{"id":572,"date":"2006-09-13T22:21:00","date_gmt":"2006-09-13T22:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/wordpress\/?p=572"},"modified":"2006-09-13T22:21:00","modified_gmt":"2006-09-13T22:21:00","slug":"has-the-recent-change-in-the-beale-street-crowd-kept-you-from-going-there","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/2006\/09\/13\/has-the-recent-change-in-the-beale-street-crowd-kept-you-from-going-there\/","title":{"rendered":"Has the recent change in the Beale Street crowd kept you from going there?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thanks to PDS for forwarding me this link to an article on the WREG-TV website: Criminal concerns flowing like beer on Beale<\/a>. The article quotes Beale Street authorities like Rickey Peete and John Elkington as saying that this is a much more aggressive group of people that are hanging out on Beale now, and there have been increases in aggravated assaults, robberies, drugs, and even a carjacking. My friend and EDU commander Maj. Johnny Currin comments, “When you interject drinking with weapons and drugs, that’s just a formula for some serious things that may happen.”<\/p>\n

Question to my readers: Have safety concerns kept you off Beale Street? Has having to stand in long lines to get wanded by metal detectors on Friday and Saturday nights kept you away?<\/p>\n

Even better, here’s what I really would like to know: What bars, clubs, restaurants, or shops would you have frequented this summer on Beale Street (let’s say, from Memorial Day on), and how much money would you have spent, that you didn’t spend because of safety concerns and\/or security hassles? I would like to put a list together and post it either here or the Residents for a Safer Downtown Memphis<\/a> site, to show Beale business owners how much this is costing them.<\/p>\n

For example: Last summer I hung out in the Tap Room just about every weekend. This summer I’ve been there maybe 3-4 times. I typically spend $10 a night at the Tap Room, so I’d say they’ve lost $200 in business from me since Memorial Day.<\/p>\n

I tended to hang out in the Black Diamond (or buy at their outside bar) quite a bit too – have only been there a handful of times this summer as well. I’d estimate their lost revenue from me at about $75-100.<\/p>\n

I probably would’ve dropped at least $30-50 at each of Coyote Ugly, Pat O’s, BB King’s, and Silky’s as well this summer. Except for my Monday night visit to Coyote Ugly, and one late-night run through Pat O’s, I haven’t been to any of those places.<\/p>\n

I’m also going to estimate lost revenue of $40 from me for Blues City Cafe. Even though I do hang out there a fair amount, there probably would’ve been a few additional times when I would have seen that the Dempseys were playing and come in and spent money, had I already been on the street.<\/p>\n

Which businesses have lost revenue from you, and how much? E-mail me<\/a> and I’ll compile a list and make sure it gets seen. All e-mails will remain anonymous – I just want the place names and dollar amounts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"