El Rancho Grande opens- a year late
There is a story here. I don’t know what it is.
I’m sure there is one pissed off small business owner.
El Rancho Grande is now open at the corner of Stewart and Brown Street. I wish them the best of luck. How a business can make it after paying rent for a year without a single dollar coming is a monumental achievement.
An investigation should be led by city leadership how our permitting process went wrong- and how did we let a building get built that somehow can’t get businesses open faster. This is not the first business in this building to be delayed- Shish Wraps, Fusian, Cassano’s all had delays.
Once again- congrats to El Rancho Grande for making it through the maze of codes and rules and hoops and smoke and mirrors that Dayton seems to put in the way of every small business.
Our parking lot was mis-filed 4 times as 11 Apple St. 11 Apple St hasn’t existed since 1970-something when my father bought it and torn it down for more parking. It took 2 years longer to get all the permits/variances etc bc of this idiotic behavior. Not to mention the legal fees and waste of court time. Dayton tax dollars at work.
And I’m sure all this Main Street construction has helped your lot- total ClusterDuck today when I drove by. Loved how a Dayton Water Maintenance truck had to park right next to the intersection- while a cement mixer was blocking one lane.
Needless to say the on-site guy for the project KNOWS my face. They are moving the 150 yo boiler from one side of the street to the other. The project manager was “shocked” that they had problems moving it (??). The hospital “cops” also know my face and have wisely steered clear of me when I arrive everyday. They did attempt to question me on day one of this debacle. I told him to move his vehicle as it was blocking the right of way into our lot. No it has NOT been pleasant.
You can thank king of the Dayton Slugs, Michael Cromartie for the maze of delays and boondoggles with the permitting process. Never have I seen any municipality in the country more obtuse than Dayton’s Department of Building Services. “One Stop Center,” you got that right – they will stop any project right in it’s tracks. This incompetent boob has crushed development in Dayton for decades.
Oh yeah, he’s married to Frances McGee-Cromartie, daughter of former Mayor McGee. That’s how it works in “Boss Hoggville.”
Even more embarrassing, perhaps, is the fact that Channel 7–which is located a few blocks away–couldn’t be bothered to shoot the site, instead using stock footage of the Vandalia location for its story yesterday.
Meanwhile somewhere between malfeasance, neglect and incompetence lies a business that could have been providing a valuable service to the community, adding to the street ambiance while contributing to the tax base.
Brings to mind Lily Thomlin:
“We don’t care. We don’t have to. We’re the Phone Company.”