Vandals Hit Firms Near 30th, Grand
Halloween vandals struck the Sterling Center at 30th and Grand Boulevard last week, but the manager of the property said graffiti and damaged glass are no holiday event.
Graffiti keeps popping all across the South Side, and it’s costly for businesses to clean up, said Shaani Claypool, property manager for R.W. Robideaux and Co. Each graffiti spraying costs about $200 to clean, she said.
Claypool said vandals have hit seven businesses at the Sterling Center. Several firms had deep scratches etched into their windows.
Vandalized businesses include Sterling Savings Bank, a Sherwin-Williams Co. paint store, a real estate office and a clinic.
The vandalism problem is recurring, and police haven’t been able to stop it, Claypool said.
“It’s a very frustrating problem,” she said. “This is in a neighborhood that shouldn’t be riddled with the problem.”
Most of the incidents have occurred early at night and may be the work of young people, she said.
Claypool said she is asking parents to monitor their children’s nighttime activities to make sure they aren’t responsible for graffiti.
“Who is watching our kids at night?” she asked.
Boston Market under construction
The last in a group of five new Boston Market restaurants in Spokane and Coeur d’Alene is scheduled to open at Lincoln Heights in January.
Construction is under way on the 3,000-square-foot restaurant at 3029 E. 29th.
Boston Market specializes in homestyle meals, including rotisserie chicken and turkey, ham, meat loaf, pasta, salads and fresh vegetables, said Chris Dickinsen, marketing director for B.C. Northwest, the franchising firm for Oregon and Washington.
She said Boston Market seeks to capitalize on the recent trend in the restaurant business away from the usual fast food of burgers, tacos and pizza and toward more traditional foods that Americans have eaten for years.
In its “home-meal-replacement” concept, Boston Market combines the efficiency of fast food with the quality and variety of a more upscale restaurant, she said.
Supermarkets also seek to capture this niche by expanding prepared foods and delicatessen offerings.
According to a Food Marketing Institute study, fast-food restaurants sold 48 percent of meals eaten at home but not prepared at home, compared with 25 percent for other restaurants and 12 percent for supermarkets.
B.C. Northwest has 41 outlets in Oregon and Washington and is affiliated with the Boston Chicken restaurant chain of Golden, Colo.
The other outlets here include two in the Spokane Valley, one on North Division and one in Coeur d’Alene.
The South Hill outlet is being built on land owned by Harlan Douglass. , DataTimes