Here’s what shoppers and diners will find as Cordata and Bellis Fair reopen in Phase 2
The Cordata and Bellis Fair shopping areas are well on their way to reopening under the state’s Phase 2 guidelines, but it’s clear that there will be changes coming to the area.
A check around the Cordata area on Tuesday, June 16 found more than 90% of the stores being open. That only increased in the following days as stores like Burlington, Marshalls, Home Goods and Sierra Trading Company reopened. The Park Bowl is making plans to open when Phase 3 arrives, according to a sign outside the bowling alley. As of late last week, Value Village was still closed, but signs indicated it would be opening soon.
Bellis Fair, which first reopened on Tuesday, June 9, had about 50% percent of its stores open a week later, including anchor tenants Kohl’s and Macy’s.
One big change to the area involves Pier 1 Imports, which is on Meridian Street near Barnes & Noble, began its bankruptcy liquidation sale last week. The company is closing all its stores after being unable to find a buyer during the coronavirus pandemic.
Traffic in the area on June 16 was approaching levels seen before the pandemic, particularly on Meridian Street. Parking spaces were easy to find; some of the big parking lots were less than half full. Some stores were busy, however: Ross Dress For Less consistently had a line that Tuesday afternoon as store employees limited how many customers could go in at one time.
Plenty of other big box stores had taken different approaches to handling the Phase 2 rules. At Best Buy last week, employees were at the front door checking customers in. Employees at all the stores observed were wearing face masks; many of the businesses were recommending customers wear masks, but not requiring them.
For one of the family-owned businesses in the Cordata shopping district, it’s been a matter of coming up with its own specific plans to welcome back customers. The Birch Door Cafe reopened to limited dining on Saturday, June 7 and so far it has been a smooth transition, said Casey Nagler, who runs the business with his wife, Taria.
Business has been steady, but sales are down because of the restrictions on capacity. They’ve been working on ways to help offset the restrictions, including building an outdoor seating area and continuing the restaurant’s to-go menu. That’s allowed them to hire nearly all of their staff back. They’ve also done things like put hand sanitizer at each table, which seems to be well-received by customers.
“It’s been a challenging time, but I’m optimistic for the long-term,” Nagler said, adding that they’ve been fortunate to have other family members in the restaurant business, allowing them to work together on solutions.
“Many of our regular customers are back, and seem happy to see us,” Nagler said.
