Food For Thought: Grocery Store Style
After attending the two-hour neighborhood meeting about the Highland Square Grocery store last night I left scratching my head.
The 100 or so concerned and interested attendees seemed to take an us vs. you approach to the meeting hosted by real estate lawyers from Vorys, Sater, Seymour, & Pease LLP along with Albrecht, Inc., the leasing company managing the development. At more than one moment during the meeting I wondered when the mob was going to light up the torches and bust out pitchforks.
The frustration of the crowd probably had a little something to do with the way Katie Albrecht spoke. Ms. Albrecht at times spoke so slowly and condescendingly to the crowd when explaining facts about the project that it was difficult not to lose your patience. She has 3 more meetings to do a better job and harness the power of the people in the room.
The whole meeting kind of reminded me of a British Parliament meeting where people yell things out. Questions were raised and answered by the crowd: Aldi? No. Groceries Delivered? No. Farmers Market? No. Another location? No. Move First Merit? No. Food co-op? Maybe.
That idea received a mix of yeahs and nays. The real unknown is who will ultimately champion a co-op. No one person or organization stepped up. This idea was delivered in such a way that both Ms. Albrecht and Barbara Sanchez were distributing the Idiot’s Guide: How to Run a Co-op. The idea of a food co-op came across as the perfect solution for Albrect, VSSP, and the city. In the co-op scenario the work is defered to someone else. Albrecht and the city are absolved of all the poor work they have done on this project.
Space is a clear hindrance to building anything larger than Walgreen’s and one of the roadblocks why any interested/legitmate grocer has not stepped forward. Why not relocate First Merit inside the Grocery Store? Acme #1 has a Chase bank. Giant Eagle in Fairlawn has a US Bank. This is not a new idea. In the meeting I raised the idea to relocate the bank, but it wasn’t until afterward I thought why not put it inside the store. As for the very busy and popular drive up First Merit teller window/ATM, why couldn’t that be relocated to be accessed off of Conger or Edgerton? To elaborate why not augment either Conger Avenue or Edgerton Road to be connected to a parking lot similar to the way North Highland Avenue was changed? Do you really need a city street dividing Metro Burger and First Merit?
Of course what’s in it for First Merit? Perhaps the city could offer tax breaks to move the First Merit bank inside the grocery store.
The survey passed out at the end was really a qualitative marketing research questionnaire. Why real estate lawyers are moderating these research meetings I don’t really know.
Mike…not surprised the meeting went as it did. The only party interested in seeing a new grocery store in HS is the residents. The city and Albrecht could care less, as evidenced by their actions.
Let me know when the next meeting is. I’d like to attend and see the frustration first hand.
By Kurchev on March 29, 2009 at 12:32 pm
Mike,
Nice blog. I’ve often thought about a co-op in Akron, and Highland Square does seem like the ideal location. Here’s my only concern: co-ops require a TON of people to run functionally. I’m currently a member of the Park Slope Food Co-op in Brooklyn, NY. There are 14,000 members at this co-op, and each one of us is required to work 2 hrs. and 45 minutes a month in exchange for locally grown (w/i 500 miles) produce at costs 40-70% lower than other NYC grocery stores. But here’s why it works: grocery stores in NY are ridiculously expensive. We belong to the co-op because we’d be eating cereal every day if we didn’t.
In Akron, groceries are relatively cheap. Although you can find good specialty foods and ingredients at West Point Market for a hefty price, stores like Marcs, Aldi and Trader Joe’s (in Cleveland) offer prices that would rival any a co-op could offer. And the people who shop there don’t have to work for it! I know, I know, cheap food is only one of the reasons people shop at a co-op and there are probably a good handful of people looking for somewhere that serves more organic/seasonal/local food. But does that population constitute a group big enough to facilitate the daily workings of a functional grocery store? Highland square needs a grocery store. No doubt about it. I’m just not sure a co-op is the best option. I’ve often wondered if the Hartville/Uniontown based “Beilers” would open something there…seems like a good fit for them.
By Sarah on April 7, 2009 at 1:42 pm
Very good post. I’ve been hoping to write about this on my blog, but haven’t had time. My wife and I expressed our opinions in the West Side Leader:
http://www.akron.com/akron-ohio-opinions.asp?aID=5018
The meeting was disappointing to me mainly because people were more concerned with trying to be John Q. Public hero by shouting out some big statement that everyone could cheer than with having a honest dialogue.
Mark Smith and his allies in the HSNA continue to be a roadblock in making progress in the neighborhood. The revitalization plan isn’t some holy grail of urban planning — it’s one group’s opinion. The grocery store does not need to be on the corner plot, and for that matter, it’s not certain the neighborhood needs a grocery store at all, especially if tax dollars can be spent in better ways to improve the neighborhood.
I know that many residents of HS do not agree with the stance taken on this subject by the HSNA, and I hope that those voices will begin to be heard by the Mayor and Steve Albrecht.
I wasn’t able to attend last night’s meeting, unfortunately, but I hope this one went better.
By dave p. on April 8, 2009 at 8:13 am
The final of the 4 meetings is today, Wed 4/22 at 6:00-8:00pm. I haven’t been to any of the previous meetings, but plan to go to this one. I agree with a lot of the points made above and hope to give them voice.
By Martha Geroch on April 22, 2009 at 1:41 pm