Downtown Des Moines Residents Share What They Love Part 9
In part nine of this series the question was asked about the best way to improve life downtown. This is another interesting question because each person will have a different point of view. Some people love one thing, others would like to see it improved.
Still others are never happy no matter what! Admit it, you know people like that. We’ve had a few of them comment here–and I so wish they’d come back!! Paul, grammer nazi’s, why do you read here and not comment? I know you’re out there…….
Ok, back to the question. If you’ve missed the previous editions of this series, refer to part 8, it’s the post previous to this one. I’ve linked the previous 8 there.
What is the best (and fastest) way to improve life downtown?
- More retail, restaurants, entertainment.
- Put in the proposed trolly downtown, so that folks can park in one spot and get anywhere downtown with ease. This would also be great for out-of-towners, like the state tourney folks—and all the convention folks on the way!
- Bookstore.
- More neighbors!
- Fast food places (like on the skywalk) open past 2pm on weekdays only.
- More health clubs. (for those that live in buildings without them)
- Add a large screen movie theater.
- MORE PEOPLE!!!
- Events for singles.
- A full-scale grocery store. Village Market, Gateway Market and River Bend are great, but I’d love to be able to get all my essentials at one place and use these stores for food/wine.
- More development.
- IKEA…..[note: this one cracks me up]
- Use of the river for water activities.
- Selling all the available units here so more can be built.
- More churches. Especially contemporary ones aimed at young adults.
- Somewhere to shop/eat that’s open 24 hours a day.
Filed under: lifestyle, living downtown
Bethany J Says:
This list is right on. I miss the old River Hills/Riviera theater and would love to see a theater return. There used to be some downtown that closed. I think they were a little before their time.
I would like Walgreens to be open seven days a week at least until 10 pm. Especially the pharmacy.
I know there are traditional churches downtown and I know they meet the need for those who go there. But this list is right-a contemporary non-denominational church would be great. The Downtown Church is there, but it is VERY much geared for young adults and those of us past our 20s feel OLD there. There is plenty of room for more.
I have another idea. Lots of seating for those of us who want to people watch, rest or just relax in our downtown “yard.” Some of our downtown homes don’t have anyplace within blocks to sit. Sometimes you just want to be outside.
Posted on September 9th, 2007 at 3:23 pm
Andy TeBockhorst Says:
Got you covered on #3… East Village Books will be opening in a few weeks on the corner of East 6th & Locust (across from Sticks and the Iowa Historical Building.) We’ll offer over 4,200 square feet of books, music, gifts and art!
Posted on September 10th, 2007 at 9:37 am
Shane F. Says:
Hi,
I work for a market research company downtown and we are interested in exactly what everyone is discussing here. We would like to speak with a few individuals regarding downtown living and what they like, don’t like, need, think of the revitalization, etc. I hope it is not inappropriate to post this on this site, but this looks to be a very good site for speaking with people who live downtown. We are not looking to sell anything, but looking for individuals who meet certain to participate in focus groups to discuss these matters. The people who participate will also be compensated $60 for their time.
I don’t know how this messageboard works, but if you would be interested, you can contact Shane Francis at 243-0785. Again, I apologize for the solicitation, but this is a great chance to share your experiences and insight about downtown Des Moines.
Thanks, everybody.
Posted on September 10th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
JustKim Says:
Walmart! Ha ha, just teasing Paul.
Posted on September 10th, 2007 at 7:56 pm
Bethany J Says:
Great! I’ll be visiting East Villiage Books as soon as I can. There is something fun about a book store; like Christmas morning, but the presents are already open.
When I was a tiny kid, my family used to hang out in the book store on the mezzazine level of the old Younkers. I loved that place.
Posted on September 10th, 2007 at 10:37 pm
Tina Johnson (T...Your Downtown Gal) Says:
I too miss the River Hills Theatre….it was great! My daughters and I have also been seeking out a church that has the character and charm of the old buildings but with a bit more contemporary service….similar to Lutheran Hope. I also agree with the seating, however I’m seeing more and more of it placed all over our beautiful city. I would like to see more signs within the actual center of the city directing people to the bike trails and walk paths. We have a great bookstore on Locust next to Josephs and the new one in the East Village will also be a nice addition. I really have to comment on the grocery store…..RiverBend Trading always has everything I need, really, they do. I love how they package chicken for one and two persons, I love their deli and I love the fact that when I can’t find something…the employees there are absolutely wonderful about immediately helping me find it. My friend couldn’t get all her groceries home to one of the highrises by carrying it, so they allowed her to wheel one of their carts there, but before doing so…they offered to carry it for her! Now that’s service and it’s the true idea of neighborhood community behavior! I also like that you can go downstairs and find almost any wine. I would also like to see the river utilized for more water activities, etc…I think this will happen as we see more of the riverwalk developed. In regards to selling more units……projects are working diligently to attract more buyers. They are also working to make it very easy and convenient for other realtors to show these projects. For example; when we have a realtor who would like to show 418 Liberty…we meet them outside the building to insure that they access parking without any problems, we provide them everything possible as well as a guided tour to insure their success in showing downtown, this weekend after showing our project, I walked them to the next project llisted with another broker providing them information about our skywalk along the way. It’s crucial that we make it easy and convenient for realtors from the suburbs to show these downtown projects. I want Baby Boomers restaurant in the East Village to be open Saturday afternoons and into the evenings as well as on Sunday…they have an awesome breakfast for a great price! My 7 yr. old daughter Soph and I hung out at InPlay last weekend. Rock climbing is only $2 there and the activity cards come in incriments of $5. It turned out to be a lot of fun for not much $. I also loved that they had the “old time photo booth” there. I’m glad they’re downtown…Soph and I will be using this more frequently as the weather gets colder I’m sure. Back to the movie theatre……we really want one!
Posted on September 12th, 2007 at 12:54 pm
Josh Says:
T- You’re writing a better article here than I am!
Posted on September 12th, 2007 at 6:46 pm