Not all glitter ...

From the San Mateo Daily Journal; By Anna Rendall

Isabelle de Paz is being evicted from her shop, All That Glitters, on Primrose Road in Burlingame after 25 years. She worries about the chain store takeover in Burlingame.?They're chasing us out,? she said.

Isabelle de Paz is one the last remaining tenants left in her building at 329 Primrose Road in Burlingame.

Surrounded by empty suites, she knows in two months her walls will also be bare, stripped of the sparkling tiaras, pearl earrings, golden broaches and all the other vintage and costume jewelry she sold from this space for 25 years.

I thought I would be here until I was 90 with a rhinestone cane,? said de Paz with a somber smile.

De Paz is moving her jewelry store, All that Glitters, from her location steps away from Burlingame Avenue to Broadway because her building was bought and her new landlords has plans for the building that didn't include any of the approximately 20 tenants.

It began in April when she was to renew her lease, but instead received a letter informing her that the building had a new owner and that he would not be renewing anyone's lease, said de Paz.

I've been in a living hell since April. I keep getting sick from stress. You should see my Kaiser bill,? said de Paz.

Her last day open is Dec. 31, but she has until Jan. 31 to leave. That month will be spent packing up, moving and put[ing] paper on the windows so no one sees me in here ... mourning by myself,? said de Paz.

De Paz is one of many small business owners who have had to make the move out of the Burlingame Avenue area due to rent increases and new landlords. Some, like Sam's Sandwiches and The Studio Shop, moved to nearby streets. But De Paz predicts that Broadway will become the segue for small businesses like her own.

It's more funky, it's retro,? she said.

Ross Bruce, president of the Broadway Merchants' Association, jokingly said de Paz was one of the Burlingame Avenue refugees.? He has seen a few small businesses make the move from Burlingame Avenue to Broadway and explained that Broadway, with only two chain stores, was designed for the mom and pops.

Burlingame Avenue has more of a regional draw ... People walk [to Broadway] from their homes, it was designed pre-automobile,? he said.

Bill Meeker, the city's community development director, said that the city is in the process of creating a Downtown Specific Plan for Burlingame Avenue to address the area and build up on the successes that we have in our downtown area [to] maintain its usability for years to come.?

The plan, he said, should balance the corporations with the mom and pop operations.?

But not all small businesses are moving from Burlingame Avenue. Calvin Wang moved his Le Croissant cafe from Broadway to Burlingame Avenue 20 months ago in hopes of regaining the business he lost after restaurants were moved near his place on Broadway.

But like de Paz, Wang knows customers by name. He motioned to a man sitting at one of the tables, and said that the man ordered coffee every time he came in.

I don't have to ask them what they want [when they come in],? said Wang.

The city needs to do something,? he said, calling the rents outrageous.?

Burlingame Mayor Rosalie O' Mahony said the city has no right to determine rental rates or property values because we live in a free enterprise.?

And although high rents don't top small businesses favorites list, owners say they know what to expect.

It's a free market ... you can't tell a landlord what to charge,? said Sam Malouf, owner of Malouf's on Burlingame Avenue.

The Studio Shop owner Janet Martin said she understands both sides and, as a business woman, knows what to expect. She had to move three years ago along with other businesses, including Sam's Sandwiches, when her building was bought.

One solution to inhibit the increasing number of chain stores is to limit how wide store fronts can be, which could help keep rents down and to keep our small-town charm,? said Russ Cohen, president of the Burlingame Historical Society.

De Paz said the first floor of the building she is in will be turned into one large area, and said, with an emotional choke, that she thought her door would become the entrance to this new space.

But she said she is being positive about the move, which includes having her first jewelry sale and writing down customers' contact information to keep in touch.

Maybe this will be the greatest thing that has ever happened ... Ask me in six months,? she said.

- Written by Joe

Comments

It's wonderful that Isabelle is receiving such a warm welcome from Broadway. I can't wait to visit her new store.

What is her new location address on Broadway?

Le Croissant on Burlingame Avenue is a true Burlingame gem - with good food, good service and hard working business owners who really know their customers.

Isabelle has loyal customers too and her creative genius in a much larger store will be a very exciting addition to Broadway ... the shopping area of choice. (Mine anyway!)