The Corner could see significant changes in the coming months if Plan 9 Music decides not to renew its 10-year lease in the three-story Anderson Brothers Building. The record store's lease, which expires in May, also covers three subtenants: Higher Grounds, Just Curry and Satellite Ballroom. Changes to the building's main tenant could lead to the closure of these three locally owned businesses.
A Corner staple since 1985, originally located in the space now home to Cavalier Tan, Plan 9 is one of seven stores in a Richmond-based chain. Though the record store has been on the Corner for more than two decades, owner James Bland said he has witnessed a recent downturn in sales.
"We do quite well with used [CDs] and vinyl and that type of thing," Bland said, noting that the chain still serves a niche market. "But there are some [locations] that you have to decide when the business is really to the point where it doesn't make sense anymore. We're on the verge of one now."
Though Bland said negotiations with Anderson Brothers Building owner Terry Vassalos are ongoing in regard to Plan 9 Music's lease, he said he was unable to discuss the nature of those discussions. The Corner property has been the topic of rumor and discussion on local blogs and e-mail lists, some of which state that the location could be home to a new 24-hour CVS Pharmacy. Vassalos said he was aware of these rumors but would neither quell them nor confirm CVS as a potential new tenant.
"It's not done yet," Vassalos said of negotiations relating to Plan 9 Music's lease. "We're talking about it, but that's all we're doing."
CVS spokesperson Mike DeAngelis echoed a similar sentiment, noting there is no announcement about a new retail location in Charlottesville. Offering no further comment, DeAngelis explained the company only comments about new stores if there is a signed lease for the location.
Unaware of their future in the Anderson Brothers Building, business owners subleasing from the record store expressed concern about the possible change.
"Though it hasn't been finalized, I think it's a strange decision by a company like CVS to want to put a large retail space on the Corner," said Chuck Adcock, owner of subtenant Satellite Ballroom and nearby Michael's Bistro, in response to the rumors. "It's hard enough for service industries, like restaurants, during the summer and winter break. I don't think they would do well."
The potential loss of Satellite Ballroom, one of the few music-only venues in Charlottesville, would negatively impact the Corner, Adcock said, adding Michael's Bistro saw an increase in profit because of the music venue. Satellite Ballroom, he argued, has drawn customers to Corner establishments during traditionally low-traffic weeknights and University breaks.
"It's hard to say if other restaurants benefited, but the Bistro can't be the only restaurant to benefit," Adcock said of the Satellite Ballroom's influence on nearby establishments. "As for a [possible] CVS on the Corner, I don't necessarily see the logic in that. Personally, I don't think it's good for the Corner at all."
Adcock and others from Satellite Ballroom are not the only ones concerned about the possible change of hands in the Plan 9 Music location. Red Light Management, an asset of local real estate mogul Coran Capshaw, entered into an agreement with the Ballroom last year to jointly book shows at the venue following the close of Starr Hill Music Hall.
"Frankly, we thought it was going to be a long, ongoing relationship," said Max Distefano, the Red Light Management financial controller who worked with Satellite Ballroom following the booking agreement. "It seemed like a good business. We liked the fact that there would be music close to the University. Red Light is disappointed that it seems like the Satellite Ballroom will be coming to an end."
Both Satellite Ballroom and Red Light Management were aware of the possible lease issues when they entered into the booking agreement, according to the venue's booking agent Daniel Shea. Though Shea emphasized "it's not a done deal," he said he is pleased with the Ballroom's tenure on the Corner.
"In the worst-case scenario, if we close in May, we had a really good run," Shea noted. "It's not all bad, and nothing lasts forever."
Also uncertain of his coffee shop's future in the Anderson Brothers Building, Higher Grounds owner Joe Trager said he is unsure if the shop could move to another spot on the Corner after having been on the Corner for more than a decade. The shop, Trager said, originally got its start in a portable cart in the alleyway between Baja Bean and the old Plan 9, now Cavalier Tan.
"I don't see too many vacancy signs," Trager said, noting that Higher Grounds has two smaller locations in the Martha Jefferson and University Hospitals. "The Corner is a good market, but it's a challenging market. Where we would go at this point, I don't see the spot right now."
An updated decision as to whether Plan 9 Music will renew or let its lease expire should come as soon as negotiations are final, according to Bland. The talk of a potential CVS and its impact on the building's three subtenants remains to be seen at this point.
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