Group sees Wicked as waste of space

The Downtown Economic Development Corporation has answered the call of board member Roger Perry to “get off the dime” — starting with a petition Wednesday to eradicate what some call a void on Franklin Street.

The corporation will forward a resolution to the Chapel Hill Town Council to consider condemning the Wicked Burrito restaurant building on West Franklin Street.

“Wicked Burrito has been vacated for several years. It’s in a state of disrepair,” said corporation Chairwoman Andrea Rohrbacher. She suggested sending letters and pictures of the building to the owner, Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon.

“I’ll fly out there with the mayor and talk to them,” Rohrbacher said. “I want to get this thing resolved.”

Such direct action reflects the corporation’s eagerness to become a vital factor downtown, she said.

The corporation is also preparing for other changes, including hiring a new permanent executive director.

The corporation’s search subcommittee said responses so far give the hunt a positive outlook.

Three people already have submitted formal applications to Smither & Associates, the Chapel Hill personnel firm assisting the subcommittee.

The deadline to apply is March 1.

Interim Executive Director Nicholas Didow said he expects the pool of applicants to grow.

“My phone is beginning to ring off the hook,” he said.

The corporation also presented Wednesday its new criteria for reviewing downtown business concerns, as it examined requests from Village Apartments owner Joe Patterson and Panera Bread building owner Antoine Puech.

The formalized, two-tiered approach to deal with merchant inquiries will make the group a more viable voice for downtown.

To qualify for review by the corporation, the request must meet at least one of seven criteria, ranging from increasing the downtown housing stock to promoting the vitality of the downtown retail mix.

If a request meets criteria, the merchant then must present his or her case to the corporation.

Members said Patterson’s request for the Town Council’s support in reviewing his plans to renovate the apartment complex into a condominium development met the initial criteria.

“This is a really interesting proposal,” Didow said. “On the plus side, it increases the stock of for-sale housing downtown. On the other hand, the net effect will likely lower the number of residents downtown.”

But the corporation was less enthusiastic about Puech’s request to support an expansion to Panera Bread that would initially violate town guidelines on the number of bathrooms per seating capacity.

“If their impediment is a building code, I wonder what flexibility we have or the town has,” said corporation member Tom Tucker.

The corporation will meet Feb. 23 to continue its discussions.

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.