The Pacer

Issue date: 11/27/07 Section: Campus News

Media Credit: Karen Langdon

Students overwhelmingly chose restaurants as what they'd most like to see come to economically fledgling Martin, according to a poll conducted by The Pacer.

More than 40 percent of students sampled said they wanted a new restaurant in Martin, a college town with about 10,000 residents. About one-third of those students said they want to bring an O'Charley's casual dining restaurant to town.

The Pacer interviewed 100 random students on Nov. 19 on the UTM campus and asked them what they'd most like to see in the town.

Another third prefer another kind of restaurant, and about 6 percent of students said they wanted a 24-hour breakfast restaurant like Huddle House, IHOP or Waffle House.

Plans to build a Huddle House in Martin fell through earlier this year.

Mayor Randy Brundige said the Huddle House project fell through because "people who were interested decided that they were not restaurant people."

Brundige said that Atlanta-based Huddle House Inc. is still interested in coming to this area but that someone has to purchase a franchise. Huddle House charges a $25,000 franchise fee, one of the cheapest in the chain restaurant industry, Brundige said.

Chicken restaurants and Chili's casual dining restaurants had less than 10 percent support from students.

Besides restaurants, about 12 percent of students said they'd like to see entertainment venues like night clubs, music stores, book stores or a bowling alley.

Less than 10 percent of respondents said they'd like to see a Target store or clothing store come to town, an unlikely proposal for the retail chain because of Martin's size.

In the end, it may be the town's size that stifles growth in chain restaurants or retailers.

The city passed a referendum allowing liquor-by-the-drink sales in 2002, and proponents of the ordinance said easier alcohol sales would help national restaurant chains spring up.

But none have come.

O'Charley's Inc., based in Nashville, operates 239 O'Charley's restaurants in 19 states in the Southeast and Midwest, according to its Web site. The company also owns and operates Stoney River Legendary Steaks and Ninety Nine Restaurants in several states.

Of the 39 O'Charley's restaurants in Tennessee, only two were in cities smaller than Martin—one in Manchester in Middle Tennessee, a town of about 8,000, and another in Alcoa, a suburb of Knoxville.

Their restaurant in Cookeville—home to Tennessee Tech—is typically one of the company's top-grossing restaurants in the region.

Calls on Monday to O'Charley's real estate division, which oversees new restaurants, were not returned.

A review by The Pacer in October found that "leakage"—the money spent by residents in other cities—is more than $17 million annually.

Food and drink sales outside Martin made up $14.3 million of that leakage.

Martin's economy also loses out on alcohol package sales.

Because Weakley County does not allow package alcohol sales, most students and faculty drive to nearby Fulton, Ky., to buy liquor.

About 5 percent of students in The Pacer's poll said Martin needs a liquor store more than anything else.

A research group based in Texas is currently surveying the Martin area to determine the best retail choices for the community. The research, which determines citizens' spending habits, is scheduled to be completed in January.

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