Swarthmore: Higher Rents, High Anxiety

After nearly a year of warnings from the landlord, Swarthmore merchants began learning the grim reality Monday: If they elect to renew their leases this spring, their rent will nearly double. Three representatives from Palisades Partners, a multi-family trust that owns 18 of the 22 retail and commercial properties on the 1000 block of Swarthmore, met with four of the business owners at one-hour intervals Monday to announce terms of the new five-year leases (which replace month-to-month leases). Most rents will jump from about $2.50 to about $4.50 a month, plus about 50 cents a month for ‘triple net’ (a payment for all utilities plus a percentage of property taxes, insurance and maintenance costs). Trustees John Wilson, Bob Stelzl and John Watkins held their meetings at a table outside Mort’s Deli, close to the front window of the vacant Billhauer-Sato Chiropractic office, one of their properties. The window was plastered with 50 ‘SAVE OUR VILLAGE’KEEP THE RENTS REASONABLE’ signs that had been hand-colored by shoppers at Sunday’s farmers market. Asked why they chose to meet in such a public location, one of the trustees told the Palisadian-Post: ‘We were trying to make a statement, loud and clear, that we’re not intimidated.’ The trustee, who spoke for publication only on the condition that he not be identified, added: ‘We talked to the tenants last year and told them this was going to happen. We thought it was fair to let them them know things were going to change, and give them a year to determine if they could adjust to the higher rents.’ On Monday, the trustees met with Katie O’Laughlin of Village Books, kids’ clothier Ivy Greene, and Marice McCrory-Irwin, her sister Anne and her brother Martin of Michelle International and Palisades Beauty Supply. Meetings with other Swarthmore merchants will resume next Monday. These businesses include Mort’s Deli, Palisades Playthings, The Prince’s Table, Bentons Sporting Goods, Roy Robbins, Baskin-Robbins, Wells Fargo and three restaurants’Dante’s, Terri’s and ‘ la Tarte. Owners of the new Boca Woman store, who paid for a complete remodeling of the former Video 2010 space, already have a five-year lease. Three other storefronts owned by Palisades Partners remain empty, including the former Emerson-LaMay Cleaners and Palisades Camera. ‘They have every right to be businessmen,’ said O’Laughlin, who opened her popular bookstore in July 1997, ‘but this is a significant jump’a pretty dramatic change in the situation with no change in everybody’s shopping habits. They didn’t put any deadline on signing the lease, but I assume they are not going to sit around now that they’ve got the ball rolling. I have to get out my calculator and figure out what it would mean [to renew].’ Ivy Greene, a Palisades resident who has owned her 950-sq.-ft. store since 1995, said: ‘It’s scary, but I’ll find a way to come up with the money. I think the owners really do want to make the street look nice [with upgraded storefronts and new paint jobs], so I’ll figure out a way to stay here. My customers are very supportive.’ Martin McCrory said he and his sisters face ‘a major problem’ with the new lease figures”with triple net, we’re talking about a doubling of our rent. But I’m hopeful that further negotiations can be held and an amicable agreement can be reached.’ He added that all the other businesses ‘will be seriously affected by the situation. Whether they will all be in a position to stay, I can’t say.’ Meanwhile, Bob Benton, owner of Bentons Sporting Goods since 1981 and a former Chamber of Commerce president, continues to await a resolution of his lease negotiations. After Palisades Partners rejected his latest proposal on March 8, he told the Palisadian-Post: ‘If we can’t resolve this, somehow, and I can’t find another location in the Palisades, I guess I will go out of business.’ This unanticipated admission by a popular and successful local businessman triggered the SAVE OUR VILLAGE signs and an outpouring of letters to the Palisadian-Post in support of Benton’s position. But Tuesday night, he admitted the situation remained rather discouraging. ‘So far, it looks like they’re playing hardball. But I’m still hoping they will make me a deal. After 23 years here, you would think they would want to keep some semblance of the town’s tradition on this street. Business is business, and the owners have a right to increase the rent, but it should be reasonable. They shouldn’t make good people go away. Nobody has ever heard of rent increases like this.’ Benton is seeking a lease in the $4 area, up from $2.50. Said one of the three representatives of Palisades Partners on Tuesday: ‘Our position with Bob is that our offer is there, he knows what we want. If he’s smart, he’ll stay there and try to adjust. He has a tremendous business and if he spent more time on his business plan, he could expand that business. He has put a lot of effort into the store and he’s built a tradition. I would hate to see it end.’ The spokesman continued, ‘I like to see the same old thing on Swarthmore, day and in and day out, but the reality is, times change, the community changes. You have to have a good mix on the street, and the mix is not dictated by the store owners’it’s dictated by the people who consume the product. We offered Bob a downsize, and we offered him another good location at about the same rent, but the issue still comes down to money. That’s just an unfortunate aspect of life today.’