We lost Trohv, but gained an opportunity!

Main Street Takoma recently announced that Takoma's beloved upscale furniture and good store Trohv is closing due to lack of business.  It's a sad day when any company is forced to close down for lack of business, but especially so when it's a local one or quasi local like Trohv (they also have a shop in Baltimore).  According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), about half of all new businesses survive five years or more and about one-third survive 10 years of more, so survival is not a given by any means.

But ever the optimist we see the loss of Trohv as an opportunity for Takoma.  As we noted in a prior post, the population around the Takoma Metro station is about to grow by another 604-1812 people.  As shown in the map below, the building that housed Trohv is well suited for demolition and/or development - it's a single story building with a parking lot that is one-block from the Takoma Metro station.  

Map of block on Carroll St with outline of lots for Trohv and Torchinsky Hebrew funeral home

No offense to the dead here, but a smart developer would also attempt to buy the neighboring lot which is the Torchinsky Hebrew funeral home.  We're not sure how much business Ms. Torchinsky has these days, but what she most certainly has is a prime location and a sizable plot of land.  Anyone who frequents this block of Carroll Street can see the potential for housing and other mixed-uses so close to a Metro station. Hopefully the DC Office of Planning sees this too and is working to increase the supply of housing in an otherwise unaffordable city.

What would you like to see built in this part of Takoma?