Seb. City Council to consider limiting chains/formula business

[Barry]

The Sebastopol City Council is having a public hearing on a proposed ordinance regulating the establishment of chain or formula businesses. This is important! If it were in place we would not have had to battle CVS! However it is also tricky. How do you define a formula business? Is Copperfields (with its several locations) a formula business?? Do we want some (ie auto parts?) but not others? Should they be limited to certain parts of the town? Please send your comments to the council or better yet, attend the meeting and have your voice heard!

Agenda is here.

Staff Report is here.

[Ted Pole]

Uh oh.

What about (gasp!) Whole Foods?
Every gas station except Fast Gas?
Safeway, Lucky, Rite Aid, Starbucks, Subway, Baskin Robins, O'Reilly Auto Parts, Mary's Pizza Shack, Hopmonk, 7-Eleven?

All must submit themselves to the tribunal for examination and an appropriate period of self-flagellation.

In other news: Apple Trees Restaurant has a for rent sign in the window. Who is to blame?

[Shepherd]

The shops that are already there would be able to remain, including CVS in the Redwood Shopping Center.

Describing a small town discussion about what would meet the needs of our people--rather than the needs of corporations--as a "tribunal for examination and...self-flagellation" is insulting. Such a discussion is at the heart of democracy.

We should not expect to agree. But attempting to silence those who differ with one's own opinions with such language is not helpful. I have shopped at most of the places mentioned below, at one time or another, during my 24 years living here. They do not need to go, in my opinion. The issue is how do we grow, as we head into a rapidly changing world. GoLocal!

Uh oh.

What about (gasp!) Whole Foods?
Every gas station except Fast Gas?
Safeway, Lucky, Rite Aid, Starbucks, Subway, Baskin Robins, O'Reilly Auto Parts, Mary's Pizza Shack, Hopmonk, 7-Eleven?

All must submit themselves to the tribunal for examination and an appropriate period of self-flagellation.

In other news: Apple Trees Restaurant has a for rent sign in the window. Who is to blame?

[lindasw]

How about "limiting" the amount of non-organic vineyards, boutique wineries and wine tasting rooms in this town? How about addressing the housing issues--lack of affordable housing, exorbitant rents and the fact that the real estate empires are allowed to set the pricing for outrageous home and properties, both for sales and for rentals? Pushing 31 flavors and taco bell out of town is not nearly as reprehensible as ignoring the Marin-ization of Sebastopol, where renters are now second- class citizens and our children who grew up here are unable to afford to stay.

Tossing out/blocking big chain stores seems frivolous by comparison to what our town (and county) has become in this housing crisis. Pretty soon, those people who pour your daily lattes, prepare your hot bar breakfasts and stock your beloved organic produce will be sleeping in their cars because they cannot afford to continue living in the town they have grown up in, or raised their families in and work in. The lure of quick weekend bucks with AirB&B, trendy little vacation rentals that used to be cottages for rent, rich east coast executives and dot Com kids scooping up any and all properties for "investments" seems like a greater crisis than blocking another non-local business from coming in.

We should be actively rallying for rent control in Sebastopol...and all of the lucky hipster homeowners who have succumbed to the current level of greed need to self-examine their levels of consciousness and activism..and, which of you beloved WF shoppers would even DREAM of trying or wanting to run your favorite addiction out of town on a rail? Riggght......chain stores are the least of the current, bigger problems in our formerly quaint little town, folks. Please wake up to the needs of your neighbors, friends and fellow activists...

The shops that are already there would be able to remain, including CVS in the Redwood Shopping Center...

[Shepherd]

From reading the following article in today's PD and the mean, anti-Sebastopol online responses, I am concerned that there will not be enough people at this Tuesday's City Council meeting at the Youth Annex to support our courageous City Council members on this necessary step. Please come. This is a very reasonable proposal that has been carefully thought-out.

Sebastopol council considers ban on chain stores

• 
  Downtown Sebastopol (PD FILE, 2013)

BY MARY CALLAHAN
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT


July 5, 2015, 8:37PM

Sebastopol city officials appear close to finalizing a new ordinance designed to prevent cookie-cutter retail and business establishments from taking root in their town, a place with a distinctive personality they’re trying to maintain.
Part of a yearlong effort that reflects, in part, widespread bitterness over the intransigence of drugstore giant CVS, whose plans for a downtown store resulted in a long-running legal battle finally being settled last year, the new ordinance has been in development over the past several months by the city Planning Commission, with council input.
It’s slated to go back before the council Tuesday night.
But so far, there’s been little engagement on the part of local residents, who, one critic argues, could find their access to low-cost goods limited if a sweeping version of the new rule is applied.
Bay Area attorneys John McNellis and Michael Powers, owners of the Redwood Marketplace shopping center on Gravenstein Highway, say the “formula” for most large national chains is discount pricing.
Applying a new rule throughout the city — rather than just downtown, where, McNellis said, “it can do some good” — might eventually force lower-income consumers to go elsewhere to shop, they said.
Given the lack of participation so far by voters, McNellis also wondered what was driving the effort beyond the fact that “it’s a fashionable movement across the country.”
There has, so far, been no outward demand for new restrictions from the public, he asserted.
But Councilman Robert Jacob said the council for many years has discussed limiting formula businesses, a practice that gained popularity with the advent of “big-box stores” that can outprice small businesses through high-volume sales.
Under then-mayor Michael Kyes, who died last year, the council in 2013 unanimously approved an interim moratorium on formula businesses that has since expired.
Jacobs said he wants to protect locally owned businesses that give back to their communities through support and sponsorship of city programs from being driven out of business. He said corporate retailers take money out of the community and deliver profits to Wall Street.
“For me, personally, I’m concerned about economy strippers and those businesses that close our local, small independent businesses,” he said.
A draft ordinance scheduled for a public hearing Tuesday night would restrict development of new formula restaurants, service or retail outlets throughout the city, defined as those with standardized features that make them “substantially identical to twenty-five or more other businesses in the United States.”
The interim moratorium and an earlier draft of the ordinance defined formula businesses as those having 10 or more similar establishments. Planning Director Kenyon Webster said it was loosened to accommodate regional retailers like Mary’s Pizza, which has 20 locations, and Sole Desire shoes, which has more than a dozen but was permitted in downtown Sebastopol under the interim measure because the stores are distinct in design.
“Standardized features” would include things like signage, decor, uniforms, color schemes, menus and trademarks, as well as a “standardized array” of services or in-store merchandise, at least 50 percent of which are from a single distributor with uniform markings, the ordinance states.
The ordinance would prohibit new formula restaurants in the city’s “downtown core,” a carefully defined area that includes the city center, the Barlow marketplace and events center, and several retail centers near downtown. It extends from Morris Street and the city limits on the east to Pitt Avenue and High street on the west.
The proposal would give the city additional discretion by requiring use permits for formula businesses in the downtown area that are not otherwise prohibited, and for such businesses outside the downtown larger than 5,000 square feet.
Offices, banks, gas stations, hotels and motels would be exempt from the ordinance.
There also would be exemptions for projects under 5,000 square feet located outside the downtown business core; projects already approved or developed; renovations of existing businesses, including expansion by as much as 15 percent or 1,500 square feet; and construction required to comply with fire, safety or disability access codes.
The challenge, said Jacob, is to devise rules that keep out chain restaurants, drugstores and other establishments that might jeopardize the downtown’s unique culture and put existing, locally owned businesses at risk — without thwarting economic growth.
He said the council has to determine, “what is the sweet spot for our community? What are the details of the ordinance that will most preserve our downtown core in a way that doesn’t stifle business?”
Tuesday’s council meeting starts at 6 p.m. at the Sebastopol Youth Annex, 425 Morris St.
You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 521-5249 or[email protected]. On Twitter @MaryCallahanB.

https://www.pressdemocrat.com/home/4...nsiders-ban-on

[podfish]

How about "limiting" the amount of non-organic vineyards, boutique wineries and wine tasting rooms in this town? How about addressing the housing issues--lack of affordable housing, exorbitant rents and the fact that the real estate empires are allowed to set the pricing for outrageous home and properties, both for sales and for rentals? Pushing 31 flavors and taco bell out of town is not nearly as reprehensible as ignoring the Marin-ization of Sebastopol, where renters are now second- class citizens and our children who grew up here are unable to afford to stay.

Tossing out/blocking big chain stores seems frivolous by comparison to what our town (and county) has become in this housing crisis....

it's not 'the' solution but it's still worth doing. Your other points are the main ones, though. Turning us into Oxnard isn't any solution. The quote about the chains' formula being low prices is right; they drive the prices down, which seems good, by driving costs (meaning mostly wages and benefits) down even farther - because of course the profits don't go down. It just furthurs the descent into a new feudal age. This isn't just here - rents are ridiculous even in places not being gentrified, wages are pathetic, benefits aren't common any more, "job security" is a weird historical phrase that won't be part of the language much longer. It's worth opposing those businesses that are designed to turn their employees into easily-replaced commodities. The trends that make those the most "successful" types of businesses are just wrong; the fact that they're considered "successful" means we as a culture don't measure success correctly. The parts of our culture that oppose such businesses are worth supporting, because that's where any real change will come from. Remember (well, not personally..) Manifest Destiny? God putting nature there for our exploitation?? Ideas like those were taken for granted as obvious. Hopefully the current views on what makes a successful business, or a good employee, will fade into history as well.

[Shepherd]

Helen Shane just sent out the following, which includes some important talking points, for those of you who might come tonight. Please do consider coming. It is an important public hearing.

Formula Business Ordinance, Important Council Meeting Tonight
Tuesday, July 7, 6 pm., Youth Annex, Morris St.

I urge you to attend tonight.

There is more than the character and history of our town at stake in the passage or defeat of the Formula Business ordinance to be discussed here.

While it’s not part of the framework for such an ordinance, nor can it be, you should ask yourself this question:
Where do the profits from Formula Businesses go? Do they go to their corporate headquarters,located anywhere but in Sebastopol, or even in Sonoma County,

or,

as is the case in locally owned businesses, be banked in town, spent in town and support local community organizations.

So support of the Formula Business Ordinance is more than aesthetics, or character; it’s hard- nosed good business practice to support local, remain and retain local, to buy and sell local and support the local economy.

No formula or chain business presently in town will be displaced. We’re talking about the future.
The provisions of the ordinance as presented tonight have been court tested. They are, as the legal folks say, defensible.

If you want to protect our history and maintain our character, which have undoubtedly led you to either stay or settle here, come to the meeting and speak your piece. And, not incidentally, you might mention the need to support our local economy, too.
See you there.

The Sebastopol City Council is having a public hearing on a proposed ordinance regulating the establishment of chain or formula businesses. This is important! If it were in place we would not have had to battle CVS! However it is also tricky. How do you define a formula business? Is Copperfields (with its several locations) a formula business?? Do we want some (ie auto parts?) but not others? Should they be limited to certain parts of the town? Please send your comments to the council or better yet, attend the meeting and have your voice heard!

Agenda is here.

Staff Report is here.

[Ted Pole]

My problems with this proposal are how much bureaucratic dancing there needs to be to make it effective (in the eyes of its authors) and its fundamental tenant, which is to ban things that are perfectly legal in the name of preserving a construct that has already been compromised. The first comparison that came to my mind was abortion clinics. While perfectly legal, many states have made them almost impossible to get, limiting choice in the most profound way possible.

Apparently we are all comfortable with the existing amount of corporate profits (and tax revenue) our town generates, but not one penny more. How many of you beautiful people would object to an Apple® store opening up down there at the corner of Wabi-Sabi and Blight (where CVS wanted to build their new store)? Be honest.

Is this about the construction of new buildings? Fine, make them adhere to whatever architectural covenants you think define our town (and I really look forward to reading those), limit signage, whatever, but make it consistent across the formula/non-formula spectrum.

If this is about "new" businesses, is it about "formula" businesses that want to open in a space that used to house a previous "formula" business? Foster's Freeze comes to mind. Or the capitalist aggression
of Sebastopol ACE® Hardware into two adjoining storefronts, driving the poor Video Store into its current tiny space.

If the Mary's Pizza Shack chain grows to 35 locations, what happens then? It has exceeded the success cap and must therefore apply for an indulgence from the rulers. If Pepsico buys the Mary's chain, what happens then? "Well, they're grandmothered in, nothing we can do".

The local shopping center type properties seem made for various franchises and chain stores and I think more of them in those locations are fine, and to ban them in favor of "local" business seems both capricious and dumb. They're convenient, but butt ugly and no amount of mom-and-pop is gonna change that.

As for the well-intentioned idea of keeping the profits generated in our town spent in our town, will there be some kind of litmus test as to the residence of the owners of these "local" businesses? How far away is too far away? Bodega Bay? Santa Rosa? San Francisco? Los Angeles? Where are they spending the money they're making off of us? You know where Barney Aldridge's company is based??? Ross! That's right! Ross! Whatta prick!

This purity business gets pretty tedious, huh? There's diversity and "diversity", I guess.

I'm all for keeping it local wherever I can, and try to support local business over the chains, but locally sourced AA batteries have been really hard to find.

[Mindful Negotiator]

I'm praying that Sebastopol's very real and precious higher awareness prevents this discussion from devolving into a falsely-split, destructive debate. For the community to thrive in harmony, it should remain a conversation.

For the better part of a century, the vitality of downtown centers grew from a balance of locally-owned businesses and the mega-stores of the day (Like Woolworth, for example, whose demise was mourned by many who hate chain stores; looking at that contradiction is worthwhile). Locals provided leadership and deep knowledge of community, while the chain-store anchors maintained continuity of a broad customer attraction. This integrated, synergistic, organic phenomena was largely swept away by the development of suburbs and regional malls in the 1950's and 1960's. It's taken half a century for most downtown districts to recover. Many have not.

Of the downtown centers that were reborn, many did so while remaining unique and true to their histories and denizens. Places as diverse as Charleston and San Luis Obispo rejuvenated and maintained their unique sense of place in part by inviting carefully selected large retailers into the matrix, with the advice and consent of the community. Studying the records of success stories like these is both instructive and heartening.

Be cautious about labeling and judging. Look for synergies among property uses that are compatible with community interests and values. Support diversity and avoid one-dimensional paths, such as the loathsome wine bar Disneyland that Napa has become.

I am very grateful to see the hard work done by the city and community on these issues. I'm grateful for the intense if sharply divided commentary on these pages. What I'm hoping for is that the spirit of collaboration, imbued with authentic open-mindedness, may guide our actions tonight and in future.

[Sara S]

All this is really good, and this description especially rocks:

"the loathsome wine bar Disneyland that Napa has become"

Love it!

[Shepherd]

I was at the first hour of last night's public hearing on the ordinance and then left for the Farmer's Guild's Olympics down the road at the Sebastopol Grange--lots of fun. I hope some of you who stayed could report on what else happened.

Most of the seats were taken. Mayor Patrick Slayter started the meeting by clarifying that the media's use of the term "ban" to describe the proposed regulation is inaccurate. It seeks to "create restrictions and procedural requirements regarding specified 'formula' businesses," according to Planning Department Director Kenyon Webster. Vice Mayor Sarah Gurney added that the PD report that there has been a "yearlong" discussion was inaccurate. This issue has been discussed at public hearings and elsewhere for over two and a half years, including regarding CVS Pharmacy's desire to locate itself in downtown Sebastopol.

One of the highlights of the meeting was when City Councilmember Robert Jacob criticized the Council for not permitting Amy's Kitchen to move to town. So they went elsewhere. He advocated finding "a sweet spot" for such businesses.

The media also quoted some as contending that the benefit of corporations such as Wal-Mart is that they provide cheap goods. Magik and Patricia Dines responded that the external costs of those cheap products includes the child labor and low wages in countries where they are made. In Bangladesh factories making clothing have burned down, due to unsafe conditions, resulting the hundreds of women workers dying. They focused their comments on ethics.

[authenticeye]

...Just to dovetail on what Shepherd provided; it was later clarified by council member Robert Jacob that the Amy's Kitchen restaurant project had the option of appealing the initial decision but chose not to. I suggest reviewing the meeting's video and find his exact quote to this element as I feel it is important that the public understands it was not a black/white decision that happened; and that had the project appealed the decision they likely would have been accepted.

In the end no vote was made but there was a unanimous opinion from the board to extend the ordinance to the whole of Sebastopol - from city limit to city limit. Which is great in my opinion - our town needs to begin to heal the divisive split in the town - the north side, the south side, downtown; for me it's about caring for the whole of Sebastopol and her future. Also they are considering exemptions on the four existing shopping centers; which makes sense.

The owner of Baskin Robbins was kind enough to share that ultimately the sales saw a decrease with the new presence of many other options in town.

Some other public comments included a concern for having to travel to Santa Rosa to shop at places like Target or Trader Joe's which provide for families of various socio-economic degrees. What these stores offer have value to families in Sebastopol and West County and their concerns were heard by the council.

Overall, the goal was to patch any holes in the ordinance to assure the City Council always had some say in the acceptance of any future proposed formula/chain stores.
There was some verbiage that needed to be edited by city staff, as well as editing the lines around the downtown core [map seemed to have been pre-Barlow]; from there the ordinance will likely have a final vote the next time it appears on the agenda.

[Rustie]

Bravo and thank you Linda! While in all honesty I too would not be happy to see, nor would I encourage, big box/formula stores to be moving into any neighborhood, I wholeheartedly agree with your observations and perspective. The Formula Business Ordinance, in my opinion, is not accomplishing its implied intentions – localizing our economy and preserving our history. Our quaint little town is fast becoming anything but a model of “go-local” values. Maintaining our charm with the proper signage, country-side bike trails, coffee & wine bars, upscale organic restaurants, art studios, chakra tuning, psychic spiritual alignment and crystal shops is not exactly meeting the daily needs of the locals who live and work here. In fact, as Linda accurately pointed out, many who work here cannot afford to live here. Bottom line however, whether you live in town or just work here, is where do you go to purchase your essential goods and services? Most likely you get in your car and drive out of town into RP or SR where there is a Costco, Trader Joe's, Home Depot, Staples or a choice of two shopping malls housing a multitude of nationally owned stores with everything from socks to housewares with “working class” price tags. Net result – a very small portion of our “local” dollars earned are being recirculated locally. We are moving fast and furiously toward “any tourist town USA” and there's nothing local or environmentally friendly in that trajectory.

Albeit, all the quaint locally owned businesses selling overpriced non-essential goods and services will likely do well in Tourist Town Sebastopol but the same question prevails. Where do the profits go? I suspect most of our well-intentioned locals are spending a significant portion of their income on essential goods and services obtained from formula businesses and chain stores. Why do I conclude this? Number one, basic necessities are rarely locally obtainable, and number two, those that are, usually carry a price tag commensurate with the high cost of doing business in our town. Rents, both residential and commercial, are obscene. Job opportunities are next to none. Available work is predominantly low wage service sector positions, and many who work here can't afford to live here. Resultant effect, outsiders are buying up the bulk of our real estate and developing it into enchanting bed & breakfast facilities and tourist friendly wineries, breweries and elegant eateries. The locals, those left, will find themselves catering to the onslaught of sightseers who care little about our charming town and spectacular landscape except to the extent that it services their travel needs while burning massive amounts of oil seeking entertainment on their annual vacations.

Sebastopol's history and character have very little resemblance to what we are actually preserving and creating when putting our attention toward limitations of chain stores and building bike trails. The history of Sebastopol is about farming. We had canneries, mills and a train running through the center of town creating & supporting local commerce. Sebastopol was a full service town complete with a wide range of stores, including Woolworths, addressing the needs of its residents. Where is our local butchery, chicken processing plant, creamery, cannery or mill? These are some of the vital industries necessary to support a go-local economy. Do you think you are buying local when you purchase Rosie's organic chicken from Petaluma Poultry? Think again, then ask yourself why they had to sell out to Perdue, an agribusiness entity that is consuming small farmers across the nation.

Retaining and supporting our local economy takes a great deal more thought and planning than restricting or limiting certain business types within our city limits. Where do the profits go is not the question to ask if you have neglected to build a community that has the ability to be self sufficient. Affordable housing, essential goods and services and efficient public transportation are cornerstones to developing a sustainable community with a strong localized economy. If you do not create a community that has the capacity to provide a local economy that supports the community's residents you have done nothing to keep dollars out of box stores and nationally owned formula businesses. Creating a tourist playground will not localize our economy, preserve our history or reduce our carbon footprint. If these are in fact our community goals it is my opinion that our time, energy and money would be far better spent developing a sustainable infrastructure rather than painting fish on sidewalks.....

How about "limiting" the amount of non-organic vineyards, boutique wineries and wine tasting rooms in this town? How about addressing the housing issues--lack of affordable housing, exorbitant rents and the fact that the real estate empires are allowed to set the pricing for outrageous home and properties, both for sales and for rentals? ...

[Shepherd]

Mayor Patrick Slayter opened Sebastopol City Council’s July 7 public hearing on a proposed ordinance regulating formula businesses by correcting the use of the word “ban” in the media to describe it. “This has never been a discussion about a ban; it has been a multi-year discussion about how to guide development and retain local control.”

The ordinance’s goals include preserving Sebastopol as a “special environment” and to “protect its existing character.” The next step is for the Council to make revisions, based on the public hearing, and introduce it for a tentative decision.

“Any business can apply to the Planning Commission for a use permit. If it has ‘standardized architecture, color schemes, decor and signage,’ according to the ordinance draft, it may not be accepted,” explained City Manager/Attorney Larry McLaughlin.

“A business willing to customize itself to Sebastopol could be accepted. The application is reviewed, weighing its various elements, to determine whether enough of the characteristics of a formula business are present.” That determines whether “the business is, or is not, the type which the ordinance seeks to prevent,” McLaughlin added. Applications are considered on a case-by-case, individual basis.

The City intends to “create restrictions and procedural requirements regarding specified ‘formula’ businesses,” explained Planning Director Kenyon Webster.

Vice Mayor Sarah Gurney noted that public discussions and hearings have occurred over the last two and a half years. An interim ordinance was agreed upon in 2013.

Councilmember Robert Jacob lamented a previous City decision not to permit Amy’s Kitchen from locating in Sebastopol. He described that unique restaurant and was sorry that it went elsewhere. Jacob advocated helping find “a sweet spot” for it, as well as other businesses that would benefit Sebastopol.

Those opposing the pending ordinance contended that regulating cookie-cutter businesses, such as CVS Pharmacy, would reduce options to purchase lower-cost products.

Bay Area attorney John McNellis, co-owner of the Redwood Marketplace shopping center on the edge of town, testified. He noted that Chase and West America banks recently left that center, as did Baskin Robbins ice cream. “We now have three spaces for lease,” he reported.

McNellis added that if Lucky’s supermarket left the center, it would be a serious loss. He said that 1/3^rd of Sebastopol residents make under $35,000 a year and depend on markets like Lucky’s and Safeway. The ordinance would apply only to new businesses.

Patricia Dines and Magick Altman spoke about ethics. They described the external costs of products, such as the child labor and low wages paid workers in countries where such products are made for corporations like Wal-Mart. Clothing made in Bangladesh’s unsafe factories, for example, have resulted in hundreds of women workers dying in fires.

Whereas the interim ordinance had a 10-establishment threshold, the current proposal prohibits businesses with more than 25 locations, except in shopping centers. This change accommodates small regional businesses, such as Sole Desire, a shoe store with 15 establishments, and Mary’s Pizza Shack, which has 20 establishments. Exemptions include formula businesses under 5,000 square feet outside the downtown.

“Councilmembers have a responsibility to protect the assets of our community,” noted Una Glass. “Sebastopol's biggest asset is its unique character and small town feel. This draws people and commerce to our community. At issue is how to protect this asset.”

At this week’s free weekly Wednesday summer concerts in Ives Park, Glass described the ordinance as “a reasonable compromise that can permit chain stores in shopping centers.”

[scamperwillow]

Thank goodness we don 't live surrounded by all that stuff! I don't think people live in sebastopol to be surrounded by big box chain stores. People that like that should live in Rohnert Park or Santa Rosa. Me, I love the town the way it is!

By the way, our own Sebastopol Hardware has started carrying socks and housewares and all kinds of other stuff.

Most likely you get in your car and drive out of town into RP or SR where there is a Costco, Trader Joe's, Home Depot, Staples or a choice of two shopping malls housing a multitude of nationally owned stores with everything from socks to housewares with “working class” price tags. .

[Rustie]

You have completely missed the point Marty. The concept is not that we should be surrounded by big box chain stores but rather that we need to build a locally sustainable infrastructure if we are genuinely attempting to localize our economy.

By the way, Sebastopol Hardware is a retailers co-op. The store owners are members of their national wholesale supplier, in this case Ace. The Ace Hardware Corporation is located in Oakbrook Illinois and currently takes in over $3 billion a year wholesaling merchandise to its members. This would suggest that when you are buying your socks and housewares at our “own Sebastopol Hardware”, you are sending a substantial chunk of your money to Illinois.

Thank goodness we don 't live surrounded by all that stuff! I don't think people live in sebastopol to be surrounded by big box chain stores. People that like that should live in Rohnert Park or Santa Rosa. Me, I love the town the way it is!

By the way, our own Sebastopol Hardware has started carrying socks and housewares and all kinds of other stuff.

[gypsey]

As a retailers co-op, then I presume that in addition to local jobs, Ace Hardware also provides profits to local co-op members. So what's the issue?

...By the way, Sebastopol Hardware is a retailers co-op. ...

[Shandi]

Just wondering if you ever go to Rohnert Park or Santa Rosa's big box chain stores for things that you can't find in Sebastopol? Do you find that Sebastopol stores are affordable for your income, with no need to go elsewhere? What stores do you frequent the most in Sebastopol for food and non-food items?

Thank goodness we don 't live surrounded by all that stuff! I don't think people live in sebastopol to be surrounded by big box chain stores. People that like that should live in Rohnert Park or Santa Rosa. Me, I love the town the way it is!

By the way, our own Sebastopol Hardware has started carrying socks and housewares and all kinds of other stuff.

[Shandi]

"Truth" always shatters our illusions, but I always appreciate it! Thank you Rustie, for sharing your wisdom.

You have completely missed the point Marty. The concept is not that we should be surrounded by big box chain stores but rather that we need to build a locally sustainable infrastructure if we are genuinely attempting to localize our economy.

By the way, Sebastopol Hardware is a retailers co-op. The store owners are members of their national wholesale supplier, in this case Ace. The Ace Hardware Corporation is located in Oakbrook Illinois and currently takes in over $3 billion a year wholesaling merchandise to its members. This would suggest that when you are buying your socks and housewares at our “own Sebastopol Hardware”, you are sending a substantial chunk of your money to Illinois.

[Barry]

...By the way, Sebastopol Hardware is a retailers co-op. The store owners are members of their national wholesale supplier, in this case Ace. The Ace Hardware Corporation is located in Oakbrook Illinois and currently takes in over $3 billion a year wholesaling merchandise to its members. This would suggest that when you are buying your socks and housewares at our “own Sebastopol Hardware”, you are sending a substantial chunk of your money to Illinois.

This is going to be the case ("sending a substantial chunk of your money to" someplace else) for any retailer that sells non-locally made products, including Community Market and Copperfields.

[Shepherd]

I want to echo what sealwatcher says. I consider Sebastopol Hardware to be a real community asset. They contribute a lot to making Sebastopol what it is. For example, when Frizelle-Enos burned down, they added to their pet offerings. I support businesses such as this, which are already here. The new ordinance would be case-by-case, so such needed operations could be permitted. In our eagerness to keep out corporations such as Wal-Mart, we should be careful not to demonize all large businesses.

As we challenge the corporate wineries, we need to be careful to support businesses such as the Wine Emporium in downtown Sebastopol and the Sonoma Wine Shop on highway 116 south of town.

While our local Ace Hardware store is part of a retail co-op and certainly some percentage of products supplied by Ace returns to Illinois, it is hardly a Costco, Home Depot or Walmart. ...

[Shepherd]

After talking at last Wednesday eve's free concert in Ives Park, James Haug of the Wine Emporium and Downtown Association sent the following links to articles in the SF Chronicle about how they are handling limiting chains stores. I also appreciated the side walk sale yesterday that the downtown merchants organized. It was good to see people in the street supporting local stores.

It is not enough to talk about what we oppose; it is important to also be positive and suggest solutions, as GoLocal does. I think that we have a wonderful City Council and appreciate all the good work that they do.

Dear Shepherd,
Great running into you yesterday. I’m glad you have an interest in limiting chain stores in Sebastopol. San Francisco has an ordinance on chain stores.

Here are two SF Chronicle articles about it I read which may be of some help when the city council draws up their regulations.

https://www.sfgate.com/politics/arti...in-5870444.php

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/artic...re-5425639.php

I’m cc’ing Sarah Gurney on this, too.
Best wishes,
James Haug, The Wine Emporium, Inc, 125 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472
707-823-5200, www.the-wine-emporium.com

[lindasw]

Oh yes! Please! Let's all be sure to support the ongoing Napa/Healdsburg-ization of Sebastopol! More, more, MORE wineries, more unregulated poisons sprayed by the guys in tyvex at 4:30am, MORE vineyards sucking up more of our dwindling water resources! Let's just take out all of the small businesses and the remaining couple of apple orchards and make it All About The Grape! But we will join hands and put on our Activist Hats to fight, fight fight to keep a Wal-Mart or any other non-local, chain businesses from darkening our doorsteps.... I am soooo confused!! But, at the same time, Sadly, I get it...

[Jacob Rich]

Ontario was considering a moratorium on Drive Thru's and instead tougher regulations were approved. Article- "The Death of the Drive Thru?". Also from the article, "San Luis Obispo, a city of about 45,000 people on California’s central coast, has banned construction of new drive-thrus since the early 1980s."

[Mindful Negotiator]

Here's another interesting lesson from progressive Slotown, as the locals call San Luis Obispo.

In the 1990's, the historic downtown was brilliantly revived by local leadership who saw potential synergies between local merchants and specialty chain stores. This effort was spearheaded by SLO local retailer Tom Copeland, who repositioned a blighted, long-empty department store. The famous SLO Thursday night farmer's market is the primary marketing vehicle for downtown, drawing enormous traffic weekly from all over. It is a true community event, every week.

The downtown revitalization was so successful that the nearby regional mall actually closed, making way for some big box retailers that met regional needs. But these were positioned out on 101, miles away from downtown, where those uses belong.

20 years later, downtown San Luis Obispo is not only thriving, it honors local history, character and values. Local merchants and community spirit dominate the landscape. Rural character and the liberal orientation of a college community helped make these thing happen.

Critically, divergent groups who rarely agreed on policy issues pulled together in this effort. More than anything, their goal was to preserve SLO's unique sense of place, while offering goods and services for the entire community. They succeeded.

[podfish]

Here's another interesting lesson from progressive Slotown, as the locals call San Luis Obispo. .

it's a great example of what can be done. There are significant differences between SLO and Sebastopol, so there will need to be some fresh ideas, but the principles hold true.

Their big difference (I won't call it 'advantage', because we don't know that yet) is that it's the biggest town in the region between Paso Robles and Santa Maria - and really, between Santa Barbara and Salinas. So it's a natural hub and can easily draw people to things like their farmers' markets. Big-boxes work well on 101 because that's the easiest way to serve the area; the extra trip to downtown isn't an asset for those who just want quick discount shopping.

Here, we have a full-fledged city, Santa Rosa, acting as a natural hub for the area's services. Sebastopol will need to mix its roles. It's a little larger than other west-county towns, so it can host services that draw people in, but save them from going into the more crowded city, but more 'charming' than the bigger city so we draw people and activities out from SR. It's a trickier situation but brings some advantages of its own.

[Shandi]

Thank you Roger, for sharing this wonderful solution in San Luis Obispo. What a great use of a long vacant dept. store. That's true visionary leadership! Having the energy of the community college was a definite plus.

Positioning big box stores near the freeway makes perfect sense, and that seems to be what we actually have in Petaluma, Rohnert Park, and Santa Rosa. It doesn't seem necessary or practical for Sebastopol to have big box stores. The traffic is difficult already. I'm sure that people who live in Sebastopol don't mind driving to get things they can't get or can't afford at the boutique shops in town.

Seems like Tom Copeland or someone like him would be an excellent advisor/consultant.

[authenticeye]

Well, out of curiosity I did some googling about Tom and wanted to share some articles before he gets elevated to high in this discussion.
The Court Street shopping Center tenants in SLO include more national chain stores than small local businesses. There is Aveda, Pottery Barn, Sephora ... etc. In 2013 Mr Copeland sold his properties to a real estate investment company, Jamestown which released him from approx $50million in debt.
From an article written in 2009 he wasn't much of a favorite in town - honestly sounds like an investor Sebastopol is familiar with in a similar light ~ not mentioning names ~ ...

I often visited SLO, even considered living there before I came to know Sebastopol - it's a lovely town and even has one way streets running around their downtown center. So I can speak clearly to the number of national stores that fill their shopping centers and downtown streets...as well appreciate how green they kept their downtown center with trees bordering sitting areas and the beautiful landscaping done along the creek.

So I am left asking, what are the "up and coming" sustainably minded, family supportive next generation stores in our country?
There must be some that would be fitting to invite to Sebastopol....
Let's keep the dreaming alive

[Mindful Negotiator]

Thanks for the update. It's hard to condense a twenty-year history in these postings. Tom Copeland re-purposed a single property that was the focal point of the entire downtown at a critical time, more than 20 years ago. He later faced difficulties, but they were mostly caused because his family sporting goods business, which had grown into a regional chain, was put out of business by...Big Box giants like Dick's Sporting Goods.

The comments I made about synergies among local tenants and chain stores in SLO referred to the downtown as whole, not the single property that Tom repositioned. His efforts were instrumental in the creation of a legacy that is remarkable if looked at holistically, despite the remarks of later critics, many of whom have political motivation in casting aspersions (sound familiar?).

I spent nearly 30 years studying commercial landscapes from Maui to Manhattan, and helping animate obsolescent properties as an antidote to development of green spaces. I often mediated tensions and disputes among diverse constituencies who were conflicted about controversial projects. There is an art, and also a science, to doing these things. Commercial success and community welfare are not mutually exclusive; it is possible to achieve both while honoring local values and helping small businesses thrive.

Well, out of curiosity I did some googling about Tom and wanted to share some articles before he gets elevated to high in this discussion. ....

[Shandi]

Roger, thank you for sharing an intimate perspective that can only be seen from a position of involvement that you had in this situation.

It seems that your extensive experience could be extremely valuable in Sebastopol. Hope you find a way to get involved here, and share your obvious gifts and talents.