Stripers absence not expected to have major impact on Waterside, expert says

It's been a couple days since employees at Stripers restaurant in Norfolk's Waterside District were told the business would be closing with little-to-no information about when they would be paid.

It's still unclear as to why Stripers closed or if the closure is only temporary.

"They just let us go with nothing," one employee told News 3 earlier in the week.

Watch: Management issues, ‘possible malfeasance’ played role in Stripers Waterside closure

Management issues, ‘possible malfeasance’ played role in Stripers closure

Others said they are distraught.

Dr. Rik Chakraborti, an assistant professor of economics at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, said not knowing the exact cause of the business's closure makes it difficult to determine what will be the precise impacts.

Chakraborti said if the closure is permanent, the employees will be able to find new jobs.

"This is not really a labor market where we have a lot of surplus, so there is demand for workers," he told News 3's Jay Greene. "People will be able to find jobs pretty quickly. There's also a lot of flourishing businesses around."

Watch: Stripers Waterside abruptly closes, leaving employees without a job

Stripers Waterside abruptly closes, leaving employees without a job

While there will be what Chakraborti calls "transitory shocks," it won't be long for people to find other businesses to patronize.

"Overall, I'm not terrified about that economy or there being some sort of a massive cascading effect from this," Chakraborti said.

For businesses that surround Stripers in Waterside and downtown Norfolk, it will depend on how complimentary they are with each other.

"So you go get your sandwich, and then you go to the ice cream shop next next door. Then, yes, you know, the ice cream shop depends on the sandwich store," he told Greene. "But if both of them are offering sandwiches, then this might be a good thing. All of a sudden, you're like, 'Oh, I could probably tap into some of that. Maybe I can lure them."

While it's unclear what's next for Stripers or the space it occupies, Chakraborti compared any type of recovery to a vacuum.

"I think the best thing that the city can do is get out of the way of the natural agility that businesses have," he said. "Someone else will come in, grab that spot and offer something great. The city's job is to get out of the way of that dynamic, remove the red tape, and you see all these problems going away."

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