OPINION: A ‘new’ Winder on Hwy. 316?

First, several of those interviewed agreed that much of the future retail development in Winder may actually take place outside of downtown and on Hwy. 316 instead.

That “new” Winder portends a dim future for the traditional downtown area. New investments in retail growth that bypass traditional downtowns are generally gone forever. Once a downtown begins to slip, it’s difficult to stop the slide.

One of the factors that affects that also are when major institutions leave a downtown area. The new courthouse outside of downtown has certainly had an impact, as will the future move of Lanier Tech to a new campus facility. The loss of other large employers over the years has already hurt foot traffic in downtown Winder.

To their credit, Winder leaders are thinking about this issue. But that may not be enough. While government can sink a lot of money into fixing some traffic and aesthetic issues, without a significant amount of private investment, it won’t solve the problem.

And that’s the rub — to keep retail places in downtown means, for the most part, mom and pop stores where investments are minimal and rents are low.

Major building upgrades — either voluntary or mandated by government — often pushes rents beyond the means of many mom and pop stores, so that revitalization could actually lead to more empty buildings rather than less.

People’s Bank president Chris Maddox expressed a different vision for the downtown in the article by saying that rather than being retail based, Winder’s downtown could develop as a place for professions — doctors, lawyers, engineers, bankers, etc. If those kind of places employed enough people, the supporting services of restaurants, etc. would follow.

That is perhaps the most realistic view of Winder’s future downtown. No matter how nice it becomes due to public revitalization, it will only survive with the investment of small businesses and professions outside of the retail sector.

These are important issues because nobody wants to see Winder’s traditional downtown boarded up, a ghost of its former self.

The real question now is, how can such a transition take place?