Changes in the city of trees.

[netmouse]

In a response to Mrissa from an earlier thread I go on a bit about ways that Ann Arbor has changed that makes it less fun these days for me to show people around town. I grew up here, and find it much less the comfortable, casual, ideosynchratic and hippy college town it was when I was a kid. Borders has changed from a deep and interestingly unique store to a chain clone. I didn't even go into how the Art Fair has gotten less artsy and fun and more commercial. Even Zingerman's sandwiches are not as good as they once were, since they shrunk them a few years back to keep competitive in the face of Amers and other sandwich cafes.

Would you agree that Ann Arbor is changing for the worse?

What changes do you like? (having Trader Joe's and Whole Foods come in could be counted as positives, for instance).

What do you miss?

Comments

[delosd.livejournal.com]

Limeade at Drakes.
Fried Ice Cream at the Stage Door.
All you can eat Crab Leg night at the Village Bell.
Omega's Pizza! With two pounds of cheese on each pizza. :)
Fourth Street back when it was the red-light district.
The Blue Front when it was a magazine and odds and ends shop.
Ooooh... The Southside Grille across the street from Campus Corner and their ham and dark smokey cheddar omelette.
Gas stations in main campus.
Cold strawberry soup in that place on State Street that's the Shaman Drum now.
The Church Street parking structure.
Fragels.

OK, you've really got me going now... :)

[chowbok.livejournal.com]

There were a few restaurants where Shaman Drum is now, but I think the one that was there the longest was "Turtle Island".

[delosd.livejournal.com]

Not Turtle Island. I think it was the Continental, or the Continental *something* anyway.

[netmouse.livejournal.com]

I was very fond of the continental. We used to skip school and have breakfast there.

[delosd.livejournal.com]

I am SO not going to ask *which* school you were skipping at the time. :)

[(Anonymous)]

Heh. Yeah, they hated us. Gave me something to look forward to.

"Hey, wanna blow off Geometry, go caffeine-up and torture the staff at the Continental for two or three hours?"

"Sure!"