 "Photo: TownSite")
Sandwiches aren’t the only thing coming to the Wesleyan neighborhood.
Subway, scheduled to open by the end of the month adjacent to the bookstore, is merely another step in revitalizing the Wesleyan area along Rosedale Street.
“It’s a great opportunity not only for me but for the community to have more brand-name fast food on the street,” said Ricky Harden, Subway manager for the upcoming Rosedale location. “It seems like it’s been nearly 20 years since Mama’s Pizza was here.”
The nearly 2,000 square-foot space will seat 46 to 48 people, offer wi-fi access and have a contemporary feel, Harden said.
“The store will be bigger than most,” he said. “When other restaurants check it out it’s going to bring more.”
TownSite, a real estate development firm, received $1.25 million in federal grant money to remodel the Rosedale area between Nashville and Collard streets.
“We’re trying to make the university more prominent,” said Phillip Poole, managing partner for TownSite, “and knit the university and historic edge of the neighborhood again like it was in the Poly heyday.”
Set to begin in the fall, Poole said, the remodeling includes narrowing Rosedale by 20 feet, installing pedestrian-controlled crosswalks and trees along the curb opposite of Wesleyan.
The narrowing will include curb bulbs that stretch the sidewalk into the street, making it easier for pedestrians to cross, and allow parking along Rosedale.
“It creates more of a pedestrian feel,” Poole said. “People will just naturally go slower and [the street] will seem tighter. It will feel more like Magnolia Street in Fort Worth South.”
After the new bookstore opened, Poole said, the revitalization commotion died down for a period of time. The long-term lease with Subway is a sign that investor’s interest in the area is growing again, Poole said.
“The economy has been hard for small, independent businesses to start a new one or move a branch,” Poole said. “We’re seeing more activity and more people are coming up to me.”
Empower Me, a transitional service organization founded in 2003 that provides job placement and supportive employment for individuals with cognitive and physical impairments, is opening corporate offices at the end of the 3200 block of Rosedale by April.
David Howard, founder of Empower Me, said the location will benefit both the school and the organization.
“It’s a great opportunity for us because Texas Wesleyan is at the forefront of neighborhood revitalization,” he said. “Being near is a good chance for growth.”
Adding to the revitalization, a business incubation center will soon call the Dillow House home.
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