Sellers, along with Mike Balliette and Leslie Balliette, a couple who recently relocated from Hot Springs, Ark., to the Grand Strand. This was the Balliettes’ first visit to 5 Points and the four were bathed in the afterglow of a few drinks and good food shared with friends – all enjoyed within an authentic urban backdrop.
Crazy J’s and its sister bar, The Basement (819 Main St.), have added a needed boost to 5 Points nightlife, mixing a traditional neighborhood bar, with the area’s only, truly underground nightclub. Opened this spring, The Basement has been in its recent past a rock ’n’ roll venue (Carlito’s Way), a Mexican restaurant (Villa Katrina) and who knows what else. It’s a cellar bar in a building that pre-dates World War II. With its all-ages policy for most rock ’n’ roll events, The Basement attracts a growing legion of teens and young adults who are able to experience big-city styled original rock ’n’ roll from countless local bands, many of which are quite good, and a selection of touring indie artists.
Trainwreck Karaoke, hosted by The Basement’s manager and rocker-in-residence Michael Wood, has traveled the circuit of Myrtle Beach bars over the past several years but found a home in The Basement every Tuesday night, dating back to May. On this particular Tuesday, a collection of 15 or so 20-somethings, including a few Coastal Carolina University students, and some Basement regulars, were having more fun than should be allowed with music so bad. “That’s the whole point,” said Wood. “The worse it is, the better it is. We rarely get good singers down here and that’s the way we like it.” Older movies, usually with a camp or horror theme – such as “The Lost Boys” – play silently on two video screens while fun-loving amateurs rip up the microphones in groups, teams of two or solo. When Jamie (last name unknown) was called to the mike, and the intro to The Counting Crows’ “Mr. Jones” began, the crowd screamed, clapped and took to its feet while he struggled through all 4:32 of the track. Two men in their early 20s, emboldened by the beer, were on deck to sing Bob Marley’s “Could This Be Love.”
Meanwhile, across the convoluted block, on that same recent Tuesday evening, bands from California (White Witch Canyon) and New Mexico (SuperGiant) were loading Marshall stacks and other hard rock gear into the front door of Drink!, a bar/restaurant/nightclub located at 503 Eighth Ave. N. The club, owned by Kris Amendola (formerly of The Clubhouse Myrtle Beach and the Freaky Tiki), has been open for less than a month, and in its last incarnation several years ago was known as Gypsy’s. With a reputation for hosting live jazz, blues and the occasional nationally touring act, Drink! has followed Gypsy’s lead reviving its popular Jazz Open Mike Night each Wednesday. But the club will also focus on local and regional rock ’n’ roll on other nights of the week. Sushi, pool, and video games round out the offerings in this comfortable downtown nightspot.
Thirty or so patrons ranging from very young, to the well-past-50 set, gathered for the show at Drink!, which was promoted by GINGALLEY, a relatively new Web design and promotions team relocated from San Francisco and owned by Chris Gingrich and Jerri Alley. Only a small number in attendance actually paid the $8 cover, according to Alley, who didn’t seem too concerned. The bulk of the crowd was made up of the bands and their guests, so “no one got rich. We only lost $20 bucks,” laughed Alley. The impressive and polished acts, who were both on a national tour, along with a late-night set from The IZM singer Jaesen Moore and guitarist Merrill Weekly as the local duo Smoked Neck Bone, garnered much praise from the crowd and business was light but steady all night and into the wee morning hours.
A small, but well-appointed sushi restaurant in the back of Drink! had several patrons enjoying freshly made California Rolls and the night’s special: Negamaki. The knife-wielding hands of Pickett Streblow, a well-known relocated North-end sushi chef and moonlighting drummer for local rock band Hardgrave, prepared the sushi as well as all the food from the kitchen. A surfers’ lounge with couches and gnarly lighting sits to the side of the main room. A game room, complete with a pool table, darts, video games and booths, offered enough space for pitchers of beer and platters full of standard bar food, giving Drink! the kind of quirky all-things-to-all-people style that fits the 5 Points region so well.
DANGEROUS DOWNTOWN?
The challenges the district face transcend slow Tuesday nights and address bigger issues such as the ability to successfully market itself as a destination, in the same way Broadway at the Beach, The Market Common or the Murrells Inlet Marshwalk have managed to. And, most importantly, can the district shed the one universal perception and comment that so many who are unfamiliar with the area make – isn’t it dangerous down there?
In a word, “no,” says Captain David Knipes, Media Relations Officer for the Myrtle Beach Police Department, when asked if the Superblock/5 Points area is more dangerous than other parts of the city. “We have officers assigned specifically to that [5 Points] area – and this is a fairly small area you’re talking about. There aren’t many residential properties, so home invasions and even violent crimes are probably fewer [there] than in other parts of the city.”
The numbers are not pretty regarding Myrtle Beach's overall crime statistics, which are among the nation's highest at two to seven times higher than the national averages for specific types of crime, according to a 2003 CityRating.com report, which publishes F.B.I. crime stats on virtually every U.S. city and town. According to these numbers Atlanta, Las Vegas and the District of Columbia are all safer. Panama City Beach, Fla., about the same size as Myrtle Beach, fares better at around two times the national average, as does North Myrtle Beach at two-to-three times the national average. Anecdotal evidence suggests that that higher rate is due to the large numbers of transients, especially in the summer, and the F.B.I. warns against simplistic and misleading rankings, such as those offered by CityRating.com. According to the F.B.I, in 2008 Myrtle Beach had 532 violent crimes reported, two murders and 37 rapes. The crime rates for the 5 Points neighborhood specifically are difficult to quantify, but it is the position of the Myrtle Beach Police Department, and Capt. Knipes, that the 5 Points area sees no more crime than any other parts of the city, and perhaps is lower there than in many other Myrtle Beach neighborhoods.
Still the region faces some perception problems with limited street-side parking, made worse when the South Carolina D.O.T. came to town and stripped the district of a number of spaces, especially on Main Street. It also doesn’t help that the small municipal and private parking lots are either hidden or many blocks away. None of these issues are unique to Myrtle Beach’s 5 Points and really represent nothing more than typical urban inconveniences. “A lot of the perception problems came from years ago when lots of the homeless were always hanging around down near the [Nance Plaza] fountain,” said Knipes. “They would sometimes bathe in the fountain and we got a lot of calls about solicitation [panhandling], but when most of the homeless services, like the Community Kitchen and Helping Hand, moved, the homeless went with them.”
Homeless folks, for a variety of reasons, seem to discourage foot traffic, and are sometimes falsely blamed for the bulk of crime in an area. Still, 5 Points merchants say they will have easier jobs marketing to their clients, now that the most of homeless that once populated the district are gone. It’s widely believed that there is little correlation between homelessness and serious crime, though upticks in petty crimes (panhandling, litter, public urination, etc.) often can be linked to the homeless. Regardless of the bigger issue of Myrtle Beach’s homeless population – they’re no longer congregating in 5 Points.
Street Reach Mission moved from its Ninth Ave. North location to 1005 Osceola Ave., taking the majority of its homeless clients with it.
“When the homeless shelter was here you’d see people lying around, and everyone was afraid to come here,” said Lacy Paulussen, who, along with her husband Andrew Paulussen, own House Parts at 801 Main St. “And they tore down the woods back there that were thriving on Mr. Joe White Avenue – they had that tent city. They’d walk up here to spend the night or down to the beach to stay out of trouble.”
With most of the homeless relocated, business is picking up and the area “looks and feels better,” according to the Paulussens. When their teenage son moves on, the Paulussens are considering moving their residence to 5 Points. “We can live down here. [This is where we will start] our second life as city dwellers,” said Lacy Paulussen. “We can run over to Bodo’s to eat, and we have a great view of the ocean.”
The Paulussen’s business is a rare-to-Myrtle Beach mom-and-pop decorative house hardware store that supplements any lack of street traffic with Internet marketing, but more foot traffic is always welcome, and the 5 Points business association is trying to create just that.
5 POINTS BUSINESS ASSOCIATION
Some, like Andrew Paulussen of House Parts, are not thrilled with the designations “Superblock” or “5 Points” and wish the merchants and city could come up with another name. “There was always this cloud over Superblock and 5 Points,” said Paulussen. “We need a fresh, clean start. If somebody calls and asks us where we’re located, we say “Downtown Myrtle Beach.” I’ve never said I’m in the 5 Points section or the Superblock,” but still Paulussen conceded that other cities have a vibrant Five Points, and that it could work here, too.
Rik Dickinson, president of Encore Video Productions (811 Main St.) has been the driving force behind the 5 Points merchants/business association. “We bought this building in 1987,” said Dickinson, referring to an old abandoned movie theater, which his company transformed into a sound stage, pre- and post-production workspace and business office. “We’ve gone dormant and back and forth on the 5 Points [association] but as things slowly change and improve, our goal is to turn downtown Myrtle Beach into a must-visit destination.” Dickinson thinks the Superblock designation may date back as far as the 1950s and that the 5 Points name is probably the best option. “We want to go to the city, like the Oceanfront [Merchants Association] guys did, and the city is saying ‘Show us a plan.’ It’s really starting to come alive, it’s starting to happen.”
The piece of dirt between Eighth and Ninth avenues north and Ocean Boulevard was once home to the Pavilion amusement park, and is not within the esoteric boundaries we’ve constructed for this article, yet there is an impact. Dickinson says the land has been approved for use by the Burroughs & Chapin Company, the property’s owner, and the city of Myrtle Beach, for a variety of community and traffic-building events. “We can promote concerts, festivals … and we have the verbal approvals.” Dickinson, and whomever he can motivate to help him, has big plans to revive Myrtlefest, a food, music, and arts & crafts event last held in 5 Points more than a decade ago. “I can’t do everything by myself,” he said, “but the city is ready for us to do it. We’re working hard to get a membership drive going, and we’ve got [some money] in the bank.”
COMICS, FINE ART, CDS, “TOBACCO PRODUCTS” AND ZONING NIGHTMARES
Robin Roberts, architect, founder of the Palmetto Group, and owner of Palmetto Studios (807 Main St.), and partner in Corsair Comics, was once much more enthusiastic and energized about the future of 5 Points, but has faced so much opposition seeing the café district of his dreams becoming a reality that he’s somewhat skeptical about any major positive changes for the region anytime soon. “This is our bohemian district,” said Roberts, who was sitting among stacks of architectural plans in his upstairs office. “When I first looked into moving [The Palmetto Group] here the city was going to create a Café District. They said they wanted a bohemian district with tables and umbrellas, and street musicians, so I bought the building, renovated it, and on my first day of business put a sandwich board [advertising] sign on the sidewalk and a cop came and wrote me a ticket with a fine. I later found out that a new zoning ordinance, an Apparel Ordinance, superceded the Café District ordinance, which essentially shut everything down. They made me take my grand opening banner off the side of the building.” Ten years later Roberts has never quite recovered from the disappointment and has found some in city government unresponsive and shortsighted in their vision for 5 Points.
“I came in here raring to go, full of energy and then watched them take my parking away, change the zoning, make it more dangerous for pedestrians.” Roberts sighed and tried to put a positive spin on things. His business represents one of the single largest private investments in 5 Points. “I think it will eventually become the bohemian, café district that we’d like to see, but it will be because private industry [with deep pockets] makes it happen – probably after the Pavilion site is redeveloped.”
Downstairs from Roberts’ office, four hobbyists were oblivious to the greater challenges 5 Points’ merchants’ face.
Located in the back of Corsair Comics, co-owned by Roberts’ friend and longtime comic guru, Steve Haines, four dedicated modelers were set up on folding tables painting miniatures so small, some required large magnifying classes and tiny single-hair paintbrushes. Joe Paradis, a regular at Corsair Comics, loves the hobby. “We meet here every Thursday, sometimes Tuesdays,” said Paradis. “It’s open to anybody that wants to come and paint. We’ve had maybe nine or ten in here painting.” Chris Jordan has been building and painting models for 10 years. He was working on a Star Wars-esque Imperial Walker of sorts. “I’m here every Thursday, I wouldn’t miss this. It’s one of my hobbies.” Newby painter Cole Lynch finally had the money to launch into the hobby. “I like the fantasy stuff. I bought the models and the paint and Steve told me about the Thursday painting, and here I am.” The youngest painter, and the only girl in the group, was 13-year-old Carrie Noaeil, who, when questioned about painting in the middle of a school day, said she was home-schooled and therefore able to meet for the Thursday afternoon painting group. “I’m painting these vampires and skeletons for my mom,” she said, holding up for inspection the individual ghouls, each no larger than a grape.
The only thing more unusual than Gary Finkenbiner’s name is the name of his popular used CD/DVD buy-sell-trade store, Kilgor Trouts Music & More, named for the alter-ego of author Kurt Vonnegut. A throwback to head shops popular in college towns across America, beginning in the 1960s, Finkenbiner has stocked his shelves with thousands of used CDs and vinyl, DVDs, video game cartridges and some gaming systems, T-shirts, gay pride accessories, custom-made jewelry, and enough of an assortment of bohemian goods to make any hippie drool. “We’re basically a head shop,” said Finkenbiner, who opened the store three years ago. The store had been at 10th Avenue North and Broadway Street for 10 years prior to the move. “We’re doing really well here.” One corner of the store is stocked with glass pipes, bongs, water pipes and other smoking accessories. “I’ve lived all over the country,” said Finkenbiner, “and every major city had at least a couple of stores just like this. Our customers are mostly of the open-minded, alternative type, of every age.”
Finkenbiner has talked with the 5 Points association but sees the organization as one still trying to find its footing. “They asked me to help with a Web site,” he said, “but I’m not sure what’s going on with them right now.” He likes the name and supports the association’s goals. “I think it should be called 5 Points,” he said. “Every city has one. Our biggest problem here is the [restrictive] zoning. They won’t even let me put a sign that I want up on the building. They want you to put up the sign that they want to see, not the one that makes sense for the business.” The Community Appearance Board, which authorizes all commercial signage in the city, maintains strict control over the color, size, style, and placement of all signs within the city limits.
PRETTY VACANT
In an economy that’s feeding the loss of businesses large and small, 5 Points seems to be faring no worse and perhaps even better than other business districts. Of the six or so blocks that make up the area, there are only a handful of empty storefronts. But when perception counts for everything, even a handful of empty stores can give the impression that 5 Points is deserted, dying and desolate.
A rarely used park, Nance Plaza, is an attractive element to the 5 Points landscape with its redbrick pavers and centerpiece fountain surrounded by benches and the calming sounds of moving water. The park was dedicated October 10, 2000, and named in honor of Daniel Wayne Nance and Mary Ellen Todd Nance for their contribution to Myrtle Beach’s “early civic, business and religious growth.” A time capsule sits buried under a large stone monument and is scheduled to be opened in 2054.
Once a gathering spot for many of the area’s homeless, Nance Plaza is much quieter these days – now no one uses it, except for the occasional geo-cache hunter. While researching this story, in 10 separate visits over several days and nights, not one person was seen eating lunch, reading a book or using the park, which offers an unobstructed view of the ocean, under ample shade trees. In fairness, the plaza does see some occasional activity with various organizations utilizing the space, which can accommodate large groups for outdoor presentations.
The Agape Christian Fellowship, a typical small storefront charismatic church, faces Nance Plaza as does Labor Ready, a business that supplies temporary workers to construction and manufacturing sites.
GAY BARS, DRAG SHOWS, KARAOKE
The rainbow flags associated with gay identity and gay-friendly businesses and meeting places, wave over both Time Out! and The Rainbow House Bar & Grill. Assumed by many to be an establishment catering primarily to the lesbian community, a recent mid-week afternoon visit to the Rainbow House found it filled with men, from those in their 20s up to their 60s or 70s. They socialized with one another and were enjoying cocktails, cigarettes and friendly banter. The bar/restaurant, with entrances on Main Street and through the back door, adjacent to a shared parking lot, is known for a lively and spirited crowd from all orientations, especially after 2 a.m., and its regularly scheduled entertainment events.
Time Out! (520 Eighth Ave. N.) is perhaps the more well-known of the city’s two gay bars and caters to young and old; entertaining its patrons with karaoke, drag shows, dancing, a pool-room with three tables, and an outdoor patio bar. Billy Bridges and Steve McCartney of Greenville, N.C., were shooting pool at the club and had spent three nights out of the five of their vacation at Time Out! “We come down to go to the beach, mostly,” said Bridges. “We come here to shoot pool and drink a little.” “It’s really the only gay club around here,” added McCartney. Ken Eschenbach, the owner for 20 years, is a regular fixture at his bar and understands the club’s place in 5 Points. “We’re a neighborhood bar that happens to be gay,” he said. “We have terrific bartenders and terrific customers and we do what we have to do to stay busy – drag shows, karaoke. Everybody has fun here.” The bar is “Heterosexual-friendly,” according to its Web site, and it opens at 5 p.m. daily, seven days a week, 365 days per year. Less than a block away, The Center Project (736 Eighth Ave. N.) serves the gay, lesbian, and transgendered community with outreach programs and in support capacities.
It was once rumored that all the bars in 5 Points were “gay bars,” which was never true, and this clearly made the homophobic crowd nervous and may have kept some patrons from visiting the area. 5 Points is Myrtle Beach’s first business district, with buildings dating back to the 1920s, and is one of the most historically interesting, and culturally and socially diverse neighborhoods in the city, catering to a wide ranging clientele. This should be reason enough for residents and visitors to take an interest in its future.
Perhaps when the time capsule at Nance Plaza is opened 45 years from now, we’ll know for sure if 5 Points survived its growing pains, multiple re-zonings, and the misconceptions and prejudices that so many in the Myrtle Beach area seem to harbor. Or in a future half-century ahead of us will 5 Points have become just another lost footnote in the city’s history, a paved over strip mall, perhaps our long-awaited casino or shinny new amusement park?
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