Bright Ideas: Report from 2nd Economic Summit in Huntsville, AL

CITY OF HUNTSVILLE

THE IDEAS MAP

Introduction

The City of Huntsville’s Ideas Map was an interactive tool that allowed residents to

post and share their ideas on the direction of the city’s future in economic development and

planning. The map was hosted by SeeClickFix, a website that allows citizens to report

municipal maintenance issues. While the Ideas Map was primarily used to gather

information on the most desired retail and restaurants, non-retail ideas were accepted as

well.

The map was launched on January 14, 2011 and closed on February 1. During that

19-day period, 927 ideas were posted on the map, with over 4,800 votes. A summary of the

most popular ideas in several categories is on the next page.

Top Ideas

Individual- ranked based on popularity of individual ideas placed on the map

1. Kroger at Martin/Zierdt

2. Five Points Streetscape

3. Trader Joe’s at Lincoln Mill

4. Joe’s Crab Shack at Bridge Street

5. Target in Northeast Huntsville

Cumulative- ranked based on popularity of similar ideas placed in the same area

1. Trader Joe’s in Southeast Huntsville

2. Macy’s at Bridge Street


4. Downtown Ideas

5. Trader Joe’s in West Huntsville

Top Retail Ideas, Cumulative

1. Trader Joe’s in Southeast Huntsville

2. Macy’s at Bridge Street


4. Kroger at Martin/Zierdt

5. Kohl’s in Southeast Huntsville

Top Restaurant Ideas, Cumulative

1. Cheesecake Factory in Downtown Huntsville

2. Chipotle in West Huntsville

3. Dave and Buster’s at Bridge Street (tie)

Joe’s Crab Shack at Bridge Street (tie)

4. Olive Garden in Southeast Huntsville

5. Dunkin Donuts in Southeast Huntsville

Top New Restaurants, Cumulative

1. Cheesecake Factory

2. Chipotle

3. Joe’s Crab Shack

4. Dunkin’ Donuts

5. Dave and Buster’s

Top New Retailers, Cumulative

1. Trader Joe’s

2. Macy’s

3. Ikea

4. Container Store

5. Whole Foods Market

Top Ideas, West Huntsville

1. Macy’s

2. Trader Joe’s

3. Kroger


5. Chipotle

Top Ideas, South Huntsville

1. Trader Joe’s

2. Kohl’s

3. Olive Garden

4. Ikea

5. Dunkin’ Donuts

Top Ideas, Bridge Street

1. Macy’s


3. Dave and Buster’s

4. Joe’s Crab Shack

5. H&M

Top Ideas, Downtown/Five Points

1. Five Points Streetscape

2. Downtown Retail/Restaurant Rezoning


4. Bakery/Sandwich Shop

5. Whole Foods (tie)

Small Business Incentives (tie)

Brewpub (tie)

*NOTE: Ideas in North Huntsville centered on a new grocery store, while East Huntsville

rallied for a Target.

Retail

Trader Joe’s

Population recommended: 400-500,000+

Space required: 12-15,000 sq. ft.

Renovate or build? Both

How many [locations can Huntsville sustain]? One

Nearest Store: Nashville

Likelihood [of coming to Huntsville]: High

Potential locations: Downtown, Lincoln Mill, Five Points, Near Southside

Commentary: Trader Joe’s prefers to locate in established high-wealth neighborhoods. An

example of this type of neighborhood in Huntsville is the area bounded by Interstate 565 to

the north, Memorial Parkway to the west, Monte Sano to the East and Airport Road to the

South. With stores in Huntsville-sized cities like Des Moines and Lincoln, NE, and new

stores opening soon in Spokane, WA and Charleston, SC, population requirements should

be met.

Macy’s

Population recommended: 100-200,000+



How many? 1-2

Nearest Stores: Birmingham/Nashville

Likelihood: Medium

Potential locations: Parkway Place, Bridge Street (preferred by voters), Madison Square

Commentary: Looking at other cities where there are Macy’s stores, Huntsville is capable

of sustaining one, if not two locations. However, the department store chain has remained

stagnant during the recession, announcing only two new stores in 2010 (both in

California). Most new-build stores are between 120,000 and 150,000 square feet, but

Macy’s will consider renovating existing anchor spaces.

Ikea

Population recommended: 2 million+

Space required: 400,000 sq. ft.

Renovate or build? Build

How many? 0

Nearest Stores: Atlanta

Likelihood: Very Low

Potential locations: None

Commentary: Despite its popularity on the Ideas Map, Ikea is unlikely to look at

Huntsville. The Swedish furniture chain looks for metro areas of greater than two million to

build their stores. Nashville, a city with a metro population of 1.6 million (three times the

size of Huntsville), is struggling to recruit an Ikea due to its “small” size.

Container Store

Population recommended: 800,000+



How many? 1

Nearest Store: Atlanta, Nashville (opening late 2011)

Likelihood: Medium

Potential locations: Bridge Street

Commentary: The Container Store is a smaller chain that is expanding in larger cities with

populations of 1 million-plus. However, a minority of stores are in cities such as Little Rock,

which has a metro area slightly larger than Huntsville’s.

Whole Foods Market


Space required: 25,000-50,000 sq. ft.


How many? 1

Nearest Stores: Birmingham, Nashville, Chattanooga (as Greenlife)

Likelihood: High

Potential locations: Downtown, Near Southside (Airport/Whitesburg, preferred)

Commentary: Like Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods prefers to locate in established high-wealth

neighborhoods. Minimum population concerns shouldn’t be a problem here; many stores

are located in cities smaller than Huntsville (mostly college towns).

Restaurants

Cheesecake Factory




How many? 1

Nearest Locations: Birmingham, Nashville

Likelihood: Medium

Potential locations: Downtown (preferred), Bridge Street

Commentary: Cheesecake Factory almost always locates in cities with more than one

million people in the metro area. Some notable exceptions—Boise, Des Moines, and

Omaha—are hundreds of miles away from the nearest major city. Huntsville, with two

major cities 100 miles away (both with Cheesecake Factory restaurants), seems unlikely to

be an exception. However, Cheesecake Factory is experimenting with a smaller restaurant

format that could be used in smaller cities such as Huntsville.

Chipotle Mexican Grill




How many? 1-2


Likelihood: High

Potential locations: University Drive

Commentary: Huntsville can handle one, if not two locations of this popular Mexican

chain. Chipotle is continuing to expand nationwide, and a Huntsville location appears likely

in the near future.

Joe’s Crab Shack


Space required: ~6,000 sq. ft.


How many? 1


Likelihood: High

Potential locations: Bridge Street, Downtown

Commentary: With locations in similar-sized cities like Shreveport, LA and Fayetteville,

NC, Huntsville can probably support a Joe’s Crab Shack. However, the chain has struggled

recently, but seems to be slowly expanding again. Their Shreveport location is in a Bridge

Street-like development, and the Nashville restaurant is located downtown, so either site in

Huntsville seems feasible.

Dunkin’ Donuts




How many? 5-30


Likelihood: High

Potential locations: Anywhere (Southeast HSV preferred)

Commentary: Dunkin’ Donuts is a franchisee away from opening their first stores in

Huntsville in over a decade. In cities of Huntsville’s size, Dunkin’ opens up to thirty

locations. A franchisee must commit to opening five stores in their designated territory.

Dave and Buster’s




How many? 1

Nearest Locations: Atlanta

Likelihood: Low

Potential locations: Bridge Street (preferred), Downtown

Commentary: Dave and Buster’s rarely, if ever, opens a restaurant in a city with a metro

population of less than 1 million. Their Nashville restaurant at Opry Mills closed last year

due to flooding and has yet to reopen or relocate.

Honorable Mentions- Stores/restaurants that just missed the “Top 5,” but have a good

chance of entering the Huntsville market:

World Market

Home Décor Store



How many? 1

Nearest Locations: Chattanooga, Nashville, Birmingham

Potential locations: University Drive (preferred), South Huntsville, Jones Valley

H&M

Clothing store



How many? 1


Potential locations: Bridge Street (preferred), Parkway Place

REI

Outdoor/Recreation store



How many? 1

Nearest Locations: Nashville (Brentwood)

Potential locations: Bridge Street (preferred), Airport/Whitesburg

California Pizza Kitchen

Pizza restaurant



How many? 1


Potential locations: Bridge Street

Home Goods

Home décor store



How many? 1

Nearest Locations: Birmingham, Nashville, Chattanooga

Potential locations: University Drive (preferred), South Parkway, Jones Valley

Qdoba

Mexican restaurant

Space required: ~5,000 sq. ft.


How many? 1-2

Nearest Locations: Birmingham, Nashville, Chattanooga

Potential locations: Downtown, Research Park (preferred), South Huntsville

Gordon Biersch

Brewpub*



How many? 1



*NOTE: Potential brewpub locations are extremely limited due to current state laws.

Texas de Brazil

Brazilian Steakhouse



How many? 1-2

Nearest Locations: Memphis


Comments

Downtown

Cumulatively, downtown non-retail/restaurant ideas were ranked #2. Visitors to the

map rallied around these ideas:

“The only way to make Downtown Huntsville into a viable walkable community is to pass an

ordinance that requires the spaces facing the street to be limited to retail and restaurants.

The attorneys, insurance companies, storage space, etc. should be only on upper floors and

rear offices…”

“Downtown has no retail and limited restaurant options available to the public. The higher

end restaurants seem to do ok down here, but there is a limited variety. Suggest recruiting

(and subsidizing for a limited time) more restaurant options for the public to choose from

downtown such as a bakery, sandwich shop, and even fast food.…”

“Huntsville leadership and community have long debated how to attract a young, educated

workforce to key areas of the city…. As a former Arlington, VA native I would suggest you look

into how that city developed with a key focus on accessibility, transportation, housing, and

leisure/entertainment venues. Namely, Arlington has conducted a phased approach to urban

development that started in the 60’s and has now grown into vibrant communities across the

city. Arlington calls these hubs Urban Villages. Each urban village is a distinctive and

multifaceted community with jobs, housing, and recreation all within a few blocks of each

other.… Each of these "urban villages" is well-served by public transportation and amenities

for bicyclists and walkers, connecting the neighborhoods to each other and to the rest of the

metropolitan area. Teeming with shopping centers and lively nightlife, Arlington has a little

bit of everything for everyone, exactly what Huntsville should aspire to be; albeit maybe a

little less crowded. Arlington’s planned development centered around one of the best public

transportation systems in the country, something Huntsville will have to consider… ”

Other non-retail ideas brought forward included a new baseball stadium, riverwalk,

financial incentives for small businesses, and moving Sci-Quest downtown.

Five Points

This idea was ranked #2 overall for individual ideas:

“I'm not sure, but I would guess that 5 Points/Old Town is one of the densest areas in

Huntsville. It's also (at least east of California) one of the most affordable for young

professionals and families. As a result, it could easily be one of the most vibrant, walkable

areas of Huntsville, but it seems that there are power poles growing from every crack in the

sidewalk, where sidewalks can be found. Also, none of the buildings in the area (with the

exceptions of Star Market and 1892) have been improved lately. Landlords should be

encouraged (read: incentivized) to upgrade their facilities. Ideally, buildings would be 2 or

more stories with small setbacks and provide, in some cases, apartment living (like the main

street in Providence). Further, I would personally love to see California turn into a 2 lane

road with parallel parking and bike lanes between Randolph and Beirne. That, coupled with

sidewalk improvements, would go a long way towards creating a pedestrian-friendly

environment in the area of Huntsville that would be most receptive to it.”

Several other ideas in Five Points called for the expansion of the streetscape project

along Andrew Jackson Way and providing more entertainment options (e.g. bars) in

the neighborhood.

Public Transit

Cumulatively, ideas for better transit service ranked #6. Most rallied around the

ultimate goal of a rail-based system:

“The key to having a great city is people being able to move around efficiently and quickly.

Huntsville should lead the US and create its own mass transit system. There are plenty of

existing rail lines that could be upgraded… You could turn the downtown station back into a

usable station. It would be great, because it is right by the Visitors bureau and the main

Shuttle Bus station. Passengers could then rely on (a much improved version) the shuttle

buses to get them exactly where they needed to be. Some major areas could be accessible by

the rail network though, such as; UAH, Parkway Place, Huntsville Madison County Library,

VBC, Downtown Madison, and the Arsenal. Huntsville Hospital could even offer a van service

to shuttle from a station located near Gov. Dr. on the L&N Line to the hospital or extend their

trams. Crestwood could also offer the van service. A special Arsenal train could be offered to

get people from the Downtown station to the Arsenal. MPs could be stationed on the train to

have everyone's IDs checked by the time the train arrived at the Arsenal gates. This would

greatly decrease crowding at the gate in the mornings and evenings. Moreover, a efficient and

useful mass transit system would greatly benefit the city both now and in the future. Don't

wait to build this after the city has already expanded and needs help. Anticipate the expansion

and plan for the future!”

Several other transit ideas were placed outside of city limits and therefore were not

counted in the rankings. Some users called for the introduction of commuter rail

service to Decatur, while others discussed streetcar lines in Downtown and Research

Park and the introduction of night and weekend bus service.

Bright Ideas: Report from 2nd Economic Summit in Huntsville, AL

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