By Anna Kayser
Numerous reasons have been attributed to the impending closure of the Den, 123 E. Washington St., at the end of this year.
The store, which has served the Iowa City area for more than 40 years, will close its doors before its lease is up on Dec. 31.
Store supervisor Craig Spencer said three things caused the store to not renew its lease: retail is becoming harder because of the internet, the Washington Street construction, and the higher rent district.
Over the summer, the Washington Streetscape Project blocked off major portions of the block of the street that the Den is located on and affected pedestrian traffic. Spencer predicted that this caused a 30 to 40 percent drop in sales.
“There was too much difficulty in getting to the store due to the Washington Street construction, which caused a great drop in business,” Spencer said.
He also said that since the traffic patterns were changed for so long and are continuing to change, people are now used to taking different routes around the area.
The construction began in April of this year and is still ongoing.
Wendy Ford, the economic development coordinator for Iowa City, said this was the best time to get the construction work done.
“We realize it’s been a big inconvenience, however the construction is necessary because of both the street and the utilities for all the businesses,” Ford said. “It’s important for the city to make sure that all infrastructure services are available.”
The underground utilities are decades old, and they had to be replaced before another water main break occurred. It just made sense for the city to “rip the Band-Aid off,” as Ford said, to fix both the street and the utilities.
Many city departments came together to make the decision to do both the street construction and the underground utilities at once. Ford said this was the most efficient way, even though business was compromised.
Spencer emphasized that the construction was not the only cause of the Den’s demise. Online shopping is making the retail market more difficult, and the store is located in a high rent district.
Kevin Monson, the owner of the property, said he was not surprised by the decision not to renew the lease.
“It was expected; their lease was up.” Monson said. “I assumed they were leaving.”
Monson is now looking for a short-term lease for the open space, but has not began advertising the space for a long-term option.
Spencer is now looking for alternate locations for the Den but said it wouldn’t be to the same scale that it is now. They are looking at downtown Iowa City, in local malls, and areas with parking.
However, he said it is likely that they will close down completely.
