Investor puts $800,000 of faith into Gastonia's Main Avenue

An investor who bought huge stakes in the heart of downtown Gastonia in 2017 has expanded his reach into another key property.

Jay Kumar first entered the fold a year ago when he bought the building at 200 W. Main Ave. for $425,000. It overlooks the Rotary Centennial Pavilion and includes offices, a pair of apartments, and the small coffee shop and eatery known as Java House.

Late last year, Kumar followed up by spending $900,000 on the 27,000-square-foot building that once housed a nightclub known as Downtown Dino’s, and has entrances at both 181 W. Main Ave. and 124 S. South St. Developer Jim Miller has since leased the space and turned it into a venue known as Allure, which includes a piano lounge, a restaurant and a separate sports bar on a lower level.

On Wednesday, Kumar closed on the $800,000 acquisition of the 11,172-square-foot building across the street at 174 W. Main Ave. Built in 1931, it sits on the opposite side of the Rotary Pavilion and has six storefronts that have remained mostly empty in recent years.

Tom McPhaul, a commercial real estate developer who manages multiple downtown properties for Kumar and other clients, said the plan is to polish up the property before finding new tenants who can ideally fill the retail gap in the historic business district.

“We looked at it as being like six properties valued at $135,000 each,” said McPhaul. “Some people might say ‘gosh, that’s a high number.’ But it’s a one-of-a-kind property with its location, like a Porsche or a Mercedes.”

Spending money to make money

McPhaul is a local native who has increasingly focused on helping to cultivate a downtown rebirth in the last few years. Kumar, a Waxhaw resident who owns some 20 carpet stores in metro Charlotte, is one of a number of outside investors McPhaul has enticed to buy real estate downtown. He has lured them in under the expectation that residential and commercial growth along the Main Avenue corridor is on the verge of taking off, particularly as the city’s Franklin Urban Sports and Entertainment District materializes just to the west.

“It’s kind of a unique situation with me being passionate and based down here,” said McPhaul, who maintains his office at 200 W. Main Ave. “But it’s more than that for me. It’s about making a difference in Gastonia.”

Kumar has purchased his three properties under separate LLCs, including Harsh Investors and RVAS Investments.

His newest acquisition had been owned by CHH Properties Limited Partnership since 2001. Over the years, it hosted a motley array of businesses that all came and went, including a karate studio, a hair stylist, a furniture store, and a wine business known as The Bottle Shoppe that treaded water longer than many expected.

Retail focus

McPhaul said they want to offer businesses that complement the downtown restaurants that have opened and are slated to open soon.

“What I’d really like to do is get clothing stores and businesses that give people another reason to come downtown, other than just nightlife,” he said. “I want retail because I want the diversity.”

Since Wednesday, workers have already been busy cleaning windows in the building and sprucing up the interior spaces to get them ready to lease. Rather than leasing the space to the first tenants that come along, McPhaul said they are dedicated to securing and helping tenants that have a good business plan and a commitment to the area.

“These tenants will have to be stable, and if they don’t make money initially, they can’t be going out in 90 days,” he said. “I think if we have the right value and the right things for sale, people are going to come down here to get it.”

You can reach Michael Barrett at 704-869-1826 or on Twitter @GazetteMike.