I thank Dyna and Keith for responding to my posts about possible ideas for the West Broadway Target site. It's always good to see another perspective on an idea.
However, what I'm stuck on is the argument that appears to be West Broadway and Lyndale is zoned for big box retail, therefore the only option that should be considered for that location is big box retail. Unless I missed something, no other reasons have been given as to why big box retail is desired at this location. And given the history so far, I'm still not sure why it would be desired. The Target opened in 1982. How has it contributed to the growth and prosperity of the surrounding community in those twenty years? Dyna does correctly point out that there are some businesses that simply need a large amount of space. However, please forgive me if I'm skeptical that folks on the northside are crying for a lumber yard at West Broadway and Lyndale. Or a post office, for that matter. Keith points out the Kodak building on West Broadway and Fremont sits vacant and has 65,000 square feet available. While I did not know the total square footage of the building, I certainly knew of it's existence. I rode the bus past it for four years when I attended Minneapolis North. I drove past it last week when I went to visit friends that recently bought a house on James Ave. N. That might well be a good site for an incubator and at $2.2M for that kind of square footage, it certainly deserves consideration. But my main point is this: drawing a line in the sand regarding the Target site and saying that it can ONLY be used for big box retail is both narrow-minded and shortsighted. As Dyna also pointed out, the preferred size for such a store is around 100,000 square feet. According to Target, it's more like 120,000 square feet, since they said their 80,000 square foot store was 2/3 the size of their newer stores. So we have an undersized store in a neighborhood that's been dissed as unwilling to support it by the corporation that is abandoning it. Just who does anyone think is going to come in and make another go at big box retail anytime soon at this site? Cub? Ha, they're too busy trying to weasel their way onto Central Ave or Hiawatha even thought they're not wanted. K-Mart? They're just coming out of bankruptcy, so they're not going to be opening new stores anytime soon. Kohl's? Doubtful - anyone ever seen an urban Kohl's? Home Depot? No - the store is too small. Wal-Mart? Nope, it's too small for them, too. Rainbow? See K-Mart. So who else is there? Anybody heard any scuttlebutt on who the two so-called interested parties for this site are supposed to be? In my earlier post, when I described one advantage of a Mercado-style development being multiple options for such things as groceries or clothing, Dyna commented: "And when half the business in your Broadway Mercado go under, who'll pay the bills?" I'd like to remind Dyna and others that Mercado Central opened in 1999 with around two dozen businesses. Now, during three years of recession, it's EXPANDED to twice that number, with a waiting list of people wanting to get in there. Have there been any failings during that time? Probably. But if they've managed to grow so dramatically during three years of recession, they must be doing something right. I suppose there's always the possibility that if a Mercado-style development were to locate on West Broadway, that there could be a situation in which half the businesses might fail at some point. However, I strongly suspect such a situation is far less likely than another big box failing. Dyna also responded to my "small is beautiful" statement by saying that it's expensive. I'm not 100% sold on that alleged fact, I'll give Dyna the benefit of the doubt, but will ask that in turn, she remember the old saying that a cynic is one who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. Some people make their shopping choices simply based on price, others make their choices based on value. I'm willing to pay $9 a pound for fair trade coffee because I believe in the value of helping a farmer be able to make a respectable living at his trade more than I believe in getting the cheapest coffee I can find. I'm willing to forgo the 40% off sales at Barnes and Noble to buy books at Ruminator or MayDay or Arise! because I believe independent bookstores add to our communities. I pay more for milk from Cedar Summit Farms in New Prague because I think it's cool that they still offer returnable bottles after Schroeder Milk stopped doing that last year. Don't be afraid to think outside the big box. :-) Mark Snyder Windom Park TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. 2. If you don't like what's being discussed here, don't complain - change the subject (Mpls-specific, of course.) ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
