Seasonal Stores Bring Much-Needed Traffic to Telegraph Shopping District

Ghouls, politicians and the holidays are combining to bring life to once-empty storefronts along Telegraph Avenue.

From Halloween stores to campaign offices, tenants with short-term leases have stepped in to fill four of the approximately 23 vacancies in the beleaguered business district, including the former location of Cody’s Books.

Similar temporary deals have placed four tenants in the Downtown Berkeley district and one in West Berkeley, though those areas have far lower vacancy rates than the Telegraph district, say city officials.

While no data is collected on seasonal and short-term leases in the city, the arrangements are common when landlords do not have long-term tenants lined up, according to Dave Fogarty, the city’s economic development director.

Telegraph Avenue has seen an increased number of vacancies in recent years, he said, reflected by a 44 percent decline in sales revenues from 1990 to 2004, when there was $982,138 in total tax receipts.

The temporary Telegraph stores are a boon to both property owners and to the local economy, say business officials. Three will vacate in the first week of November, while one plans to close in January.

“They’re very healthy for the economy,” said Suzan Steinberg, coordinator of the Shattuck/Blake Merchant’s Association. “It’s positive whenever you can get a space filled.”

For property owners, short-term leases bring in rent on spaces that would otherwise sit empty while not requiring long-term commitment to a tenant or costly building improvements, she said.

Bringing some traffic to a location, even temporarily, can also be positive, said John Gordon, owner of Berkeley-based Gordon Commercial Real Estate Services.

“It’s a good way to bring attention to your building,” he said. “It’s the vacant buildings that tend to have more attraction for vandalism than buildings that are occupied.”

Businesses, on the other hand, benefit from reduced lease rates and a minimal amount of city paperwork and negotiation time.

Short-term rental rates vary depending on the tenant, but are typically lower than long-term deals due to the convenience of the arrangement, Gordon said.

Since most temporary businesses do not make any significant cosmetic changes within the store, they usually only require approval from the zoning department and a business license from the city, Gordon said.

Turnover time is rapid compared to that of other businesses and a license can take a little as a day to obtain, said Susie Monary-Wilson, customer service manager in the Berkeley Finance Department.

For many people, seeing Cody’s Books’ corner spot occupied by a Halloween store is still a shock. But for 11-year Berkeley resident August Fay, the store’s arrival was a blessing.

“I’d been looking for a job in Berkeley for a month, then I came in here and they hired me the day I applied,” she said.

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