Sincerely,
Peter Pinkard
To: Easton Town Council Mayor of Easton Planning & Zoning Commission
From: Peter Pinkard
RE: Big box Moratorium
Date: November 1,1999
As someone who is actively involved in the shopping center industry, I am concerned for the future of retail businesses in Easton and Talbot County. I have corresponded with you in the past on the subject of big box retailing and I hope that you will consider an objective analysis of this subject.
Enclosed for your review is an article titled "Home Towns vs. Home Depot". The title speaks to the subject matter. Simply stated, we are an overstored, over-retailed market today and big box retailing will only exaggerate the problem. The big boxes that have been mentioned offer absolutely no services that one can not find in Easton Translated, more of the same only in a bigger format.
If we subscribe to the philosophy that "bigger is better", than big box retailing is the answer. However, there is not enough business to support the new big boxes and our existing retail base.
A few highlights of this article characterize the impact of Home Depot in the following manner:
1. "Mom & Pop store withered and now regional chains are dying
2. "Local merchant have NO CHOICE but to give way".
3. "Regional chains and small independents are likely to feel increasing pressure to merge with rivals, or QUIT".
4. "Having almost saturated the major metro markets, the company is seeking new avenues of growth... Home Depot is developing a store prototype which we think will be more appropriate for rural America". Easton?!
5. "A SIGNIFICANT amount of register sales at Home Depot are 'captured' from other competitors".
6. In Napa, California, the proposed Home Depot was projected to create a form of ECONOMIC DEPLACEMENT rather than ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
I maintain an office in Easton. I employ Easton residents. I shop Easton daily. The services provided in Easton fulfill my
needs. I have witnessed first hand on countless occasions the impact of new retailing on an already overstored market:
· Jobs are lost
· Businesses close
Real estate values decline
· Public service costs increase measurably
· Traffic congestion increases measurably
· Small town "charm" and quality of life vanish
· Tourism declines due to traffic congestion, inconvenience and loss of "charm"
While I am not advocating legislating who occupies or what occupies the box, I am asking you to consider what we currently have in Easton. Retailing in Easton "ain't broke" so why are we scrambling to "fix it" with new big boxes?
Sincerely,
Peter Pinkard
1994 study done for the city of Napa shows that the current building supplies market is around $40 million. A Home Depot in nearby Rohnert Park is bringing in $46 million in sales. This means that Home Depot alone requires more revenue than the entire sales pie of roughly 50 other stores in the city. The same study showed that Napa loses very little in sales leakage for building supplies to other communities, because the city already has a good cross-section of hardware and building supply stores. Residents are asking town officials to keep the limit at 80,000 s.f and not give the Atlanta-based retailer any special deals.
Port Chester, NY: Murder the Local Merchants. A Home Depot proposed for the village of Port Chester, NY spawned two lawsuits: one from the neighboring city of Rye, and one from the Rye Citizens Committee. According to the Westchester County Business Journal, both suits accuse Port Chester of trying to push the Home Depot project through with no regard for any negative impact that might occur in surrounding communities. The lawsuits seek to nullify Port Chester's zoning change resolution that would clear the way for a 101,000 s.f Home Depot. The citizen's lawsuit says that the village was predisposed to approve the project, which will "murder the local merchants and devastate local neighborhoods." According to the Metropolitan Chapter of the American Planning Association, a 150,000 s.f store will directly increase congestion costs by $5 million per year. The report also said that a store of that size would increase the number of traffic accidents and add to noise and air pollution. "These impacts are so complex and significant," states the suit, "yet deliberations on the Home Depot application were so flawed. It constitutes absolute evidence of predisposition, mind-boggling rubber-stamp determinations."
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