the independent campus newspaper of swarthmore college since 1881

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

« RETURN TO OPINIONS

« PREV ARTICLE | NEXT ARTICLE »

Downtown Swat 2020

In print | March 20, 2008

The Ville offers many great services to Swarthmore students, such as the Co-Op, Co-Ed Salon, PNC Bank, dry cleaners, library, post office and hardware store. Yet, when we more thoroughly examine the Ville’s recreational and commercial offerings, we find few attractions compelling enough to lure Swatties away from the well-beaten stomping grounds of McCabe and Sharples. This past week, Da Vinci’s Cafe closed, signaling the somewhat baffling failure of a highly accessible establishment whose proprietor publicized no small number of promotional deals designed explicitly to accommodate the collegiate consumer — exemplified by the frugal yet caffeine-dependent Swarthmore students who rarely go under the SEPTA tracks.

STAFF EDITORIAL

Da Vinci’s inability to turn a profit speaks to the utilitarian character of the Ville’s commercial climate, which sustains businesses that offer vital and pragmatic services, but little else. It is true that a town like Swarthmore would certainly not function very well without most of the business mentioned above, but if the borough wants to have a pedestrian culture - one that encourages students and borough residents alike to browse storefronts recreationally and not necessarily with a specific destination in mind -- the Ville and the college should collaborate to incentivize businesses that provide desirable, but not necessarily essential, services. Although we are lucky to have Cheng Hing, Renato’s, Dunkin Donuts and Vicky’s to remedy our Sharples fatigue, we find ourselves wishing for other options.

What Swarthmore lacks is a pedestrian culture, and part of the problem is that there are just not many places to visit in the town for diversion from the onslaught of classes. Students and locals need places in the Ville that they can go to both to fulfill their errands and to relax. The Swarthmore that we see in 2020 will still have a small-town feel, but with more features common to a college town. At the very least, the town should have a pharmacy, bookstore, café and a nice sit-down restaurant, along with a few more shopping opportunities. By 2020, the Ville will hopefully also include the stores built in the Swarthmore Inn Project, maybe even helping along the town in its future development.

A key hurdle we see to future development in the Ville is the lack of commercial zoning, which is unfortunate given some of the vacancies in the town. Since we believe in the ability of the market to meet the demands of our consumerist tendencies, we, students and residents, are the ones to blame for the lack of traditional college town businesses. Maybe one option the College could explore is facilitating student use of their student IDs in the Ville, though there are many other options that could have a great affect on the Ville. With the right planning, however, we are optimistic that the town will be able to support more student-friendly destinations and still retain its friendly character and small-town charm.

Discussion

Comments are closed.

« RETURN TO OPINIONS

« PREV ARTICLE | NEXT ARTICLE »