Village looks for rebound

With a recovering economy, a major new landlord and the promise of fresh attractions including Grandma Betty's ice cream shop, the Village may not be getting the total makeover some might wish for, but there's no doubt it's on some kind of a rebound.

There isn't an answer yet for the biggest question — what will become of the University Square property at 1609-1626 W. University Ave? The building, formerly owned by Myles Ogea, was sold at auction after his company lost a foreclosure judgment for more than $500,000. Kicheol Lee, owner of a growing chain of sushi restaurants, bought the property for $1.3 million, but hasn't said what his plans are.

A slumping national economy was tough on the Village. Businesses such as Buffalo Wild Wings, Borics and La Bamba left, but as business perks up elsewhere, there's new hope for the restaurants, bars and other spots here.

It's a cautious revival — no major announcements yet, but some hope is fueled by determined entrepreneurs like Jeanine Lake, who named her Grandma Betty's shop after her mother. Lake's husband is Aaron Lake, associate director at Indiana Academy. With his income, she's able to run the business now as a nonprofit, which she said will plow the business's proceeds into local programs to help the disadvantaged.

"If we make money, we try to do something good for the community," Lake said on Wednesday after sweeping the floor of her new shop in the Village at 1710 W. University Ave.

Grandma Betty's will fill a formerly vacant storefront when it opens on Monday, pending a successful inspection from the Health Department and Building Inspector tomorrow. Lake already has the store's first sign figured out:

"There's love in every scoop," her sign will say. "The sweetest place in the Village."

Nick Nicholas, a manager at Scotty's Brewhouse, said conditions are now right for success. His restaurant, a landmark in the area, was busy with a 5 p.m. crowd Wednesday afternoon.

"Any new business that is run well and goes into the Village will do well," he said. "You need to build up your clientele and build up your regulars."

Village decline

Even if the picture is brightening, there are still those who recall the glory days of decades past when there were bigger crowds and fewer empty storefronts.

Michael Hicks, Ball State economist and director of the Center for Business and Economic Research, said prospects for the district are good, but it faces severe challenges. Hicks said the Village's biggest problems include a dependence on faculty and student budgets and inconsistency of ownership.

"The best days of the Village are in front of them," he said. "As it becomes easier to borrow money, there's got to be small businesses and restaurateurs having their eye on the Village."

He has his own solutions for the economic downturn in areas like the Village.

"I, for one, favor relaxing the drinking age," he said. "We're criminalizing behavior that's not criminal anywhere else... All that does is create a law enforcement issue where no other would exist."

Hicks said he thinks a lower drinking age would mean more business from a wider crowd at bars in the Village.

Some have wondered whether Ball State should take a greater role in shaping the district's future. But Hicks is against that idea.

"Universities shouldn't run bars and restaurants," he said. "We should stay doing what we do best — creating knowledge."