NORTHAMPTON — A new report examining the business climate of the city’s “other downtown” in Florence reveals what many business owners and their customers already know — that the village center remains healthy with A strong mix of businesses and fairly low vacancy rates.
The report released by Mayor David Narkewicz’s office Thursday aims to create a baseline of economic indicators to track progress and growth in the downtown business district.
The first of its kind for Florence — the city has compiled a similar report for downtown Northampton for three years — the report is intended to “provide important data tracking to measure the health of the Central Business District,” according to a press release from the mayor’s office.
“We wanted to expand that to our ‘other downtown,’” Narkewicz said of creating a new report for Florence similar to the Northampton report. “It’s a really good snapshot of some of the key metrics, particularly things like vacancy rate, which is a concern we hear.”
Narkewicz said he has a standing monthly meeting with members of the Florence Civic and Business Association, and that he presented a preview of the Florence report as the city was developing it. He said the report will be beneficial in giving a baseline to indicate trends year by year, as well as providing a look at the mix of businesses and business spaces available in downtown Florence.
The 2017 report defines the downtown Florence business district as within the boundaries of North Maple and High streets to the north, North Main Street and Cosmian Avenue to the west, Maple and West Center streets to the south, and Main Street and Plymouth Avenue to the east.
Prepared by Northampton’s economic development director, Terry Masterson, who also prepares Northampton’s annual report, the 2017 Florence report provides information on vacancies, retail activity and retail and office rents.
The report states that there are 67 storefronts in the Florence downtown area, 62 of which are occupied. The five empty storefronts equate to a 7.5 percent vacancy rate. Masterson added that a healthy vacancy rate is typically below 10 percent.
In comparison, Northampton reported 14 vacant storefronts out of the 232 available in downtown in 2017, resulting in a 6 percent vacancy rate. This is a decrease from 2016, when the city reported a 6.4 percent vacancy rate, but was due to the number of stores in downtown Northampton increasing from 220 to 232 while the number of vacant storefronts remained at 14.
The Florence report does not include parking and hotel tax revenues, information included in the Northampton report, because Florence has free parking and there are no hotels within the downtown area, according to Masterson.
He said other figures, like meal tax revenue, are for the Northampton and Florence community as a whole. According to the 2017 Northampton downtown report, meal tax revenues for Northampton yield the largest totals in Hampshire County, averaging about $715,000 in revenue for the city each year since 2015.
Pat Goggins, of Goggins Real Estate, said he previewed the report with the mayor and is looking forward to reading it in full. From his perspective leasing out many of the office and retail buildings in Florence, Goggins said there are positive signs for the downtown area and also agreed that the vacancy rate is normal for business real estate.
“The variety is what I like to see. There’s really an interesting cross-section of offerings in Florence,” he said. “It’s more of a destination type downtown than a stroll-around type of downtown. What we really have is a lot of people who have lived in Florence for a very long time and love it.”
In 2017, Florence had a few turnovers in storefront locations. According to the report, the Freckled Fox Café replaced the Cup and Top Café at 1 North Main St., a transition Masterson called “seamless,” and an Edward S. Jones financial adviser office run by Alan J. Tatro moved from 55 Main St. to 40 South Maple, replacing the Side Street Café.
Kitty Johndrow said she and her husband decided to open their first restaurant venture, the Freckled Fox Café, in Florence after looking at options in Ludlow and Amherst.
When she first sat in the space being vacated by the Cup and Top, Johndrow said she felt “good vibes” and, combined with a play space in the back for customers’ kids and the friendly Florence community, she said she knew it was the right fit.
Johndrow said she and her husband have talked with other local business owners to discuss ways to bring in more customers, especially foot traffic. The library and nearby bike path, she added, are already strong draws to bring customers into the downtown area.
The report also states that the new retail building of 100 Main St., which was once a gas station, is now fully leased to Corliss Law Firm and Trustees of Reservations and Molding Business Services Inc. Also, according to the report, Cumberland Farms purchased and demolished 55 Main St. to build a larger store and new gas pumps.
El Conquistador and Subway both vacated 91 Main St., and Earth First Floor Tile left 131 Main St. These form three of the vacancies listed in the report, along with the retirement of the owner of FJ Rogers Bike Shop and subsequent vacancy of the shop at 3 Main St. and a long-standing vacancy at 82 South Maple St.
Gaurang Patel, the owner of Bird’s Store at 94 Maple St. and the 100 Main St. building, said in between joking with regulars and selling scratch cards and cigarettes to walk-in customers that the free parking has been beneficial for business, but that there hasn’t been as much growth as he expected.
Patel’s family has operated Bird’s Store since 1997 and since he took over running the shop in 2003, he said the economic development in downtown Florence has been steady rather than substantial.
“Businesses come and go,” he said. “One business leaves and another takes its place. We hope to see more foot traffic in the future.”
More foot traffic, keeping the free parking and expanding the mix of businesses in downtown Florence are the main goals for the area, business owners say, and the mayor’s office hopes that the economic indicators report will provide a basis each year by which to compare progress.
Narkewicz also said he thinks the report will be useful for those considering opening a business in Florence, to compare rental prices, available space and to get a sense of the business mix in the area.
At On Point Salon next to the Freckled Fox, salon owner Sarah Hurley said she thinks Florence is an up-and-coming place and she’s excited to see what new businesses like the Freckled Fox bring to the downtown area, as long as the free parking remains.
“Florence is the new Northampton,” Hurley said. “It’s a little hard to get your business up and running, but once you do, the people of Florence are very loyal.”
M.J. Tidwell can be reached at mjtidwell@gazettenet.com.