Another teachable moment arises from the experience of "Ogontz Avenue Revitalization Corp., a tax-exempt, taxpayer-supported, nonprofit group which bought a Mount Airy nightclub, bar and restaurant in March, the goal was to provide an economic boost to Northwest Philadelphia".
Well, the bottom line, the nightclub proved to be a bad idea for everyone except the original owners who "had run up $400,000 in debt, including $169,000 in back city taxes", at least according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. All in all though, between the sale prices and money spent to upgrade North by Northwest, OARC has spent $608,966.87 on the business. With the loss of $160,000, North by Northwest has cost OARC $768,966.87.
Of course maybe OARC should have known better. It apparently has quite a history of success with its many other ventures and a $25 million annual budget. I guess a community development organization can't get them all right all the time. But still, one might have thought a good business plan would have put the writing on the wall.
According to the article:
For one, a nightclub is not necessarily an obvious tool for a community-development corporation, which more typically devotes money to such activities as rehabbing housing or providing low-interest business loans in a targeted area.
For another, North by Northwest is beyond OARC's traditional turf - West Oak Lane - and part of a rebounding commercial strip that hardly seems a logical target for help from a distant patron.
Finally, as an investment property, North by Northwest would seem a questionable bet, given its record and OARC's own admission that the business cannot succeed with its existing parking.
And yes, there does appear to be some issue with who is involved with this venture -- but that's another story.