Go mama go! to close- What does that say about the future of 14th Street retail?

While 14thandyou was on a bit of hiatus over the past couple of weeks (thanks to all of you who sent warm thoughts and well-wishes), we received some unfortunate news: longtime 14th Street retail fixture Go mama go! would be closing its doors at some time in the spring. The store will remain open until the space's landlord is able to locate a replacement tenant.






















According to a release provided by Go mama go's owner, Jonathan Chudnoff:

Go mama go!, the vibrant housewares, accessories and gift shop on 14th Street NW , will be closing its doors in the next few months, according to its owner, Jonathan Chudnoff. Chudnoff attributes the closing to the twin blows of the general economic decline and the death of the store’s founder, Noi Chudnoff, whose dynamic spirit, creativity and personality were key ingredients in the store’s early success.

This is sad news for a couple of reasons. First among them, it means the loss of a unique and pleasant retail fixture on 14th Street. Go mama go's colorful displays and product offerings were a true bright spot for the neighborhood. It is one of those stores that are simply pleasant to stroll through. Secondly, Go mama go! was one of the retail pioneers on 14th Street, opening in their current location in 2001 after a year of operations in a tent at Eastern Market. In addition to providing a boost to the burgeoning retail scene, Noi Chudnoff and her store were a force for positive change in the neighborhood, supporting numerous area charities, causes and organizations.

Beyond the loss of a popular retail establishment however, lies a perhaps greater problem for 14th Street and Logan Circle: can the neighborhood retain a mix of retail and other uses to go along with the exploding bar and restaurant scene?

The loss of Go mama go! is simply the latest domino to fall in what has become a worrying trend on 14th Street. G Fine Arts shuttered their doors last August, and in November indoor/outdoor plant supplier Garden District filed for bankruptcy and continues to hang on by a thread. Green Pets and Big Monkey Comics are looking for new homes. Several other businesses along the corridor--several of them quite prominent--are also feeling the pinch of a declining economy, high property tax rates and increasingly unaffordable commercial lease rates (I can't name any of them directly, but I can say that at least one of them is a well-known men's apparel chain). While restaurant openings have been plentiful during the past year, with more on the way, new retail openings--particularly of the independent variety--have been few and far between.

Over the summer, I served on a committee that examined the state of the 14th Street Arts District, and pondered what might be done to help stave off the decline of arts-related use venues along the corridor. I am increasingly coming to believe that we may quickly be reaching a point where our concern is not simply related to keeping arts uses along the corridor; rather, we may be looking at the potential loss of a number of locally owned retail establishments, while watching 14th Street/Logan becoming primarily a restaurant/bar/entertainment district.

The crux of the problem lies with both the city's property tax rate as well as the going commercial lease rates. What has occurred along 14th Street mimics that of many other urban neighborhoods nationwide: artists and entrepreneurs move into a neglected or under-served neighborhood in a city, due mainly to affordable commercial lease rates. As more businesses arrive, the neighborhood continues to attract attention both from residents and other commercial ventures. Restaurants, bars and lounges arrive, as do chain retailers and other deep-pocketed commercial ventures such as banks. As the neighborhood's desirability rises, the ability for small, locally owned establishments to remain declines. The neighborhood's pioneering businesses are forced to relocate or close, essentially victims of their own success.

At the same time, many commercial tenants are saddled with property tax bills that they simply find unaffordable. Certain landlords may absorb at least some of the property tax hit, but many cannot afford to do this for long. In the end, the lower-volume and/or locally owned establishments move out, finding themselves replaced by national chains and businesses that can afford the higher rates (namely, restaurants, bars and banks).

So what is to be done? Well, if history and a litany of other examples nationwide are any guide, the options are limited. The city can carve out exception to high property tax rates, or provide developmental incentives, for properties that contain a certain favored use (such as an arts use). Beyond that, what you see are market forces taking hold. Unless a local business owner is fortunate enough to develop a relationship with a landlord who is willing to take a sizable hit with regards to their commercial lease rate--and with escalating property taxes, many landlords are increasingly hesitant to do so--the business owner may find him or herself priced out of the very neighborhood he or she helped to build.

The irony of this is that many retail establishments depend upon a certain critical mass in terms of the commercial vibrancy of a neighborhood before they can achieve success. Unless you are catering primarily to neighborhood residents, it's difficult to attract shoppers to your boutique establishment unless there are a number of shops and restaurants to attract them.

Ultimately, what you are left with is a neighborhood with an increasing number of higher-end bars, restaurants, lounges, banks and chain retailers (hello, Room and Board) and fewer of the boutique, locally owned establishments and arts-related businesses such as Go mama go! that attracted many to the neighborhood in the first place. To be sure, this is not an entirely bad thing: Logan's status as a premiere DC dining destination is not necessarily a negative to the residents of the neighborhood who now have an abundance of food and drink choices to select from, for instance. But we are unquestionably losing a bit of our neighborhood's character. And that, along with the loss of a beloved local business, is something worth mourning.