Last night the San Diego city council voted 5-3 to ban supercenter stores that use 10 percent of their floor space for the sale of non-taxable groceries.
In my lifetime I have witnessed this go full cycle. Growing up I can recall going to the local mom and pop grocery store where our parents purchased groceries on an open line of credit. The owners kept cards for each credit customer who would come in on payday to pay their bill.
Sometime later the Atlantic & Pacific (A&P)grocery chains opened which put many of the corner grocery stores out of business. Fast forward to the 21st Century and we see these very same food chains complaining about competition. It was OK to drive the mom’s and pop’s out of business in the 50’s but it is not acceptable to have a Wal-Mart or similar superstore in your back yard. What goes around comes back around.
The northern CA city of Turlock imposed a ban on any superstore in excess of 100,000 square feet that offered non-taxable groceries that utilized five percent or more of the store’s square footage.
The question for readers. Where should the line be drawn as to “big brother” telling us where we can purchase our groceries?
The same “progress” has impacted many other small businesses who lack the lobby clout of big box stores such as Costco where you can purchase electronics, prescriptions, eye glasses, clothing, books, food, photo processing, meats and tires for your car.
What impact has Costco had on those individual businesses in your city?
Great!
Wal-Mart drives out local businesses, treats its workers like crap, and thrives on the backs of taxpayers (by way of government subsidies)… Good for San Diego that they said that if Wal-Mart doesn’t intend to be a good member of the community, then Wal-mart doesn’t deserve to be a part of the community.
Kudos to the five-member majority of the SD City Council for standing up for the rights of workers, and for the survival of small businesses.
Three cheers for Larry Gilbert! You really hit the nail on the head. I too remember the mom & pop stores…and credit until your next paycheck came in.
As the new “supermarkets” opened (Jewel & Kroger where I come from) the small stores were out of luck. Customers shopped where they had more choices and better prices.
I’m no great fan of Wal Mart, but I do shop there and I also shop at Costco. The money I save at those stores can be used for other things.
It’s too bad that local governments have bowed to unions and stopped the superstores from coming in. We could all use the savings for something else we might not be able to afford.
Walmart provides jobs and a living wage for their employees. They provide products and services that even lower income communities can afford. They have personnel dedicated to community outreach and involvement, and give back to the community in the form of donations, grants, and even scholarships.
The whole “superstore” ban is a sleazy union ploy that has nothing to do with what’s best for the community. Let’s hope that more enlightened communities see through this charade and not support ridiculous bans like this, letting the free market take care of itself.