C:\Fakepath\Shumway On Big Box Consequences[1][1]

Citizen Shumway on Big Box
Consequences
Open Statement
To
Gresham City Council

Contents
 Current Council Responsibility
 Critical Elements of Responsibility
 Gresham’s “Buy Local Program”
 Transportation Impact
 Big Box, Big Oversaturation
 Big Box Bottom Line Consequences
 Metro’s Role
 Gresham’s Big Box Need?
 Best Practices
 Summary Recommendations to City Council

2 Big Box and the Common Good 5/14/2010

Current Council Responsibility
 City Council needs to act now to resolve major zoning flaw in
Community Commercial Districts
 Huge waste of time to re-educate new City Council
 Citizens were promised by City Council five years ago a “Big Box
Code” with a size limitation
 We were also promised a zone change for the property at
182/Powell and utilize this property in a more pedestrian
oriented means since Powell is a Transit Corridor and the property
surrounds neighborhoods in every direction as well as several
schools
 Citizen get the feeling that Council would rather they go away
rather than take a stand on this issue.


Critical Elements of Issue
 Building size
 Economic impact study
 Environmental impact study
 Public health and safety
 City needs to do own objective study and not depend of now
recognized “flawed” studies of large retailers


Gresham’s “Buy Local Program”
 Gresham should support the buy local program in every way
possible.
 One city study showed 16% of Target’s revenue in the form
of wages stayed in the community verses 32% of locally
owned retailers in the form of wages, profits, as well as
goods purchased from other local business
 Gresham’s community quality of life and future livability is
already endangered by surrounding jurisdictional successful
recruitment of big box retail discount stores along its
borders. What is the financial impact on Gresham’s economic
well-being?


Transportation Impact
 Even through Gresham is the fourth largest city in Oregon,
we do not have freeways
 Our arterial/grid streets are already overloaded and getting
worse
 The infrastructural projected maintenance cost are already at
levels that are not sustainable
 The hidden costs of these large retailers of city provided
services for police, fire and community social services are
never detailed


Big Box, Big Oversaturation
 We are over loaded with big box stores
 Within 6 miles of my home there are 4 Home Depots,4
Winco’s, 2 Costco’s, 3 Wal-Marts, 3 Office Depots, 3
Staples, 2 Office Max, 3 Best Buys, 2 Bed, Bath and Beyond,
4 Ross Stores, 3 Marshall’s, 4 Targets, 10 Fred Meyers, 2 run-
down K-Marts, too many Walgreens, Rite Aids, Safeway’s &
Albertson’s.


Big Box Bottom Line Consequences
 What has this cost our city and region?
 Significant loss of small local businesses
 Significant loss of jobs and livable wages
 Closed and relocated stores
 Vacant big box stores (QVC at 182 & Powell)
 Increased traffic
 Reduced Safety and Health
 Increased social services
 Increased blight
 Redesign product to be “cheap” and “short lived”


Metro’s Website Statement
 “Cities and developers around the country are
realizing the long-term benefits of mixed use
neighborhoods that combine housing,
employment, retail, cultural and recreational
activities in a walkable environment that is well-
served by transit.”


Metro’s Role
 Metro mandated in the last century higher density, homes on
smaller lots, mass transit, growth boundaries to stop urban
sprawl and cut down on traffic. It was suppose to bring
people back to the neighborhoods, create more pedestrian
friendly environments and support more small local
businesses, but it did not have the elected leadership courage
to address the issues of big box stores and their impact on
community economy and quality of life even though they also
promised to do so.


Gresham’s Big Box Need?
 There is not another type of big box store needed in
Gresham
 Clackamas Town Center, Lloyd Center and Gresham Station are
not far away
 Macy’s or Nordstrom’s would be here if they thought it feasible.
 Former Mayor Gussie McRoberts tried hard to recruit them to
Gresham Station and I am sure they were invited to the dog
track as well by Mayor “Big Box” They are looking for new
markets not one already oversaturated by other big boxes, being
smart retailers


Best Practices
 Looking across America, in the last two years, cities everywhere
are taking a stand, San Bernardino, Ca, Seattle, Silverthorne, Co,
Plaistow, NH, Blacksburg, Va, Sunland-Tujunga, Ca, Bloomington,
Mn, Salt Lake City, Inglewood, Ca and Redlands, Ca, just to name
a few have rejected, Targets, Wal-Marts, Home Depots, Super Big
Box Malls, put size restrictions, require impact studies or just
plain found land was more valuable to attract higher paying jobs
 Other findings: California Environmental Impact Act shows a
negative job gain as big box stores cannibalize sales from existing
business and have made predatory attempts to destroy competition
as they can operate a store at a loss on certain products to drive
out local small businesses. Some jurisdictions now require
financial commitments to cover abandon vacant big boxes
redevelopment from initial owners


Summary Recommendations
 Define big box as a retail store over 25,000 square feet
 Location of big box store near an freeway off-ramp
 Require a full economic/environmental study on affected
community by the city but financed by the retailer and or property
owner.
 Have provision for maintaining vacated property
 Support “Buy Local Program” and commit to small business
development
 Gresham needs living wage jobs and large parcel of land should
support that.
 Rezone all community commercial districts and limit store size


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