Went for a bike ride yesterday evening, for the first time in a while, along the south side of the New River. The three high-rise apartment buildings, two still under construction, looked unimpressive from close range. The ground floor of the River Lofts has tall windows looking out to the street and I wondered if behind them there will be a restaurant or just a lobby (or worse, a gym).
Farther east, the restaurant advertising Nikkei cuisine still has its “coming soon” sign up. The longer one waits for a restaurant to open the greater one’s disappointment when it finally does. Riding past the closed Downtowner was particularly sad, though, nearby, I saw a woman walking a 10-week-old husky.
On the way back, I rode past Tarpon River Brewing and noticed that the big communal table had been removed and replaced by several small tables, making the place look more like a restaurant. Appropriately, I guess, now that it’s owned by The Restaurant People.
Across SW 4th Ave., someone had placed a chair in the middle of the empty lot. It seemed a kind of statement, but I don’t know of what.
