More places where people used to eat, shop and work

I posted a couple photos yesterday of closed or closing businesses. But I daily drive past many others. More than I can count.

Lawrenceville Highway, Tucker, Georgia

Has anyone else noticed a growing number of closed convenience stores? Have people quit buying enough gas, beer or lottery tickets to keep these outlets open?

Meanwhile, the long-established Arby's on U.S. 78 in Stone Mountain quietly closed a few weeks ago. The company wasted no time stripping signage from the site.

Nearby Hardee's, Burger King and McDonald's remain. But none of the survivors have Arby's jamocha shakes.

For some really depressing views, I should take my camera down to what used to be vibrant business and office parks in the Lithonia area of South DeKalb. Last time through, it looked to me like large amounts of industrial space had been abandoned. While some of the business exodus there began long ago, some sites appear have only recently gone empty.

Pay attention to what you see in your own communities. While businesses close for a variety of reasons, and some communities may be impacted by strictly local variables, it's hard for me to reconcile mounting  vacancies in so many places with government stats touting recovery.