VIRGINIA BEACH
There’s more to the Oceanfront than just the Boardwalk, and a business owner wants people to go west.
Jesse Wykle, owner of Aloha Snacks, is forming a new district along Laskin Road to galvanize local businesses and celebrate the area’s beach culture.
Think ViBe Creative District, but with its own identity. It would be called The Artery.
“I want to peel people off the Boardwalk,” said Wykle, 37. “I want them to see this beautiful stretch on Laskin.”
The King Neptune statue at 31st Street will be the district’s landmark, Wykle said. Flags or signs could entice people to venture inland for eclectic shops and restaurants.
With support from other business owners, Wykle has been consulting with city officials who like the idea.
“They’re on the right track,” said Nina Goodale with the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs.
The Artery will debut Friday with a party in Aloha Snacks’ parking lot featuring local artists at work, live music and Collective Arts Brewing, a Canadian beer company that will be selecting a new designer for an upcoming beer can and labels.
Wykle envisions The Artery could become a mecca for collaboration, where two or more small local businesses team up for art-inspired events. He suggested Smartmouth Brewery, which has its pilot house on 32nd Street a block from Laskin Road, could host a beer release party with Vinyl Daze Records spinning the music.
“We really want to be a part of it,” said Martin Snead, owner of the record shop. “It’s just something that we think would be very positive.”
The Artery’s new logo, created by Malbon Creative, features symbols representing the Laskin Road Roundabout and King Neptune’s trident with the words: “Enjoy. Beach. Culture.”
Considered one of the integral entrances to the resort area and North End neighborhoods, Laskin Road has a long history.
New York businessman Jacob Laskin, his sons, Louis and Elmer, and their business partner, Louis Siegal, built the 4-mile road from Virginia Beach Boulevard to 31st Street, where their Seaside Casino attracted a crowd in the late 1920s.
Over time, the easternmost end of the thoroughfare became a commercial district.
Residents have long patronized the mom-and-pop shops on Laskin Road, where Nick’s Hospitality Restaurant has been a fixture since 1952 and florist Wayne Jones has filled orders for nearly 50 years.
A resurgence of the area kicked off in 2009, when the city launched what became a $40 million improvement project that moved utilities underground and created the Laskin Road Gateway and roundabout. In 2013, The Wave sculpture was added to the center of the roundabout, forming an artistic bookend with the King Neptune statue to the east.
Suzanne Jamison pushes her 7-month old daughter in a stroller along Laskin Road every day. Jamison lives in Summer House Apartments in 31Ocean, a five-story complex built about six years ago.
“I love being able to walk and eat some good food and go to some shops,” she said.
Over the last year, several new, locally-owned businesses opened on the southside of Laskin Road across from the apartments.
Shawn Shahidi launched OL2NU Coastal Creations last summer. He refurbishes furniture and other decor displayed in windows facing the street.
“There’s a lot of potential here” Shahidi said.
Wykle opened Aloha Snacks about a year-and-a-half ago in a building that was home to Virginia Beach’s first fast-food hamburger joint in the 1960s.
His parking lot fills up on the weekends with families stopping in for poke and burgers.
“You’re seeing this area thrive,” Wykle said.
He’s confident that several vacant buildings on the thoroughfare will be occupied soon. The former Farm Fresh grocery store has sat empty for more than a year. A. Dodson’s gift shop across from Aloha Snacks is closing soon, and a former restaurant next to the movie theater has been for lease for months.
He’s hoping the city’s plans to improve Laskin Road, which include removing the feeder lanes and building a multi-use path, eventually will help make the district more accessible from Hilltop.
“We’ve got room to grow,” he said.
Interested?
What: Aloha Arts Block Party & The Artery Debut
When: 5 – 10 p.m., Friday, Aug. 16
Where: Aloha Snacks, 501 Laskin Road, Virginia Beach
Cost: $30; proceeds benefit We Are VB
Info: (757) 428-7653
?Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com