Fueling downtown investment | Residences, restaurants and diversity continue to generate growth
Entrepreneur and owner of Fuel restaurant in downtown Lewiston
Since opening 2½ years ago, Fuel restaurant has been offering guests a high-end dining experience in the heart of downtown Lewiston, an area that has experienced great flux in the past 20 years.
With an average ticket per customer in the $30 to $35 range, the restaurant has enjoyed solid, sustainable growth, with 4% revenue growth year-over-year for 2008 and 2009. Now we see opportunities for more.
Fuel, a modern, French bistro-style dining experience, does not serve lunch. But Marché, our newest restaurant, will. Located at 40 Lisbon St. (across the street from Fuel), Marché will be a French-inspired lunch spot, catering to the downtown business district. The restaurant has a target opening date of March 2010, and is in development right now.
Our decision to continue to invest in downtown Lewiston comes from both a deep affection for the community where I grew up and what I believe is savvy business sense. Although slowed considerably due to the economic downturn, downtown Lewiston continues to change and develop. New restaurants — City Side Grill, She Doesn’t Like Guthries, Mother India and now Marché — have popped up in the past two years, all within blocks of each other.
More renovation is happening in the downtown, including new residential developments. Two higher-end apartments in the Ellard Block are being renovated. Three units above Antonio’s Deli on Lisbon Street are already occupied. And we’ve just begun our own project: the renovation of an apartment above Marché into an upscale, urban loft similar to the renovation we undertook in the space above Fuel, in what was once the Lyceum Hall theater where we now live.
Additionally, the Somali community continues to open a variety of markets, butcher shops and coffee shops on the upper end of Lisbon Street; several have opened in the past year alone. Some semblance of a “Little Somalia,” akin to a “Chinatown” in a larger city, is taking shape.
Three years ago, when my wife, Carrie, and I moved to downtown Lewiston, we thought the area was prime for development. Now we believe we are at a tipping point. The downtown dining scene has acquired the critical mass it needs to be a destination area. When you list the options — all within a quarter mile of each other — you can start to see the value of being downtown if you are in the food business.
Fuel, Fish Bones American Grill, DaVinci’s, Willy Bean’s Coffee Shop, Mother India, Subway, Simone’s Hot Dog Stand, Antonio’s Deli, Espo’s Trattoria, She Doesn’t Like Guthries, City Side Grill and Marché. All 13 restaurants operate within a quarter mile of each other. Collectively, they attract residents and visitors to the downtown, adding vibrancy and economic opportunity.
Options for living downtown will continue to grow, and I believe the demand is high. The apartment we are developing above Marché was leased before the drywall went up. For $1,200 a month.
The city continues to offer a positive business climate for downtown development, and municipal officials are accessible through the development process. Federal programs are available and accessible to help defray the cost of developing the older buildings that make up the city’s architecturally rich downtown.
Finally, the Lewiston-Auburn community gets involved in new developments in their cities. There is a fierce loyalty to local business from the people who live here. A strong chamber of commerce aggressively markets new businesses, and the environment is supportive.
My wife and I expect downtown development to continue to grow, albeit slowly, over the next five years, with a focus on the dining and residential sectors. As that development unfolds, we expect to see a small core of affiliated businesses sprout up — such as dry cleaners and specialty markets — that would cater to a growing downtown population.
All of these positive attributes helped us decide to buy another building downtown, gut and rehab it for mixed use, and open a new restaurant. We hope to replicate Fuel’s success. The English translation for marché is market, and we certainly see a market renewal in downtown Lewiston.
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