Flax Owner Sees the Bright Side of Possible Eviction

Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.

Developments and construction in the Mid-Market neighborhood are showing no signs of slowing down. Now, 1699 Market Street wants in on the fun. Jim Nuss, the owner of the building, has "filed a preliminary project assessment with the San Francisco Planning Department that calls for a nine-story residential building with 4,500 square feet of retail and 120 parking spaces," the SF Business Times reports. It's just two blocks east of the Goodwill lot that was recently purchased for a mega development.

If Nuss's plans go through, the 20,000-square-foot art store Flax Art & Design that has occupied the space for the past 37 years will need to relocate. But third-generation store owner Howard Flax is putting a positive spin on a possible move: "We are confident we would be able to find a new space in San Francisco," he tells the Biz Journal. "It's an opportunity to recreate ourselves and bring something better to our customers."
· Flax Art store could get axed to make room for housing [San Francisco Business Times]
· 10 Must-Shop Spots Before Traveling Out of San Francisco [Racked SF]