Maplewood Planning and Zoning, in a two-hour meeting Monday night, OK’d a meditation business and a new/used record/CD store.
The new/used record/CD store, at 7421 Manchester Road, the former location of HR Upholstery, was approved after working through a Maplewood rule against selling used merchandise.
Co-owner, Joe Stulce (with Tim Lohmann), said the shop, CD Reunion, has been in a strip mall in Hazelwood since 1983; he’s worked there since 1999. He and a friend bought out the owner last year. He said they knew they wanted to move the business when they bought it.
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“We found this great spot in Maplewood,” he said. “It’s bigger than our spot. It’s right on Manchester near Big Bend, near Sutton.” Then they ran into the used merchandise issue.
“I understand that, but it’s a record store,” he said. “You’ve got Vintage Vinyl in U. City, Euclid Records in Webster, and they pull in tons of people.”
Traxler said the city wants to avoid a “flea market.” Anything used the store would sell, other than records or CDs, would be along the lines of KISS figurines, which would be collectible, he said. Maplewood allows antiques and collectibles.
Stulce said the former owner was a pack rat and they don’t plan on bringing everything they bought to Maplewood.
The commission agreed that any music he sells is collectible because it’s a “physical manifestation” and not a downloaded file. Stulce said he sells more CDs than anything, but also vinyl and other formats. He said once they put out 8-tracks as a joke and they sold.
Stulce said they will be doing some things differently when they move, including maybe a name change.
The meditation business approved by the commission, Confluence Zen Community, is set to be at 3544 Oxford Avenue.
The location is on a residential street, and owner Sheryll Coulter said five to 10 people would be meditating at a time on weekday mornings and evenings. She said part of the practice is to be “courteous and respectful,” but it took the commission half an hour to figure out how to ensure that for the neighbors.
Meditation classes begin at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays, and commission member, Jackie Robb, said the routine of up to 10 cars parking in the neighborhood—opening and closing doors—on a regular basis at 6:30 a.m. would eventually get on residents’ nerves.
On Saturdays they hold an “all day sit,” where Coulter said as many as 20 might come, but “not many people want to sit in silence facing a wall” for most of the day, so those 20 would be spread out.
Traxler said parking can’t be controlled on a residential street. The control would have to be a maximum number of occupants at any one time. The number 10 worked for Coulter and the commission. If there are no complaints within a year, Coulter might apply to increase that number.
Both businesses need final approval by Maplewood City Council, which will take at least two meetings.
Woo! Record store!
Good luck to both!
I’m familiar with the store up north. It is a cool store in a neighborhood that isn’t doing well. I’m glad that they are coming down.
I am looking forward to both of these. Welcome to Maplewood!
I think a vintage music store would be a great addition to Maplewood. I seem to remember one on Manchester, across from the bank, maybe. It would probably have been in the 70’s sometime? I worked at the bank (Citizen’s) and seem to remember them coming in to make their deposits….I think they moved to Webster Groves, and are still there…..but sure can’t remember the name of the store….Does anyone else remember them here in Maplewood.??
I believe the store was called Disc Connection & it was in the little strip mall east of the bank
There were two record stores in Maplewood in the recent past. Now & Then Records was across from Citizens Bank in what is now Larder & Cupboard. They moved a long time ago when T. Rohan bought the building and closed a few years after that. My wife’s store, The Disc-Connection, was open for 26 years, with the last 19 being in Maplewood: 7367 Manchester (now the Shop ‘n Save lot) from 1987-93 and 7253 Manchester (now Metro PCS) from 1993-2006. She was one of the last few independents standing at the time and 2006 was a good year to shut down, considering the economic decline and the dramatic change in how recorded music is delivered to consumers. CD Reunion is a survivor and they will add to our mix of interesting retail stores in the downtown area.
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