Several longtime stalwarts of the Gaslamp Quarter are saying goodbye to the historic preservation district.
Cafe Bassam, Gaslamp Books (home to the Wyatt Earp Museum) and Fantastic French Furniture, all located at Fourth Ave. and Market St., are either in the process of leaving or have left as their 100-year-old building was recently purchased by Chris Eddy of San Diego.
Bassam Shamma, owner of Cafe Bassam, said his new landlord is planning to raise the rents, which were too expensive for he and the other tenants.
Eddy said he didn’t give any of his tenants notice and had brief but cordial discussions with each tenant about the state of the retail market and its rates. He also said he offered to allow the tenants to stay as long as they wanted without raising the rents, and would have given them plenty of notice of any new tenant coming in who was willing to pay market rents. Current tenants Lucky Dog Pet Boutique, dress shop Le Bijou and the residential hotel on the second floor are all staying.
For his part, Eddy wants to restore the original brick facade that was painted over the years and generally restore the building to its original appearance.
“I’d like to try to capture what the storefront must have looked like before they had aluminum mullions for the windows, so we’re going to look at trying to go back to the original storefront,” Eddy said. This would possibly include awnings and tasteful architectural lighting.
He also wants to take advantage of an unused basement below the building that currently can only be accessed through Cafe Bassam.
“This is kind of a dream to be able to go into the Gaslamp and be a part of something that is bigger than just my building. It’s a national historic preservation district “” you’ve got a lot of people working very hard to restore these old buildings and it’s really a pleasure to be able to join those folks,” Eddy said.
Rent, as well as this planned construction, led the three tenants to move elsewhere. Bassam said the renovations would have interrupted his business “” a cafe opened in 1991 that, along with the Spaghetti Factory, Croce’s and Ole Madrid, were the founders of the modern-day Gaslamp Quarter, according to Bassam.
“I brought everybody to downtown: I am downtown, not these nightclubs and discotheques,” he said.
But in lamenting what he says is a lack of parking and too many drunks on weekends, Bassam is moving his cafe to a space he purchased two years ago in Bankers Hill, at 3088 5th Ave. The building offers more room, and he will add food and wine to a menu that already includes tea, coffee, and pastries.
Ken Cilch, owner of Gaslamp Books, left Jan. 1, moving all his belongings into storage, though he hopes to one day find another spot for his quirky museum somewhere in the Gaslamp Quarter. Fantastic French Furniture, meanwhile, moved to Fifth Ave. and Ash St.
But while locals may bemoan the loss of neighborhood institutions like Cafe Bassam, others look toward the future of the area.
“Cafe Bassam’s been a great establishment “” there’s no question “” and was one of the essential parts of the rejuvenation of the Gaslamp,” said Jimmy Parker, executive director of the Gaslamp Quarter Association. “We are sorry to see it go, but on the other side, we also know this is one of those consequences of development, regrowth and lease rates, so though we’re sad, we’re happy that they were able to find a new location and that the business will continue.”
Bassam said his cafe’s new location will open sometime in the spring after leaving Fourth and Market at the end of February. Eddy did not know yet which tenants will occupy the now vacant space.