The independent restaurant owners whose businesses contribute to State Street’s unique atmosphere saw the extent of their community’s support Monday, when customers showed up en masse to a neighborhood meeting in opposition of a Chicago firm’s plan to redevelop University Inn.
According to Brian Neiswender, developing firm Core Campus co-owner, the 18-month construction of the proposed multi-purpose apartment and commercial complex would temporarily displace restaurant tenants currently on the 500 block of State Street, including Husnu’s, Kabul Restaurant, Buraka and Roast.
University of Wisconsin-Madison senior and Husnu’s employee Eleanor Lewis said any time a business closes for a period of time, there is a chance it will not reopen.
“This is the terrifying part of it–no restaurant can stay closed for that long,” she said. “If you look at the economics of how a business runs, those margins aren’t that big. It’s not like we’re stockpiling money that [Husnu] can just live on.”
The plan would demolish University Inn, the surface parking lot behind it and a four-unit town house, located at 431 N. Frances St. to build a 12-story residence with 200 to 300 upscale apartments and first-floor retail space. Neiswender’s business partner Marc Lifshin said his current vision for the building’s design is modeled after Roast’s exterior.
Community members raised concerns about the increasing commercialization of State Street, and the number of recent chain restaurants to move into the area. Neiswender said Core Campus has a better understanding of the stakeholders’ concerns following Monday’s initial presentation.
“The importance of the current tenants and restaurants in the space clearly is a hot bed for this community and I think we understand that maybe a little bit more than we did before,” Neiswender said. “We’re going to take this as a springboard and we’re going to meet with them personally.”
Moving forward, Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said he will assemble a neighborhood steering committee to be a part of the city approval process. Lewis said she hopes to serve on the committee to represent the community’s interests.
“My approach is to make sure that those businesses, Husnu’s specifically, are taken care of,” Lewis said.
