C. Wayne Stowe has repaired cars and filled gas tanks at the Exxon station at 
South Main and South streets since 1963, and has owned the shop since 1970.
But increased competition, a rapidly changing auto-repair industry and greater customer expectations have made profits harder to come by in recent years. At the same time, the triangular lot at 215 South Main St. has become a valuable piece of real estate.
So Mr. Stowe, 60, is calling it quits. He has agreed to sell the property to a Davidson-based developer who wants to put a mixed-use residential, office and retail building on the prime piece of downtown turf.
“It’s just time,” he said in an interview Tuesday.
The sale is expected in late summer, so the shop’s closing is not imminent.
Although development of the Exxon site will be a major change downtown, some in town say it’s also an opportunity to add a high profile, high-quality bit of architecture to the streetscape.
CHANGE IN THE AUTO BUSINESS
Mr. Stowe said he was moved to sell in part because of the challenges he faces as the owner of an independent, neighborhood auto-repair shop.
“These types of facilities have lost favor,” he said. “They’re not profitable like they once were. It’s just a hard way to make a living.”
A slew of car dealerships and chain auto service shops have sprouted in Huntersville and Cornelius over the past half-dozen years. “They take customers away,” he said.
Handing the business over to the next generation was not an option. “I wanted to pass it on to my kids, but they have no interest in this particular site,” he said.
Mr. Stowe said he has been approached about selling the property in the past. At least one potential buyer was a national fast-food chain that wanted to put a stand-alone burger shop there — something that wouldn’t have won approval from town officials.
Last year, Mr. Stowe decided to put the property up for sale and hired a broker to shop it around.
Developer David Stewart, who lives a block away on Hillside Drive, was one of those interested. After lengthy negotiations, he recently reached an agreement with Mr. Stowe. He hopes to complete the sale in August.
CHANGE AND OPPORTUNITY
Not since the two-story CVS drug store building — across the street from the Exxon — was developed about four years ago has the town had a prime piece of downtown real estate come up for development. And as with the CVS, the challenge will be coming up with a design that fits and even improves the downtown.
Mr. Stowe thinks Mr. Stewart is the right person to create something worthy of Davidson’s downtown. “My personal opinion is that he lives here and he’ll do something responsible,” Mr. Stowe said.
Town board member John Woods said the prospect of a new development on the site is a sign of change and opportunity.
“It’s with mixed emotions that we might see a change here, as it’s been all my life here in Davidson,” he wrote in an email Tuesday afternoon. “Nevertheless, I would hope we would have the very highest quality development on that site, one that would be a major complement to downtown Davidson.”
Davidson officials had the same goal in mind when they worked with developers of the CVS site four years ago. The pharmacy chain initially resisted the town’s push for a two-story building. In the end, the town got its way. (Meanwhile, after fighting the two-story idea, CVS later decided to put a regional office on the second floor.)
This time around could go more smoothly. Mr. Stewart’s ideas for the Exxon site appear in sync with the town’s vision. He said Tuesday he would like to develop a three-story building with a retail storefront on the ground floor, perhaps some offices, and top floor residential space.
“It’s such a cool site. In some respects, it’s a little daunting, since it’s such a prime and prominent corner,” Mr. Stewart said.
“What gets me most excited,” he said, “is having some residential on top. I think they’d be really neat units with a nice view down Main Street.”
“But all that is blue sky” at this point, he admitted. There’s still a long planning process ahead, beginning with a community workshop in March to give residents a chance to put in their two cents about the project. Mr. Stewart said he hopes people will come to the workshop and offer their suggestions.
ONCE THERE WAS A HOUSE
Mr. Stowe said there has been a gas station on the property at South and South Main since about 1925. He thinks at least some residents will welcome something different there.
While his customers like the business “because it’s a good deal,” he said, “some folks think it’s an eyesore.”
The site was residential before 1925. According to Mary Beaty’s book “Davidson: A History of the Town from 1835 until 1937,” the triangular lot where the Exxon now stands once had a two-story wooden home on it. That home was later moved a short distance up South Street, where it was the medical office of Dr. James B. Woods for many years.
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The closing of Stowe’s Exxon will be a loss. When gas prices hit a high and many gas stations were closed, Stowe’s was still open, serving the people of Davidson. He runs an honest shop at fair prices. It is sad to think that for a few pennies each tank, we have let this iconic business go extinct.
Wayne and his repair crew always kept our old clunkers safe and sound. It was great to walk home after dropping off the ‘90 Accord for its brake job and umteenth oil change and service, then pick it up after hours from the back lot. Most of all, we trusted him with our kids’ clunkers. We just had to say “Evan’s driving to DC in the Buick,” and he’d reply with a firm “Don’t worry.” We never did. I think Davidson will miss that more than anything.
Of course not too long ago, Stowe’s soda machines were the only commercial enterprise open in Davidson after 7:30 p.m. On a hot summer night a walk up there for a round of ice-cold Dr. Peppers was a big family outing.
Thanks Stowe’s! You are appreciated and will be missed.
Above all, I hope the new site has first floor retail. Davidson needs more and varied retail in its downtown if we hope to remain a real town. (Retail that was open a bit later, when folks are out and about, or on Sunday afternoons, would be an even bigger plus.) A wine, cheese, and gourmet food shop? Heck, I’d be glad to see a clothing store for that matter.
What would be much less desirable would be more street level office space. We have that.
Exciting to contemplate the possibilities.
We are really sorry to learn of Stowe’s closing. They are all such wonderful people, and I personally enjoy passing the establishment with a greeting to whoever is outside (usually Wayne) as I walk to work and back each day.
I also lament the shift in Davidson’s self-sufficiency. My admittedly idealistic family has worked hard (with success up to now) to remain a one-car household in a small town. Part of our choice to continue living in Davidson three years ago was based on the very presence of Stowe’s, to which we could walk in the event of car trouble. Stowe’s has always exceeded our expectations. Jerry once — to our surprise — even showed up at our house after hours with our car, just to spare us the mere 3/4-mile walk back to Stowe’s for it!
Many of our conversations at home regard the real differences between a small town and a suburb. It will now be quite a commute by foot (or Village Rider?), whenever our car is repaired, from the town of Cornelius to our neighborhood way up north in Davidson. Perhaps we can break up the hike by stopping off at Cornelius’ beautiful new arts center for all ages, a much expanded and well-supported version of what was until very recently our (Davidson’s) very own Icehouse Center. Our family, which really enjoys being able to walk to get necessities like community arts, food, and car service, finds itself looking increasingly just a couple of miles south. Should we move, I’d have to begin biking into the college, of course, but Davidson boasts itself a “biking” as well as a “walking” community. An elegant little sign to that effect can be found on South Main coming from Cornelius, just before the “sidewalk closed” signs.
Wayne, Jerry, Karen, Sherry, and company: we’ll miss you all terribly. I have trouble, by the way, understanding how your shop could be deemed an eyesore when such wonderful specimens of automotive design are regularly showcased at the front of your lot!
-Keyne, Alyssa, and little e
Whatever goes in in Stowes’ place, I hope there is a plan for adequate parking.
What I will miss most is having a service I trust as much as Stowe’s. Dealerships are trained in how to increase the invoice. With Wayne and Jerry, I not only have confidence my old clunkers will run, but that whatever they say needs repair honestly needs to be fixed. Many times Jerry has told me that something doesn’t need fixing now, but in __ months, be ready… and he was right almost to the day.
Stowe’s an eyesore? Are you kidding me? With that hideous CVS across the way? And the entire block of Tom Clark’s buildings practically caving in? With that debacle at exit 30? A friend who recently moved away put it well…”if we were choosing a place to live today – it would not be Davidson.” The entire personality of the town has changed from the small friendly community we loved 20 years ago, to an elitist, upper-income enclave. It is NOT preservation to rip a home down to its foundation and put a 4,000 square foot monstrosity in its place. Thanks to the Stowe family for sticking it out as long as they could!
Seeing Stowes go will be hard. And frankly I have very low expectations for what will replace it. The CVS disaster is only one example. Sadly Davidson seems intent on making one trendy architectural blunder after another. Tiny “urban” lots with over sized houses on them, roundabouts not large enough to actually handle traffic flow, in-fill McMansion zoning and not a sinlge place to buy milk east of CVS all qualify as serious mistakes. Unfortunately, most working people in town are not even notified when zoing/building change occurs (the handy quarter mile rule, of course) and even if we did know, we’d have to quit our jobs and lobby full time at town hall like the real estate/builder/developer crowd does.
I’ll miss Wayne a lot….unlike the new crowd in town, he’s an honest and very likable man.