Kent’s University Plaza continues to prosper

The city of Kent has experienced tremendous economic growth in the past few years, specifically downtown. Because of all the economic growth downtown, it would seem other businesses might be negatively affected, but business appears to be just fine for Kent’s University Plaza.  University Plaza is located right off off Route 43 in Kent. The plaza is home to many stores including: The University Plaza Theater,  All Pro Sports Center, Heavenly Cupcakes, NY2C Pizzeria, Save-a-lot, and many more. Reporters Emily Moran and Jenny Harvey examined how business is doing in the plaza and what the future looks like for the plaza. In her video, Harvey looks at two businesses found in the plaza, NY2C Pizzeria and All Pro Sports Center to see how their businesses are doing and what they think of the plaza’s future. In her story, Moran looks at what the Kent City Manager, Dave Ruller has to say about University Plaza and if the growth downtown has had any impact on University Plaza.

[rpavideo caption= “In this video, TV2 reporter Jenny Harvey takes a look at how some University Plaza shops are doing, despite it’s rundown appearance.  “]Harvey_RPA_07_PLAZA[/rpavideo]

A strong downtown benefits all of Kent

by Emily Moran

Kent, OH–University Plaza was around long before the growth in downtown Kent, and it seems the plaza has a bright future despite possible competition from the downtown area. City Manger, Dave Ruller, said although many strip malls and plazas in general are struggling, the activity in the plaza appears to be strong due to the movie theater.

He said the new pizza shop that opened a few months ago, NY2C Pizzeria, is a good sign the plaza is still thriving. Ruller said the consumer trend at the moment favors downtown areas, and as a result, many older plazas are showing their age and “not enjoying the kind of vibrancy” they once had. He said many plazas and strip malls like the Stow-Kent Plaza, are being torn down and given a fresh new look.

Ruller said since downtown Kent has no movie theater or grocery store, he does not see downtown and University Plaza in direct competition with one another.

“In general, we’ve found that a strong downtown makes Kent stronger overall, and I’m hopeful that a successful downtown over time, will help lift the plaza as well,” Ruller said.

[pullquote float = “right”]In general, we’ve found that a strong downtown makes Kent stronger overall, and I’m hopeful that a successful downtown over time, will help lift the plaza as well.–Dave Ruller[/pullquote]

The small business scene

He said Kent is all about the small business scene and he believes small businesses have a great future in Kent. Ruller said even downtown, most of the businesses are small businesses that are locally owned. He said having these small businesses help distinguish Kent from  “big box mall stores” found in Stow and Chapel Hill.

Ruller said the city of Kent does its best to direct businesses looking for vacant spaces in Kent to places like University Plaza. He said Kent has gotten more interest than ever in businesses looking to open in Kent and although these businesses interest usually begins downtown, Ruller said he always lets them know of other locations available in Kent.

“It’s been our experience that the more investment that can be done in refreshing the look of the Plaza property, the more likely new tenants will want to make their business investments there too,” Ruller said.

No future plans

Currently, the city of Kent does not own University Plaza and as a result, they cannot come up with a project idea that could renovate or refresh the plaza. Ruller said the city is always willing to work with property owners but they cannot tell property owners what to do with their property.

He said at this point, the property owner of University Plaza has not asked to partner with the city in doing some sort of collaborative project to improve the plaza.

“I think the University Plaza is in much better position than the Kent-Stow Plaza but I’m sure there are things that could be done with the current plaza to improve the shopping experience. It really comes down to affordability and return on those investments, which is a decision I’m sure the current owners evaluate all  the time,” Ruller said.

Small business owners weigh in

Two businesses, NY2C Pizzeria and All Pro Sports Center, located in University Plaza say business is doing well and they have not been negatively impacted by the development downtown. Ken Long and John Calanni, both Kent locals, own NY2C Pizzeria. Long said since opening their pizza shop two months ago in University Plaza, business has been steady. NY2C Pizzeria combines both New York style pizza and Chicago style pizza for a unique dining experience.

Originally, NY2C is from Stow, Ohio, but closed their Stow location to move to Kent. Long said they chose University Plaza rather than downtown for their new location because there was less competition there.

“It just made good sense. We weren’t going to go downtown,” Long said.

Long said it would be nice to “glam up” the plaza and make it more attractive to people. He said NY2C gets a lot of repeat customers and Monday nights are “a zoo.”Long said he is confident in his product and believes the location is great.

“It is nicer downtown, but we are like a diamond in the ruff,” Calanni said.

Tami Van Dyne, the owner of All Pro Sports Center,  which has been in University Plaza since December 2010, said she has continued to have repeat customers and good business. She said her store primarily sells spirit wear for nearby high schools and Kent State University.

She said she has not experienced any negative impact from the growth downtown either and her customers have stayed loyal. She said UniversiTees downtown has most likely taken some of her business but very little.

Van Dyne said she believes there is less foot traffic in the plaza now that Giant Eagle has left. She said her rent to stay in University Plaza; however, is quite high. Van Dyne said she pays $2,400 a month to keep her store at its current location in the plaza. She said she would like to see more of the empty storefronts filled but the movie theater continues to draw business to the plaza. She said if she had the choice to move downtown she would stay in University Plaza.

“The plaza is the plaza,” Van Dyne said