On mornings when I’m walking Daisy, and on evenings when Dennise and me are out to dinner here, I think about these empty storefronts on Lowest Greenville. Despite the teaming life on Lowest Greenville right now, these spots are empty.
They are the place where the old Poor David’s Pub used to be, owned by our friend, David Card.
I have such memories of that room. My first open mics ever, were in that room….often hanging out with Annie and Kendall. My CD release party was there in 2001…we packed the the place with 300 people…and that’s not a preacher number either. (That’s the night Kathleen Baskin-Ball, and Bill Ball remet, making history….for you Methodists reading along…)
But David moved his place to Southside on Lamar some years after that.
The crime had gotten too bad. The rents were too high. And the city was too unresponsive. So, David…and a whole lot of the old guard on Lowest Greenville…left.
It seems like such a shame to me today. Because the sidewalks are now wide and walkable. There are tons of new eateries and bars….families hang out there. People walk their dogs there.
The crime rate has fallen dramatically. The community “feeling” is better.
And it would be a perfect addition for Poor David’s to be in that spot. And I think about it every time I pass there.
But here’s the reality….
Had David and many others NOT taken action….not stirred the pot….not spoken up….perhaps nothing would have ever changed on Lowest Greenville.
It’s very likely, in fact.
These changes happened because folks cared enough to stand up and speak out. Maybe it never would have happened it he’d just stayed silent and stayed in place. It makes you think.
Social change is never easy. It’s awkward.
Beautiful new things are always being born…like the revitalization of Lowest Greenville.
But there’s a lot of pain and pushing at the Powers That Be in order to make that change happen.
Worth remembering.
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