Plan puts eateries in limbo

City center road will displace three

Construction of the Quincy Concourse through the heart of downtown may eventually be a boon for local businesses, but for now it's anything but that for the ones that lie in its path.

"We don't know what our future is going to be," said Julie Feng, the owner of Taste of Taiwan, one of three restaurant tenants in the Quincy Fair building, which is being taken down by the city for the concourse. "Some of our customers believe we're already closed."

The manager of Little Q Hotpot, another of the businesses being displaced, agreed. The city's decision to demolish the building after his restaurant signed a 20-year lease with its owner has cast a pall over the business's future, said Ming Zhu.

To make way for the new gateway road that will connect Route 3 and Route 3A, the city last month completed taking the Quincy Fair building at 1585 Hancock St., a compact urban mall housing a food court, several city departments, a closed movie theater, and the former Registry of Motor Vehicles office.

According to officials, the city paid $2.01 million for the building, recorded the transaction, then sent its tenants notification of its ownership while informing them of their relocation rights.

They will have a "flexible" period to relocate, officials said. The city will not issue a formal eviction notice as long as they are making an honest effort to relocate, said planning director Dennis Harrington.

Construction of the new roadway is to start in the fall of next year.

Most of the business tenants in the nine properties taken for the Quincy Concourse have already moved or, in some cases, gone out of business.

"The vast majority of them have relocated," Harrington said. Some buildings have already been demolished.

But some of the tenants bided their time, as the Quincy Fair's landlord fought the city's taking. The landlord lost that battle after the City Council approved funds for the taking in May and the city concluded the deal last month. The three remaining businesses in Quincy Fair are Taste of Taiwan, Little Q Hotpot, and Sushi Time.

During last fall's campaign, Mayor Tom Koch had promised to examine whether a slight adjustment in the road plans would spare the building from demolition. But after his election, Koch decided that the financing and permitting had gone too far along to save the Quincy Fair building, spokesman Chris Walker said. Resubmitting plans with an adjusted roadway would mean "starting over" in federal funding and permit applications, Walker said.

Officials said the road is in line for $6 million in federal funding and $5 million from the state. "The future is very bright for this neighborhood," said Walker.

But Quincy Fair tenants aren't sure they will be part of that future, raising the possibility that the city may lose a few of the niche restaurants that make it a destination for international dining.

Feng said the planned demolition has made it hard to establish her business. "A lot of the locals don't know we're here," she said. There is a perception that the building has already been closed, she said, and her plans to spend thousands of dollars to advertise the current location or mail sample menus are on hold.

City officials have encouraged her to continue business as usual but, she said, "we're the ones who are spending the money."

At Little Q Hotpot, Zhu said the city needs to "let us know soon" what help it will give tenants forced to move. Relocation plans depend in part on it, he said.

The businesses were told to work with Peter Sleeper and Associates of Arlington, which has been hired by the city to advise them on their rights - including compensation for expenses - and help them relocate.

Sleeper said recently that he had not yet contacted the Quincy Fair tenants. "We like to give them a few months to get over the shock," he said.

Quincy officials also said that the restaurant owners have been aware for a year that the building would be taken, and that while finding the right spot can be difficult, staying in the city center would probably be the best choice.

"That's where the customers go to look for them," said Dean Rizzo, executive director of Quincy 2000 Collaborative, the city's economic development agency.

Among the businesses that have already relocated are a tanning center, which moved to another South Shore community and has since gone out of business; two hair salons, which found new homes in the center; a financial services office that relocated within Quincy; Alba's restaurant, which moved across Hancock Street; and another restaurant that decided to take its relocation benefit in cash. A pub restaurant, Holy Ground, is looking for a new city center location.

Paul Sturman of Frantic Framers plans to move his business from Revere Road to 92 Franklin St., less than a mile south of the city center. He said the road plan is hard on businesses and unpopular with most Quincy residents. But city leaders, he said, "pushed it."

Feng said she is still seeking official word from the city - "I was told I would receive a letter" - on how long she has to move.

The city will be flexible, Walker said, "to allow folks who need to relocate as much time as possible."

Robert Knox can be contacted at rc.knox@gmail.com.