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Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer
New Look: The old Wolf Camera on the corner of Lincoln and Willow avenues is being replaced this spring with a new outdoor courtyard and frozen yogurt shop.
Work on new frozen yogurt shop to beautify downtown WG corner
Store owner looking forward to success on Lincoln Avenue
By Kate Carter
A noted "gateway" to downtown Willow Glen is being visibly upgraded to make the site more attractive to shoppers, motorists and pedestrians.
A building and drive-thru on the southeast corner of Lincoln Avenue and Willow Street, which used to house a Wolf Camera, are being remodeled and relandscaped for a frozen yogurt shop and outdoor courtyard. Jeff Mullen, owner of Willow Glen Frozen Yogurt Company, says he hopes the improvements will benefit the community as well as his new business.
"It's really going to pretty up the corner," Mullen says. "This is the beginning of the better part of Lincoln. I think it will set a tone for a better-looking community."
The Lincoln Avenue-Willow Street intersection has been identified by those involved in developing a city master plan for the street as an entranceway to the community that could benefit from more identifying structures. The plan is to make the downtown business district on Lincoln Avenue, between Minnesota and Coe avenues, more appealing to pedestrians and more beneficial for business.
City planner Anastazia Aziz, who has been involved in the master plan process, says the improvements at the corner will support long-term plans for the street.
"There weren't a lot of changes," she says of the remodel effort. "Hopefully, it will dress that corner up a bit."
Mullen agrees and thinks that the location and improvements are also beneficial for frozen yogurt lovers and purveyors. The entrepreneur, who used to work as a financial administrator for Anderson Chevrolet, first began mulling over the idea of running a yogurt shop after seeing the popularity of some local vendors. Last August, he noticed the Wolf Camera location was up for lease and was able to begin renting it Nov. 1.
"It's such a good location; it's worth it," he says of paying rent on a building not yet bringing in any income.
Mullen notes that the avenue needs an ice cream/frozen yogurt shop, as the Dolce Spazio dessert shop left last year and the Baskin Robbins ice cream location on Willow Street is "in limbo"--closed but possibly returning. He also says he's not expecting too much competition from future ice cream sales at the Willow Glen Coffee Roasting Company.
The new yogurt shop will be on a very visible corner right in the middle of the Lincoln Avenue downtown area and is surrounded by two bus stops.
"It's pretty nice to have a bus stop on both sides of your building," Mullen says.
Construction on the approximately 570-square-foot building began in mid-March, with some initial pest-control work and then demolition of walls and concrete. The building's northeast side will be full of windows to open up and light the building, he says. The building will have two entrances, one from the sidewalk and one from the parking lot, where the store will have four to five designated parking spots, he says.
Three trees at the southeast corner of the site will remain, and the ivy below them will be replaced with grass. The drive-thru area of the original building will be turned into a tiled patio with tables and chairs. The front of the building will be re-landscaped, and the existing sign will display the new business' name, Mullen says.
The building's wood paneled facades will be replaced with stucco, Mullen says, and he plans to incorporate dark and light blues into the building's colors. He also may add a photo-collage mural of dogs and their owners at "doggie eye level" on the building's rear exterior, he says.
The building's interior will be high-end and "fastidiously clean," Mullen says. He says construction should be complete in four to five weeks, and Mullen himself will be present during the store's open hours of 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day.
Although he hasn't yet become involved with the Willow Glen Business and Professional Association or attended the two community meetings regarding the business district's master plan, Mullen has spoken with some of his business neighbors and plans to become more involved in the street's activities and other community efforts.
He plans to provide Willow Glen Elementary and River Glen schools, the two closest to his business, with frozen yogurt coupons for their exceptional students, as well as sponsor Little League teams.
"I want to ingrain my store in the community and make people feel like it's one of their own," he says. "I want to have a successful store; I want it to reach its full potential, not just make money."
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
