JAM: June/July 2002 Issue: Q&A with Juanita Moore

with JUANITA MOORE

JAM talks with the American Jazz Museum's newly appointed Interim Director about the past, present and future at 18th & Vine.

JAM: Congratulations on your appointment, Juanita. How long will "interim" be?

JM: I don't know how long it will be. But neither I, nor the board took this step without thinking it would become permanent. I guess we needed a courtship.

JAM: Just for the record, what are the responsibilities of the AJM's Director?

JM: Generally, the Executive Director is responsible for the museum's consistent and ongoing achievement of its mission and financial goals. Specifically that means being responsible for the staffing, ensuring that adequate funds are available, program development, operations, community relations, representing the organization publicly, publicizing the museum and its programs, working with the board to develop a vision for the organization, and carrying out the policies authorized by the board.

JAM: With the departure of outgoing Director Dr. Rowena Stewart, it seems like there might be some pretty big shoes to fill. Yes? No?

JM: Absolutely! By every measurement that I know, Dr. Stewart is counted as a giant in this work.

JAM: How would you describe Dr. Stewart's tenure at 18th & Vine?

JM: Very much like I would describe her career: a heroic journey where strong leadership, passion and a total clarity about what she believes in proved to be the main ingredients in the formula for success. Because of her tireless commitment to the work, 18th & Vine exists to become all that dreams will allow.

JAM: What similarities -- and differences -- will there be in your style of management?

JM: Our styles will be different because, essentially, we have different jobs. Metaphorically speaking, Dr. Stewart had to birth a baby -- a baby that it was often times thought would never come. I have an institution that is five years old, and like any five-year old, it has had growing pains. It is now ready to strike out to make new friends, meet bigger challenges and dream of bigger successes.

JAM: You've been onboard from the beginning of the Jazz District's resurrection in 1997. As the fifth anniversary approaches this summer, are you satisfied with the progress at 18th & Vine?

JM: Oh no; you are never satisfied with the progress unless, of course, you have reached your goal. Even then there is usually the urge to try to make something better. That is especially true of 18th & Vine because, by its very nature, it must continue to evolve to meet the changing and growing needs of its customers.

JAM: What's the latest on all the new construction? Will there be, at long last, some new restaurants? And possibly additional nightclubs?

JM: I could speculate; but the most accurate and appropriate answer would come from Al Fleming, CEO of the Jazz District Redevelopment Corporation, which is the entity responsible for the economic development of 18th & Vine.

JAM: OK. But why, in your opinion, has it taken so long to bring new businesses, especially eating establishments, into the area?

JM: I'm not sure how long "so long" is, or what the timelines are to have everything online at 18th & Vine. I do know that every project that I am aware of to revitalize an economically depressed area has taken some time to develop. There are always the time lapses between having the idea and developing the plan, developing the plan and obtaining the funds, and finally, obtaining the funds and responsibly expending the funds. Usually that is TOO long for the people anxiously awaiting the turn around.

JAM: Over the last five years there has been a certain amount of skepticism, even criticism, expressed in the media about 18th & Vine. Has it been unfair, justifiable, or somewhere in between?

JM: The media coverage of 18th & Vine can cover several facets. There is the American Jazz Museum, the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, the Gem Theater, the Blue Room, the development of businesses and restaurants, housing, and so on. So, I am sure there have been times when all entities were lumped into one big pot and painted with the 18th & Vine brush. Sometimes that was justifiable, and sometimes it has been unfair. Of course we want everyone to catch the vision, but realistically we know that does not always happen. Our focus is to make the American Jazz museum the premier jazz museum in the United States. A lot of things will go into making that happen, and if we keep our eye toward meeting that goal, I think we are likely to get mostly good press.

JAM: Give us your vision of 18th & Vine five years from now.

JM: Five years from now I think 18th & Vine will be alive with the constant traffic of visitors, the music, and the activities of people working and living in the district. And one of the centerpieces of the district will be the American Jazz Museum as the premier jazz museum in the United States.

"BY THIS FALL, I HOPE TO HAVE THREE RESTAURANTS AND TWO MORE JAZZ CLUBS UP AND RUNNING." -- AL FLEMING

The CEO of the Jazz District Redevelopment Corporation has good news.

JAM: In our interview with Juanita Moore, we asked: "What's the latest on all the new construction? Will there be, at long last, some new restaurants? And possibly additional nightclubs?" She felt you would be the best person to answer those questions.

AL FLEMING: On the construction, the first phase is completed. And that first phase consisted of 73 apartment units, 48 senior apartment units, a parking lot at the Attucks School, and some infrastructure work on a storm water detention system. We've also put in about 27,000 square feet of commercial space. Currently, we have the Peach Tree Restaurant under lease and under construction, with a target for their restaurant to open up by late June, or possibly the first week of July. We also have two jazz clubs currently going through lease negotiations, and I'm hoping to finish those negotiations and sign them up by June so we can start construction on their space.

JAM: When would those jazz clubs be open?

AF: If they sign by June, and, let's say, construction starts in July, that would give them about four months.

JAM: Can you tell us which jazz clubs those will be?

AF: No, I really can't do that until I get their names on the dotted line.

JAM: Understood. So, is there a good chance that, by this fall, the entire Jazz District will be up and running at full speed?

AF: By this fall, I hope to have three restaurants and two more jazz clubs up and running. And that would leave me with about 28 hundred square feet of space that I still have to lease out. I've got about four or five potential tenants looking at that.

JAM: Without being specific, what kinds of potential tenants would those be?

AF: One is a bookstore-coffee shop, another is a deli. And another is an old-fashioned coffee house -- like a throwback to the '60s where you can get poetry and jazz, gospel and rap, all on different nights, and where the drink of preference will be coffee instead of alcohol.

JAM: One more question: Have people been moving in to the new apartments?

AF: The apartments are 100% occupied now. We started leasing in the first building last December, the second building in February. So yes, there are now residents at 18th & Vine. And they are all very stoked about their apartments, which, by the way, are gorgeous. High ceilings, track lighting, washers and dryers, air conditioning...all the amenities. And they are very quiet.

JAM: It sounds like by this fall, 18th & Vine will really be alive!

AF: Yes. And by then we will be ready to start Phase Two, which includes more housing, more commercial space on the south side of 18th Street next to the Gem Theater, a new apartment complex at the corner of 19th and Paseo, and more apartments behind the old Mardi Gras.

JAM: We thank you for your time today, Al.

AF: No problem. My pleasure.