Some businesses that are within the security perimeter for the GOP convention have been affected by the heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
Blocks away from President Donald Trump and the GOP faithful who flocked to the American Airlines Center, the Açaí Brasil shop sat empty Thursday.
In the wake of metal barriers, street closures and enhanced security measures, co-owner Estefanía Lomba kept the lights off for the final day of the Republican midterm convention — a two-day rally and gathering ahead of contentious November elections.
Related: Live updates: Protesters gather in Dallas on last day of Republican midterm convention
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Lomba and other business owners close to the arena had to adapt. Some closed. Others remained open but saw their customer base dwindle. A handful closest to the arena made the best of the situation, reserving spaces for private events.
“It’s been a little bit all over the place,” Lomba said.
A slower pace
The End of the Trail, a sports bar across from the arena, sat near the end of a long line of metal barricades.
Some businesses that are within the security perimeter for the GOP convention have been affected by the heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
After a Dallas Mavericks or Stars game, the bar is steps away from the arena. During the Republican convention, the walk was much longer. To get to the bar, general manager Charley Pozos went around the block, dodging barricades and closed streets.
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Some businesses that are within the security perimeter for the GOP convention have been affected by the heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
Some businesses that are within the security perimeter for the GOP convention have been affected by the heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
Some businesses that are within the security perimeter for the GOP convention have been affected by the heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
Some businesses that are within the security perimeter for the GOP convention have been affected by the heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
“It’s part of being a neighbor of the American Airlines Center — and all the good and bad that comes with it,” Pozos said. “Sometimes things are a little bit constrained. Sometimes things are a little bit of a feeding frenzy for us.”
The bar was open Wednesday as speakers started taking the stage. During nights when there was a Mavericks game, Stars game or concert, every seat would be full, Pozos said. At 6 p.m. on the first night of the convention, there were fewer than a dozen people in the bar.
Related: Dallas Mavericks bring fancy restaurants to AAC in sports-food shakeup
The bar stayed open for the tenants of Ascent Victory Park Apartments who live on the floors above it. Pozos said the bar is playing the long game, and he wants it to be a staple for people living in the area.
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Because it was a slow night, Pozos said he asked several workers to go home or not to come in. The bar also hasn’t been able to get some deliveries because of checkpoints set up around the area. He said he delayed a liquor order until Friday.
Pozos said he expected some security measures but wasn’t sure what it would look like. Although the bar was tucked behind a fence, he said he hoped some people from the event might find the bar later in the night.
Some businesses weren’t not affected within security perimeter for the GOP convention. There is heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
New customers
Inside the barricades, Patrick Quinlan, general manager of CardVault by Tom Brady, said sporting events drive more traffic into their store than the convention.
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People going to a Mavericks or Stars game are more likely to buy sports cards, the store’s main product.
However, Pokémon cards have been selling better than usual during the convention, Quinlan said.
“Today has been more opportunistic,” Quinlan said. “Grandma calling grandson, ‘Hey do you want a pack of Pokémon cards?’ type situation.”
Related: MAGA hats and gun purses: See the souvenirs from Dallas’ Republican convention
Quinlan told customers who called the store that they had to have a ticket to get in. He said those customers have been understanding and the shop will resume normal business operations on Friday. He said two days shouldn’t have much of an impact on the business.
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Other businesses steps away from American Airlines Center — and within the security perimeter — adapted their spaces and hours for private events during the convention, which brought in customers. On Wednesday, that included Hero by HG and Chop Sports bar.
Outside the barricades
The Wednesday lunch rush for Lomba was welcomed.
While speaking with a Dallas Morning News reporter, she got up multiple times to make smoothies and acai bowls for customers. Her shop sits outside the barricades, but some of her regulars were forced to navigate the maze of metal. Others were here for the convention and wore the telltale yellow lanyards.
Business has been down, she said. Office workers who frequent the shop are all working from home, and delivery orders have become more difficult.
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Normally, the shop is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. The store closed at 2 p.m. Wednesday, and Açaí Brasil didn’t open Thursday.
Her shop wasn’t the only one that closed. The popular Jeni’s Ice Cream shop, Rise Southern Biscuits and Righteous Chicken, The Hangar sportswear store and Zaap Kitchen restaurant were among the stores closed Thursday afternoon.
Some businesses that are within the security perimeter for the GOP convention have been affected by the heightened security measures around the American Airlines Center.
Steve Nurenberg/The Dallas Morning News
“We get a lot of business from pick up or delivery. Because of the restrictions on the streets, we’re not getting a lot of Doordash at all,” she said. “At the end of the day, we don’t want to give a bad product to someone that is used to delivery. It’s taking longer and it’s not going to look the same that they’re used to.”
Related: DART, TRE commuters face road changes during GOP convention in Dallas
Communication about the convention’s impact on the neighborhood has also been “lacking,” she said.
“Every single employee needs ID,” she said. “They gave us like a paper to put in the cars, but they were not sure where we could park.”
Lomba said she doesn’t keep up with politics, so she wasn’t sure if any notable figures have stopped by yet. The 35-year-old left her corporate finance career so she and her husband, Leo, could bring the Açaí Brasil chain to Dallas. The couple just opened their second store off Lovers Lane.
“This [was] a little bit different,” she said of the convention. “The closeness. The checkpoints. It’s a little bit different in the sense that usually when we have a big event, sales are not going to get hammered.”