New businesses will soon be built in the North Gate area, but they may not survive the community’s demand for uniqueness and lack of business outside of campus.Developments including a CVS pharmacy, Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt, Pita Pit, PJ’s Coffee and Shanghai Tokyo Restaurant are expected to be completed by the fall. Clarke Cadzow, board member of the North Gate Merchants Association and owner of Highland Coffees, said the new developments will enhance the community depending on their uniqueness. “The North Gate area is relatively isolated, and people are only willing to work hard to get to your store if what you offer is unique and of exceptional quality,” Cadzow said. “An interesting mix of quality businesses that complements the ones we already have will help the area the most.” The new developments will cost approximately $2.7 million and will take up the space next to Smoothie King and the vacant two-building shopping center on West State Street. The developments will also include a 209-space parking lot intended for shoppers. Business owners are unsure of how they will police parking, Cadzow said.The property is about 70 percent leased, according to Philadelphia-based Campus Apartments, who purchased the property in 2007. “New businesses will be successful because they’re in walking distance from campus,” said Jonathan Bonck, mass communication sophomore and North Gate area resident. “I initially thought traffic and parking would be a mad-house, but the addition of new parking will help.”CVS will be the closest pharmacy to the University, alleviating students’ need to drive farther to purchase everyday items. No pharmacy or grocery has existed in the community for years, and the North Gate Merchant Association is pleased to welcome CVS to the area, Cadzow said. Jessi Stryk, marketing freshman and business residential college resident, said the additions will benefit students living on campus.”My roommate didn’t have a car first semester and had to ride her bike all the way to the CVS down Highland to get prescriptions,” Stryk said. The business has the potential to attract customers from downtown and Old South Baton Rouge, the area between the University and downtown, because there are no drugstores in these areas, Cadzow said. The North Gate Merchants Association seeks to bring in businesses unique enough to draw customers from other areas. The North Gate area developed when the University moved its campus from downtown to its current location more than 80 years ago. The area, originally known as Tiger Town, saw an array of businesses on Highland Road and Chimes Street by the end of the 1920s. Grocery stores, drugstores, clothing retailers, hair salons, pool halls and bars served as some of the many venues that once existed in the area, Cadzow said. “More than 400 businesses have been located at the North Gates, serving generations of LSU students, faculty and staff,” Cadzow said. But many businesses that have recently called the North Gates home have experienced difficulty attracting customers from outside of campus. Storyville co-owner Elizabeth Harvey said parking is one of the area’s major problems. “These are old buildings that were built before everyone had cars,” Harvey said. “We border LSU’s campus, so it should be a walking-friendly area so students come between classes.”Many people’s perception of the North Gate area is negative, providing another obstacle for businesses.”Perception of the area has always been mixed,” Cadzow said. “The best way to avoid empty storefronts is for property owners to bring in the most appropriate tenants and to charge appropriate rents.”Empty land will be filled with attractive, new businesses and will probably change the way some people perceive the area, Cadzow said.Store owners work to create extraordinary businesses in order to survive in the difficult area. “Traditionally, chain stores have not had as much drawing power because they usually had other locations in town that were easier to get to,” Cadzow said. Blockbuster closed because of a combination of competition from alternative video rental options and other Blockbuster locations in Baton Rouge, Cadzow said. Other retailers have fared unsuccessfully in the area, including the Gap. Both Gap and Blockbuster experienced low sales when students left for the summer and had few customers from outside the neighborhood.Storyville has survived three years in the area, offering unique graphic T-shirt designs. Cadzow said his coffee shop, Highland Coffees, has flourished in the North Gate area for more than 20 years.–Contact Sabrina Trahan at [email protected]