“Joseph D’Amato and his wife, Katherine, eventually bought a nearby building, set up shop, and moved into an apartment upstairs, following a tradition of “living over the store” that dates back hundreds of years, when work was life, and took most of the shopkeeper’s waking hours.
Sandy, their daughter, who was born over the store, began helping out at the age of five years with her father Sam and her grandfather, Joseph. ‘I spent many of my younger days working at the store,’ she fondly recalled. ‘After school, I would take the bus from school and arrive at the store around four P.M., which gave me enough time to eat dinner at four-thirty at my grandparents next door and then help my dad through the five-thirty to six-thirty rush, before the store closed at seven. If I was tired, I’d sleep on top of the beer cases”
From The Mom and Pop Store
By Robert Spector
The second floor of the “blockhouse” is the residence for our new Oklahoma manager, Dana Scofield. This will be home for three years for Dana and her young son, Nathan. We want to make these residences comfortable for all our managers at green garden gates.
The flooring is a combination of carpet and tile. We want the flexibility to change out most of the flooring on a regular basis. The walls are sheet rock, textured and painted a neutral light color. Dana has the option to paint and re-decorate as she sees fit. The cost of paint and labor is her responsibility. The ceiling is also sheet rock with a light texture.
We have no standard florescent tube lighting in the residence, except in the kitchen. All the bulbs are energy saving florescent bulbs. Heat and air conditioning is piped into the residence from the store gas HVAC unit below. There is a separate gas and electric metering system for the residence and the managers are responsible for these utilities. The windows in the residence all open to take advantage of differing weather conditions.
The residence is equipped with computer equipment that is tied to the mainframe of the business operations and the security cameras positioned around the site. The office is furnished with the manager needs; copier, fax, scanner and printer and office supplies. We expect that major administrative work is done by the manager in the residence.
There is the ability for the manager to electronically open the main gates from the residence. The windows and security cameras provide full visibility to the gates and other special security spots at all times. A land line telephone is also installed in the residence. There is an alarm system in the residence for intruders as well as fire and toxic smoke issues. There are speakers built into each room of the house connected to a provided sound system and flat screen television.
The manager may elect to bring her furnishing to the residence. In this case, all unneeded furniture and fixtures will be placed into storage and used for the residence of the next green garden gates.
A. The main bedroom
B. The bath and shower area
C. The second bedroom
D. An office area for the manager
E Kitchen, which also houses the washer and dryer unit. There is a table in this area that is used for the manager as well as a place for meetings on store business.
F. Hall
G. Living room
H. Record Storage. This area is primarily for the storage of records for the store
I. Covered Deck and railing, running the full length of the building side which is accessed from two sets of French doors in the living room. The eves of the roof overhand to cover this area.
J. Stairway leading to the main floor. The manager can access the first floor retail area as well as access directly into her vehicle storage area
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