The recent approval of a downtown Apple store by San Luis Obispo (Calif.) city officials has renewed the on-going debate in town about preserving the character of the community. Architectural Review Commission member Allen Root wrote a letter to the The Tribune newspaper that outlined his ambivalence over the decision. He said “Hooray!” that an Apple store is coming to town. But he noted that, “Besides our neighbors, our most precious commodity is the unique, rich, visual character of out town.” He said that most disturbing about the approval process for Apple’s store was that, “The national retailers seem to have little or no regard for SLO’s character, and this community is unwilling to stand up to them.” He then warned readers that, “Once we lose the character of this community, it’s not coming back.”
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If the community doesn’t care, then I don’t know what he thinks his job is. I still say downtown has no real character, just a mishmash of various types of buildings. Anyway, I was downtown today and saw that construction started last week. They have walls blocking the sidewalk and first floor of the front and a little bit on the side street. I imagine they’re removing that greek portico. The inside is gutted bare. A couple of sawhorse tables are set up. There is a hole in the window glaze on the side street where you can get a good look.
I think the “unique character” of SLO’s downtown was tossed out a number of years ago when every trendy brand-name clothing or home store moved in. Now the downtown area is more like every other city in California. It’s no longer special, and hasn’t been for years. SLO needs to get over itself.
I think it’s more unfortunate that a local Apple specialist, Mac SuperStore, who has done a wonderful job for years, is going to face some difficult times since Apple is moving in. All while 90 miles south, in Santa Barbara, there is only a few small time mom & pop Mac repair shops, and easily twice the population and money of SLO.
I’ll take SuperStore over Mac Shac any day. If Apple can ever find a 5,000 sq. ft. space downtown, Santa Barbara will be set.
I’d have to agree with Tingly, in that Downtown SLO has no real character.
Personally, I’m excited about the new Apple store because Central California has no Apple Retail Store, anywhere. You would have to either drive down to So Cal or up to Nor Cal for “real” Apple support or training. I’m not saying that the Apple Authorized stores haven’t done a good job, I just think that an Apple Retail Store can offer much more to more people.
Also, this is good for SLO, because it will make everyone from the central coast come to SLO for Apple, which will give SLO the taxes and other businesses will gain customers.
As for the Mac Superstore, to stay competitive all they need to do is offer services that Apple doesn’t, like BootCamp/Windows support and better warranties. Sure, it’s going to be tough for them, but I think that they will be able to manage.
Relocating to Paso, 5 Cities or Santa Maria could work for SuperStore. People are gonna start avoiding bigger buys in SLO next month when sales tax goes up 0.5%. Auto sales are bound to go down, not sure about computers.
As the owner of MacSuperstore, I wanted to chime in and thank the locals who are voicing their opinions. Without going into my 10 page book of thoughts on the topic, I want to express just a couple thoughts.
We have been at this game for quite awhile now and it’s ALOT of work. What appears as a shopping experience takes much work and alot of heart to provide. We do the best we can and continue to strive for better yet. Apple as a partner is difficult, but it’s the game we have chose and we refuse to go out via a lawsuit (like some other dealers).
The thing that has always held us back — staffing. We hire the best Mac folks we can find and there never seems to be enough. We seem to always be short in the service area — something where the greatest opportunity is. Will be interesting to see who Apple finds in town (beyond a couple ex-MacSuperstore folks).
Our size will be our advantage. While Apple is like a giant cruise ship, we can turn and adjust like a little Coast Guard cutter. Lots of change coming at our place — to not only do what we’ve done for the area, but expand to new stuff that Apple won’t. Look for some fun enhancements in the coming months.
Thanks for the support and tell you’re friends we are hiring and might possibly be even better to work for!
WIth what Apple pays, I believe it. The Soop has always given me great service.
An apple store in San Luis Obispo reflects the city’s technological motion. The student population at Cal Poly would support this storefront, while the store would contribute to the economy and life of the downtown which is still very unique in California. Business is business, whoever offers the best products and service will succeed. The Mac store will continue to succeed if they are able to evolve into the proper niche.
Well SLO lost its chance for a Macy’s but soon will not only have an Apple Store but a Lexus dealer no less. We might not have the glitz that Santa Barbara has but they don’t have these two first class companies in town like we will have. I say it’s a win/win for this area.
It is inevitable for a town in CA to change. It is happening everywhere in this state. There could be a lot worse retailers coming to this town than Apple though. I think it will be a positive thing.
Bill, what do you know about this Lexus dealer coming to SLO? That would be an interesting addition in dealers. Lexus seems to be a great car.
