Staples

 Staples, despite the emptiness of the shelves, is not going out of business. The Carbondale store is currently hiring part-time sales associates and apparently is looking for 2 full time supervisors and a store manager. Heck of a lot of turnover there, it appears.

Yummy Buffet

 Yummy Buffet had a soft launch this past Sunday and, from what I have heard, everything went smoothly, with the parking lot full and a line out to door to check the place out.

I also heard that Qin Guan had a full parking lot so that bodes well for both restaurants. Hope Carbondale can support both of them.  I remember Superbuffet was located across from Qin Guan some years ago and Happy Reunion in Murdale Shopping Center closed a few years ago.

Buildings Up for Auction

 Two commercial buildings on the west side of town up for auction. One used to house The Vape Shop and Subway before that.  The other one has been empty so long  I do not remember what was in there, but it has showroom space, there bathrooms and multiple office spaces. Absolute auction so high bid takes them.

Hanger 9

 From what I hear, Hanger 9 has sold. No idea as to who or when it will reopen or if it will reopen under the same name. Too bad a deal could not have been closed last fall, so that the business did not shut down and disrupt the lives of the employees.

Yummy Buffet

 Yummy Buffet will have a soft opening this Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. I see Qin Guan is counter programing the new place by putting up a billboard right in front of the property.

Entertainment Pavilion

 While it is a nice thing to have and I should have said this before construction started, I do not see how much use the city will get out of the facility. Since it is outdoors, it can only be used 3 seasons of the year. If the city plans to move the Sunset Concerts from Turly Park to the pavilion, that makes sense as there is no reason to keep them there when we have a brand spanking new stage to use, but what about in spring and fall? Unless the city and other organizations plan to increase the number of outdoor concerts in downtown, the only other events I can think of that would go there are the Off the Rails concerts.

Brown Bag Concerts

 Carbondale Main Street really ought to stop putting on the Brown Bag Concerts. From what I can tell, looking at photos of the events, they only attract 30 to 50 people, most of whom come, bring their lunch, listen to the music and leave. That should not be the purpose of a concert put on by an organization focused on bringing traffic into downtown.

Multi-Modal Transit Station

 The multi-modal transit station is getting closer to competition, maybe by late summer. One thing I have noticed is that, in order to comply with city planning ordinances requiring all new buildings in downtown to stand at least 2 stories tall, there will be a lot of empty space inside the building, meaning there will be a lot of money spent heating and cooling that empty space. Would it have violated the ordinance to put a 2nd floor false front on the building, making it look two tiers tall, which I do agree new buildings should help infill and improve the attractiveness of downtown, in stead of including all that wasted space inside?

"Hands Off" Protests

 Indivisible coordinated another "Hands Off" protest against the Trump administration's actions from noon to 2 this afternoon. Like the last one, the protestors did get drenched again (maybe they will protest in July and draw rain when we really need it) but it was much warmer than last time so at least they were only wet, not wet and cold. I estimated about 200 our there but there could have been more closer to the railroad tracks.

The Cellar

 Another downtown bar is or rather has been up for sale. The Cellar has been on the market for a bit over half a year. Asking price is a bit over $2.2 million, which seems a bit steep, at least to me.

Meters

All of the parking meters have been removed from downtown, replaced by parking kiosks, with signs on parking spaces telling parkers to pay at the kiosk. This is better than the meters as the meters only took change, which fewer people are carrying today.

Unfortunately, the kiosks are painted an industrial brown, which makes them look like an electrical or other sort of utility installation and only have a P logo on the side. Putting a large bright sign on top saying "Pay for Parking Here" or "Parking Kiosk" on top of the kiosk would help as I have heard several people complaining they saw they needed to pay for at the kiosk but did not know where one was.

Phone Scam

 Someone is calling homes in Carbondale and claiming to be Sgt. Randy Rogers of the Carbondale Police asking the recipient to call back about a legal matter. Don't do it. There is no Randy Rogers working for the Carbondale Police Department.

Dome Home

 Found this write up about the Fuller Dome Home. The house, under Fuller's supervision, was build in one day

Street Resurfacing

 From what I hear, the city has plans to resurface at least two streets this year.  Giant City Road will get resurface from the intersection with Highway 13 south to at least Grand avenue and maybe Pleasant Hull Road. Also South Wall will get resurfaced South from Walnut to Grand Avenue, reduced to 2 lanes from its current four and bike lanes added on either side of the street.

Tax Passes

 According to this article from the Southern, the city council voted last night, 4-1, to instate a 1% grocery tax when the state mandated tax ends at the end of 2025. The tax will put an estimated $1.5 million annually into the city treasury but will not add any money, since the city received approximately that amount from the state grocery tax.

City Council Agenda

 Here is the city council agenda for tonight. One noticeable item  is the resolution enacting a 1% grocery sales tax to replace the one the state is eliminating. Last year, the state eliminated its 1% sales tax on groceries but left it up to municipalities to enact a local grocery sales tax if they should wish. It appears Carbondale does wish.

Since Carbondale has one of the highest sales tax rates in the state outside of Chicago, It certainly would be nice if the recently elected city council members would start pushing to lower sales taxes to something closer to the state average of 8.85%.

Storyboard

 Looks as if if the Evolve apartment complex on S. Illinois quietly changed its name to Storyboard. All the signing on the building now reads Storyboard with a new marquee as well.

National Protests

There were protests scheduled in every state against the Trump administration's tariffs and cuts to the federal government. About 200 people braved the weather April 5 to line West Main from the railroad tracks to University avenue
 

Council Election Results

 1741 ballots were cast in yesterday's city council election, about 14% of registered voters in the city. Dawn Roberts, Nathan Columbo and Brian Stanfield secured seats on the council, beating Lee Fronabarger and James Endicott. Incumbents LaCaje Hill and Ginger Rye-Sanders, who ran for second terms as write in candidates, did not receive enough votes to appear in the final results.