For many small business owners, downtown is where it's at.

Well, when you think of any major league successful business, or at least when I think of any major league successful business, I'm so focused on the downtown of any city.

It's the epicenter, right?

It's always been downtown.

So we really didn't want to leave downtown.

Barber shop owner Jake Rosenberg and restaurateur Zach Tilton are both passionate about serving their customers in the heart of Spokane.

For Tilton and his wife, Nakia, it's also about continuing the legacy of a Spokane institution.

Domini sandwiches longtime owner Tom Domini retired at the end of last year, but fortunately for local sandwich lovers, the beloved lunch spot didn't stay closed for long.

My wife has always made sandwiches with Tom.

She was the one person that he said that he would let carry it on.

He was confident in the fact that she wouldn't change anything.

Yes, the sandwiches have been made the same since the inception.

60 some odd years ago.

So you're going to have in this location the same sandwich you had on a first date 56 years ago to keep memory lane open.

The Hiltons first had to find a new location when they announced they'd be opening just a couple blocks away.

Still downtown.

It came with mixed reviews.

I mean, I get to do a look at social media.

I mean, we announced where we were moving, that we're staying downtown.

And a lot of people were super excited.

Oh, great.

You're staying downtown like a spokeswoman.

Good sandwiches.

And then you get other people online, like, why are you downtown?

I never go downtown because the whole people.

Tilton knows operating a business downtown comes with added challenges.

While he credits the building managers and Spokane police for keeping things clean and safe for their customers, staff do occasionally have to ask someone who is loitering to move on.

Every once in a while, the rest of the building but they're like, hey, you know, we're open so you can't stay.

They're like, okay, okay.

And it's generally not a big deal.

Giving the team more time to focus on serving up their famous sandwiches piled high with meat and cheese.

We made a promise.

And that's what we're going to do regardless of what's happening outside of our doors.

Less than a block to the north.

The issues that come with homelessness are more visible outside solitude, solitude means separation, right?

It doesn't have to mean that you're alone.

When you walk through the door, you're separated quite literally from everything else.

And especially with how downtown is getting you need to be a haircut, a good conversation and a respite from the outside world is the vibe.

Owner Jake Rosenberg is fighting to protect, but he says it's only gotten harder since he opened his barber shop in 2021.

All of a sudden, these people are like, I don't even want to be down here.

I don't want anything to do with this city.

Even with the help of building management, Rosenberg says he cleans trash.

Drug paraphernalia and human waste from his sidewalk daily.

And while he's committed to doing his part to keep downtown clean, he acknowledges that there are some situations that are just out of his control.

There's like ten people hanging out there laughing, drinking, smoking, doing all of their stuff.

It's like 10:00 Am on a Tuesday.

You're in front of my barber shop vacationing with your drugs.

I'm not going to approach a large group.

We don't have the bandwidth to walk up to a group of 7 or 8 people.

Rosenberg says he has noticed and appreciates an increased police presence on his block.

He also recently took another step to protect his business and clients, installing a security gate to block overnight camping in his doorway.

I put my heart and soul into this place.

A lot of money, blood, sweat and tears.

So I don't want to leave.

But everything in life has change.

And if my hand is forced where I have to change.

If things don't get better soon, I don't think anybody, even as passionate as I am, needs to put up with what's happening on this level.