By now, everyone must know that the Jewel Food Store is closing. I actually hinted at this in a previous column entitled The Perfect Storm back in November of 2008 when I wrote “I have heard of three long standing Blue Island businesses that are relocating. They are not closing, but they are moving out of our city to greener pastures.” At the time, I did not feel it was my place to reveal who the businesses were, and at the time everyone was vehemently denying that the Jewel would close. Many people I knew had asked at the Jewel if they were closing and everyone in unison said “NO!” Even one of the managers said “If we were closing, I would know it, and I haven’t heard anything.” Must have been a big surprise to all concerned.
The thing that saddens me the most about all this is the loss of jobs and revenue to the city. Imagine the sales tax that is/was collected at the Jewel on a monthly, weekly, and even daily basis. Imagine the loss of jobs. Oh sure, Jewel says that everyone will be offered positions at other Jewels in the area, but there are some people who will be unable to take those positions. Then there is the question of “How will we know?” How will we know that all of these people have been rehired at other stores? Will they be rehired for the same hours? For the same positions? With the same seniority? How will we know for sure? Our city of Blue Island can ill afford to lose any of this.
I also recently heard that because Jewel owns the property, they may refuse to sell to another grocery store. Why should they? It is a competitive world out there, and if they can keep a competitor from opening in their place, then they probably will. Where does that leave us? There have been rumors about Walt’s, or Pete’s Market, or any number of other small chains being interested in the spot. But if Jewel does not sell to them, to protect their own interests, then Blue Island is left without a major grocery store.
Oh sure, we can drive to 119th Street and shop the Jewel there, or we can go to County Fair, but that will cost us extra in sales tax and that sales tax will not be returned to Blue Island. We will just be pumping more money out of our already beleaguered city.
Some people have blamed the mayor. Some people have accused him of keeping this information quiet until after the election. It’s really a moot point. This information was out there. A lot of people knew, and for various reasons, avoided making it public. Would it have looked bad to announce it before the election? Sure it would. Would it have changed your vote? (If you voted.) Probably not. The truth is, the mayor cannot stop a business from closing. If any given business decides to close its doors, the mayor by himself cannot reverse that decision.
It is only we, all of us, as a whole, that can determine the fate of our city. If we do not wholeheartedly support the businesses that remain, we can expect more to close.
Look for me with $5.00 in my hand, doing what I can.
Candace Carr
CARR home-garden-holiday
Friday, June 26, 2009
Friday, June 19, 2009
Let George Do It!
In George Boise’s last Reflections column, I noticed that he’s kind of taken over my job, encouraging people to spend their money in Blue Island. I think he did a much better job than I usually do, on top of it. People all over were asking me, “Did you read George’s column? It was hysterical! I never laughed so hard!” In general, I don’t think people laugh when they read my column, unless they’re laughing at me.
So this time, I’ve decided to take over George’s column, and talk about believing and faith. You see, no idea is ever going to work if you don’t have faith in it, and no plan is ever going to work if you don’t believe that your participation in it will make a difference.
Faith is defined as ‘the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.’ When I first came up with the $5.00 a day theory, I had complete confidence that it could and would work. I had faith! I believed wholeheartedly in a vision of Blue Island that was hoped for, but as yet unseen. I really thought that people would be willing to support this idea, because they too wanted to believe in a better city. I have to admit that later on, from time to time, my faith would falter. Was anyone listening? Did I still believe it could happen?
Faith is also demonstrated by continuing against the odds. I believed that even if it was just me, I could make a difference. I’ve turned down some pretty good deals, just so I could practice what I’ve been preaching. I’ve also caved in a few times, just so I could save a little money. What better test of faith than making a few mistakes here and there? I think George would refer to this as sin. If you get up, brush yourself off, ask for forgiveness, and try again, this is redemption. How am I doing, George?
In the meantime, I’ve heard some wild stories. People driving back to Blue Island on the fumes of a near empty gas tank, just to buy their gas here. People considering giving up their Costco memberships because Orland doesn’t need our tax money as much as Blue Island does. Even myself, looking for a new doctor, here in Blue Island, so that if I end up in the hospital, my insurance dollars will be supporting Metro South.
In a church, the following plea would be called an altar call, but in this column I’m just asking you examine your spending habits. If you think you’re too busy, if you think it’s going to take up too much of your time to help your own city by shopping here, if you are thinking “Let George do it” let me remind you that he already did, and he wrote about it, too. Belief is demonstrated by actions. It’s time for each of us to step up and support our business people, show a little faith in the vision of successful Blue Island, and spend our tax dollars here.
Candace Carr
CARR home-garden-holiday
So this time, I’ve decided to take over George’s column, and talk about believing and faith. You see, no idea is ever going to work if you don’t have faith in it, and no plan is ever going to work if you don’t believe that your participation in it will make a difference.
Faith is defined as ‘the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.’ When I first came up with the $5.00 a day theory, I had complete confidence that it could and would work. I had faith! I believed wholeheartedly in a vision of Blue Island that was hoped for, but as yet unseen. I really thought that people would be willing to support this idea, because they too wanted to believe in a better city. I have to admit that later on, from time to time, my faith would falter. Was anyone listening? Did I still believe it could happen?
Faith is also demonstrated by continuing against the odds. I believed that even if it was just me, I could make a difference. I’ve turned down some pretty good deals, just so I could practice what I’ve been preaching. I’ve also caved in a few times, just so I could save a little money. What better test of faith than making a few mistakes here and there? I think George would refer to this as sin. If you get up, brush yourself off, ask for forgiveness, and try again, this is redemption. How am I doing, George?
In the meantime, I’ve heard some wild stories. People driving back to Blue Island on the fumes of a near empty gas tank, just to buy their gas here. People considering giving up their Costco memberships because Orland doesn’t need our tax money as much as Blue Island does. Even myself, looking for a new doctor, here in Blue Island, so that if I end up in the hospital, my insurance dollars will be supporting Metro South.
In a church, the following plea would be called an altar call, but in this column I’m just asking you examine your spending habits. If you think you’re too busy, if you think it’s going to take up too much of your time to help your own city by shopping here, if you are thinking “Let George do it” let me remind you that he already did, and he wrote about it, too. Belief is demonstrated by actions. It’s time for each of us to step up and support our business people, show a little faith in the vision of successful Blue Island, and spend our tax dollars here.
Candace Carr
CARR home-garden-holiday
Monday, June 1, 2009
Back to Business
The election is over, and whether your man won or lost, it’s about time to get back to business! It seems that so many things have tied our little city in knots over the past 12 months. The St. Francis Hospital scare, gas prices over the summer, the stock market collapse, the housing market collapse, the presidential election, the mayoral election. Meanwhile, the businesses on Western, and all over Blue Island, struggle to survive until all these messes clear themselves up.
One thing that we all should have learned by now is that life goes on. The hospital was sold, gas prices are down, the stock market and housing markets are showing signs of recovery. People feared that if Obama was elected that there would be rioting in the streets. It didn’t happen. People were skittish about our mayoral election. What would happen? What would happen? Whether your man won or lost, life goes on. The business of being city continues, just as the business of being a country continues. We can’t just stop living because things aren’t great.
So the question becomes: What do we do now? It’s time to start pulling together as a community, and realize that we are all in this together. It’s time to look around and figure out what our part in this city should be. I have been a strong advocate of spending $5.00 a day in Blue Island for over a year now. Recently I have discovered that someone else has a better plan, and it is taking root around the country. It’s called the 3/50 Project and it was created by Cinda Baxter. Local affiliates of CBS, NBC, and ABC have picked up the story and started to give it coverage. Caroline Kennedy is endorsing the 3/50 Project.
Having been an independent stationery store owner for fourteen years, Cinda Baxter understood the pain felt by retailers when the economy sank and consumers held back. What began as an economic downturn in the autumn had become a psychological tsunami by March 1st.
What the country needed, in her opinion, was a meeting of the minds between two groups that held valuable stakes in the game—small business owners and members of their communities.
Enter The 3/50 Project.
With a tag line “Save your local economy three stores at a time,” the project’s goal is to promote shopping in locally owned businesses while thanking customers for the positive impact that decision has on a local economy.
“We ask consumers to think about which three stores they’d miss if they disappeared, then remind them to return there,” explains Baxter. “Shoppers have become so rooted in thinking about the essentials that they’ve forgotten about the little store on the corner whose owner remembers their name.”
“Fifty comes from the idea that if even half the employed population spent a mere $50 per month in locally owned retail stores, those purchases would generate more than $42.6 billion in revenue,” she continues. “That’s a huge impact for a relatively small investment.”
Which leads to a third number on the flyer, sixty-eight—the dollar amount that remains in a community’s economy for every $100 spent in locally owned stores. By contrast, only $43 per one hundred remains local when spent in national chains; little or no revenue results from online purchases.
“In essence, the whole thing boils down to: Pick 3, spend 50, save the economy. It’s really that simple.”
If you’d like to learn more about the 3/50 Project, go to http://www.the350project.net/
In the meantime, you’ll still find me on Western, spending my $5.00 a day in Blue Island.
One thing that we all should have learned by now is that life goes on. The hospital was sold, gas prices are down, the stock market and housing markets are showing signs of recovery. People feared that if Obama was elected that there would be rioting in the streets. It didn’t happen. People were skittish about our mayoral election. What would happen? What would happen? Whether your man won or lost, life goes on. The business of being city continues, just as the business of being a country continues. We can’t just stop living because things aren’t great.
So the question becomes: What do we do now? It’s time to start pulling together as a community, and realize that we are all in this together. It’s time to look around and figure out what our part in this city should be. I have been a strong advocate of spending $5.00 a day in Blue Island for over a year now. Recently I have discovered that someone else has a better plan, and it is taking root around the country. It’s called the 3/50 Project and it was created by Cinda Baxter. Local affiliates of CBS, NBC, and ABC have picked up the story and started to give it coverage. Caroline Kennedy is endorsing the 3/50 Project.
Having been an independent stationery store owner for fourteen years, Cinda Baxter understood the pain felt by retailers when the economy sank and consumers held back. What began as an economic downturn in the autumn had become a psychological tsunami by March 1st.
What the country needed, in her opinion, was a meeting of the minds between two groups that held valuable stakes in the game—small business owners and members of their communities.
Enter The 3/50 Project.
With a tag line “Save your local economy three stores at a time,” the project’s goal is to promote shopping in locally owned businesses while thanking customers for the positive impact that decision has on a local economy.
“We ask consumers to think about which three stores they’d miss if they disappeared, then remind them to return there,” explains Baxter. “Shoppers have become so rooted in thinking about the essentials that they’ve forgotten about the little store on the corner whose owner remembers their name.”
“Fifty comes from the idea that if even half the employed population spent a mere $50 per month in locally owned retail stores, those purchases would generate more than $42.6 billion in revenue,” she continues. “That’s a huge impact for a relatively small investment.”
Which leads to a third number on the flyer, sixty-eight—the dollar amount that remains in a community’s economy for every $100 spent in locally owned stores. By contrast, only $43 per one hundred remains local when spent in national chains; little or no revenue results from online purchases.
“In essence, the whole thing boils down to: Pick 3, spend 50, save the economy. It’s really that simple.”
If you’d like to learn more about the 3/50 Project, go to http://www.the350project.net/
In the meantime, you’ll still find me on Western, spending my $5.00 a day in Blue Island.
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