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By LORRI HELFAND, Times Staff WriterThe Sonic's owner says sign restrictions affected sales. A pizza shop that closed echoes his complaint.
LARGO - Drive-throughs aren't allowed in the downtown district, but Paul Buchanan lobbied Largo for permission to open a Sonic Drive-In on Clearwater-Largo Road anyway.
His restaurant wasn't a drive-through, he said. It was a drive-up.
But shortly after the Sonic opened in mid 2004, he realized it was more of a drive-by.
"You come into someplace with great expectations, but it never had the sales volume it needed to support itself. It was just crushing to us. Everybody drove past us and never drove into us," said Buchanan, who closed the Sonic last week.
For years, the city has targeted the Clearwater-Largo Road and West Bay Drive areas for revitalization, hoping to create a community where people can live, work and play.
But Buchanan and other merchants in the district say limited walking traffic and strict sign codes have restricted their ability to draw customers.
"In our food industry, promoting a daily special is paramount to success. We would have code enforcement drop by weekly and ask us to remove promotional signs," Buchanan said.
Buchanan opened another Sonic on Ulmerton Road two years ago in a less restrictive area. That restaurant is thriving. Market studies had shown that the Clearwater-Largo Road site was prime, too, he said.
But now, silver chains and red rope block the driveway to his second Sonic. A sign dangling from the rope tells patrons to visit the other restaurant on Ulmerton Road.
A "closed" sign also hangs in the window of Nick-n-Willy's Take-n-Bake Pizza on West Bay Drive, which opened at the beginning of the year. The chain sells pizzas with fresh ingredients that patrons bake at home.
Greg Nestor, an area developer for Nick-n-Willy's, said the area's strict sign codes and lack of foot traffic made West Bay Village a poor location for the pizza chain.
"It never really caught on for them," said Hugh Geren, who owns Bloomtown Florist across the street.
Other retailers in the area are also taking note.
"We're all taking bets on who's going to be next," said Mike Martinez, who owns a furniture and design shop next to Bloomtown. Martinez said he had to rent space in his shop to other vendors in order to get by.
"I've been here for three years. I had to literally sell my store out to make ends meet," Martinez said.
Geren said he's happy with downtown Largo's new image and sees a lot more walk-in customers than he used to.
But he said his and other businesses still struggle for attention on the busy roadway.
"Signage is a problem for everybody. It's very limited," he said. "Traffic flow is not the problem. It's getting them to slow down. (The speed limit is) posted at 30 and most do 40 or 50."
Community Development director Mike Staffopoulos said it's impossible to come up with sign rules that will please everyone.
"No matter what the standard is set at, someone will always take issue with it," he said.
But Staffopoulos said limiting sign clutter helps create an aesthetically pleasing environment that can attract a variety of merchants, patrons and residents to the area.
Other merchants in the area said the rules haven't hurt their livelihoods.
Both Michael Gore, owner of Vitamin Discount Center, and Ehab "Alex" Wasif, owner of Alexis Jewelers, said their businesses are flourishing in the district's West Bay Village.
"Things are fantastic," Gore said. "We love it there."
--Times researcher Cathy Wos contributed to this report. Lorri Helfand can be reached at 445-4155 or at lorri@sptimes.com