Brattleboro shrugs off C&S loss and brings on the cows

Vermont Business Magazine, May 01, 2002 by Marcel, Joyce

Brattleboro is still recovering from last month's decision by C&S Wholesale Grocers, Inc to build its new corporate headquarters in Keene, NH. The decision could result in the loss of an estimated $400,000 a year in new property taxes for the town, as well as lost business in area hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, stationery supply stores and the rest. However, Brattleboro is far from down for the count.

"The fallout from C&S is yet to be determined," said Town Manager Jerry Remillard. "The plans for the campus-style corporate park we were going to put in for C&S will obviously go on the shelf now.

"My guess would be that the Brattleboro Development Credit Corp would turn to the more immediate task of trying to fill the vacancies at the old Book Press building."

Construction of a new office campus on the 17-acre old Book Press site on Putney Road/Route 5, now owned by the BDCC, was offered to C&S as an incentive to stay in Brattleboro.

C&S ultimately rejected Brattleboro's offer for a few reasons. Executives said 17 acres was not large enough for the company to build and expand upon, because Brattleboro had no other flat, open sites to offer. C&S also cited the benefits of Keene's commercial airport.

However, Brattleboro does have smaller flat, open, developable spaces.

"We're seeing a much higher level of interest in building and developing things in Brattleboro," Remillard said. "That can go anywhere from different types of housing to commercial and industrial interests. Nothing yet has come to fruition, but there's more interest than there has been in the past. We're running counter to the national economy, so I'm optimistic."

The town is currently finalizing design plans for a $9 million downtown transportation center; construction should begin this summer.

Walgreens Drug Store is making noises about developing a site on Canal Street, currently the home of a large automobile dealer.

That company also owns the large Auto Mall on Putney Road.

"I would think there could be a future consolidation there," Remillard said.

Also on Putney Road, the large Grand Union site, vacant for several years, has been sold to a developer and is undergoing substantial interior and exterior renovations.

"It's safe to say that two or three tenants will be going in shortly," Remillard said.

Another Putney Road success story is Fulflex of Vermont, which manufactures elastic. When the company closed, it took somewhere between 30 and 40 jobs with it.

"Then they actually went through a restructuring, decided to reopen the facility, and consolidate some operations," Remillard said. "They got an Act 250 permit, did an expansion, and they're going ahead very nicely again. So C&S is a loss, but the way things are in this town, we just work harder. I'm sure that out of all of this, something will come that's even better. We understand that C&S has to make good business decisions, and we know they're still part of the community, and we know they'll remain that way."

DOWNTOWN

Downtown Brattleboro is thriving. Almost all the storefronts are filled, and the town is developing quite a nice niche in the area of art, antiques, collectibles, vintage clothing, and home furnishings. Retail stores are playing hopscotch in their efforts to get on to or as near as they can to Main Street.

"Every storefront but two are full on Main Street," said Nelle Hanig, executive director of Building a Better Brattleboro. "We just opened Mariposa, a woman's clothing store, at 2 Elliot Street. The Christian Science Reading Room, which used to be in that space, bought one of the old Lyons Travel buildings and moved two storefronts down.

Lakeside Crafts and Custom Engraved Glass opened at 55 Elliot, where Tom & Sally's Chocolates used to be before they moved out to Route 30.

"Experienced Goods has opened a new, next-door addition selling home furnishings, collectibles, books and toys. Unique Furnishings Outlet, where Galanes' dollar store used to be, is now under new management and is changing its name to A Walk Down Main Street. Boomerang has moved from Elliot Street to 119 Main. They moved into the space that used to be Black Apple Tattoo, which left downtown. We're now down to one tattoo parlor and one henna tattoo parlor."

The town has at least 10 home furnishing shops now.

"At this point, stores are just coming to us," Hanig said. "It's very nice. Shops have felt a real positive energy in downtown Brattleboro, and they're drawn to it."

In January, BABB closed on the old Dunkin' Donuts building in the center of town, where Main and High streets intersect.

"Since then, we've sought and been awarded $378,000 in grants, some federal, some state, for acquisition, design and construction of a park/plaza on the front section," Hanig said. "We've subdivided the site, and have a purchase-and-sales agreement with a private developer to purchase the back end of it. We'll be closing in May. They will be rehabing the building and putting in a new business, most likely a restaurant."

The town is in the middle of a facade improvement program, replacing barn board above Main Street storefronts with copper panels.