HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/7/2023 Item 6a, Finney's Crafthouse
From:CityClerk
Sent:Wednesday, October 25, 2023 8:34 AM
To:Brad Finefrock
Cc:Johnson, Derek; Johnson, Lee; Cano, Molly; Hussey, Gaven; Rice, Jennifer; Horn, Matt;
Wiberg, Daisy; Tway, Timothea (Timmi); McDonald, Whitney; Scott, Rick
Subject:cc Finney's Crafthouse (Parking & Homelessness)
Brad Finefrock
Thank you for reaching out to City Council with your input. Your correspondence has been delivered directly to
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topic of parking will be discussed. Also, copied on this email are members of our Homelessness Response
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Bcc: City Clerk
From: Brad Finefrock <
Sent: Tuesday, October 24, 2023 8:03 AM
To: E-mail Council Website <emailcouncil@slocity.org>
Cc: Johnson, Derek <djohnson@slocity.org>; Johnson, Lee <ljohnson@slocity.org>; Cano, Molly <mcano@slocity.org>;
Hussey, Gaven <ghussey@slocity.org>
Subject: Finney's Crafthouse
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Dear City Council Members,
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Finney's is a family run business and we have deep roots in SLO. My wife and I met here during college in
1990 and we have close family and friends who have lived in SLO for the past 40 years. We love San Luis
Obispo and this small town has always struck a special chord with our family, which is why we decided to open
a business in the historic downtown area.
I am writing to provide you some background on Finney's Crafthouse's current state of business in
SLO. Alongside our friends at Firestone Grill and Giuseppe's, we are concerned about the state of the
downtown area as there have been numerous recent closures of many of our restaurant peers and retail
neighbors. New parking rates in the downtown area, specifically charging customers for the first hour of
parking in these structures, is the latest move that is having a negative impact on local businesses. The ease
of accessibility is one of the most important features of what makes a retail business successful. When you
layer on costly fees and difficult payment systems to simply park your car, customers will go elsewhere where
parking is not a deterrent. This is not an opinion but a fact in our industry.
Since Finney's has 10 total locations in Southern California, we have the ability to measure and compare our
sales performance amongst all of the restaurants. What is interesting to note is that ALL of Finney's locations
are generating higher sales in 2023 above 2022, except San Luis Obispo. Sales at our other 9 locations are
up on average 5% over last year. SLO is down 7% over the last year. Also worth noting, an important metric
that we use to gauge our customer feedback is Yelp, which has Finney's SLO location as the highest (4.3 stars)
amongst all 10 of our locations. What this tells us is that something is happening in the downtown SLO area
which is out of our control. Parking is part of the problem, homelessness and safety remains a key issue, and
weaker tourism is also a factor.
With the most recent closures of downtown stalwarts Big Sky and Slash Cafe, in addition to Grinder, Village
Host, and our neighbor Mint & Craft, it is evident that the downtown area needs to be protected in the interest
of our locals and also to regain the vitality of SLO as a tourist destination. We are hopeful the Council
recognizes the importance of supporting downtown businesses, as without them there is no downtown. Just
look at what has happened in downtown Santa Barbara (where I live), as businesses have not been a priority
with the Council, which has left State Street looking like a skeleton of its former self. I hope this
doesn't happen to SLO, but when long tenured local businesses close as quickly as we are witnessing
downtown, it is time to circle the wagon, listen to key stakeholders and try a new approach to solve the
problem.
Thank you for listening and if any of you would ever like to reach out, my phone is always open.
Sincerely,
Brad
805-220-3441
BRAD FINEFROCK
Finney's Crafthouse & Kitchen
805.220.3441 mobile
www.finneyscrafthouse.com
#finneyscrafthouse
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