As far as nightlife was concerned there was almost nothing going on. Everyone thought downtown was going to die. But I hung in there. I really felt like the future of downtown would be with the students,'' Alhadeff says. The central business district as it has existed is doomed.
Restaurants help contribute to retail stores.
But there has to be a good balance. Too many of one thing would skew the balance,'' he says. People complained about parking even back when I opened the store,'' Alhadeff said. In fall 1971, Clayton and Washington streets were made one way. Things nonetheless remained slow downtown through the early '80s.