One evening last week, a friend and I met for a drink at The Collins Quarter, the new café at the northwest corner of Bull Street and Oglethorpe Avenue.
After enjoying the ambiance there, we wandered to The Public Kitchen and Bar at the southwest corner of Bull and Liberty streets. Public was bustling, but we immediately found seats at the bar, where we enjoyed dinner from the new fall menu.
Over the years, I’ve occasionally referred to Bull Street as Savannah’s “civic spine,” a term that I borrowed from urban designer and architect Christian Sottile.
It’s hard to argue with that characterization, especially as one considers the various public and religious institutions on Bull Street — the houses of worship, the courthouses, the public school system offices and so forth.
The civic uses continue south of Forsyth Park too, with numerous churches, the Bull Street Library, the Old Savannah City Mission, SCAD’s Arnold Hall and other landmarks.
Of course, a city isn’t just defined by its major institutions. In the last 15 years or so, we’ve seen the civic spine of Bull Street strengthened by private investment in public accommodations — restaurants, cafés, bars and other vital gathering points.
I’ve written here before about Ray Oldenburg’s description of “third places” — the neighborhood hubs that attract loyal local customers and that fuel creativity and connectivity.
Those third places might be less critical than our homes (first places) or jobs (second places), but it’s hard to imagine a thriving city without a significant number of communal gathering spots.
The Collins Quarter and The Public Kitchen & Bar replaced longstanding retail shops. The old businesses were perfectly fine ones, but the new uses have brought a fresh energy to Bull Street.
Consider other spots on Bull that have opened since the turn of the century, including Gallery Espresso, which relocated from a much smaller space around the corner, and the SCAD-operated Gryphon.
The most dramatic changes on Bull Street have occurred south of Forsyth Park.
The Forsyth Farmers Market is one of the city’s most vibrant third places, while the American Legion Post #135 and its renters have spurred public activity between Park Avenue and Duffy Street.
We’ll have an update soon about the Legion lounge and Betty Bombers All-American Eatery, both of which have been closed since an early May fire.
Further south, you can find Kapa Café, Butterhead Greens Café and Foxy Loxy Print Gallery and Café.
There is an even more vibrant mix of public accommodations between 37th Street and Victory Drive, including several bars, Tricks BBQ, Back in the Day Bakery and 520 Wings. Look for coverage here soon of the Vault Café, which should eventually take over the old Bank of America branch.
Given the trends, it’s a little surprising that investors were hoping to open a gas station and convenience store at the northwest corner of Bull and 37th streets. Sure, the site once held a gas station, but the highly visible corner seems tailor-made for some sort of restaurant. (A 2005 plan for the site included a deli in the existing building coupled with newly constructed apartments in the rear.)
Of course, there’s no certainty about the fate of any single property, but the long-term trend is clear: the civic spine of Bull Street is getting stronger.
Savannah moving ahead with plans to demolish historic homes
The city of Savannah is apparently solidifying plans to destroy the historic cottages of Meldrim Row along 33rd and 34th streets between Montgomery Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard. The site would be used for a new Central Precinct.
The homes are arguably the most important historic buildings that remain along MLK (formerly West Broad Street) south of the I-16 flyover.
I was trying to think of the last time Savannah allowed the demolition of so much architectural history, but I can’t come up with an adequate comparison from the 19 years I’ve lived here.
Even if the cottages were not historic, the plan to bulldoze existing residences would still represent terrible urbanism. The downtown area has lost population over a period of decades, and we’re now in the midst of a steady and dramatic gentrification of neighborhoods near the core of the city.
The destruction of so many affordably priced rental properties will speed those trends.
In her statements supporting the I-16 ramp removal project, Mayor Edna Jackson has noted that she grew up in a neighborhood decimated by the government decision to build the flyover. She also has noted the need for affordable housing in the area.
Yet Jackson is now overseeing a city government that is about to destroy modest, historic and affordable homes just down the road.
Ironies abound.
City Talk appears every Tuesday and Sunday. Bill Dawers can be reached via billdawers@comcast.net. Send mail to 10 East 32nd St., Savannah, Ga. 31401.