The Ethanol Glass Is Still Only Half Full

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: From the Desk of David Morris, The Public Good | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The Ethanol Glass Is Still Only Half Full by David Morris originally published in Ethanol Today, September 2003 The ethanol industry is alive and well. By the middle of next year demand could exceed 3 billion gallons. As New York, Connecticut and other states phase out MTBE demand could surpass 4 billion gallons by 2007. These … Read More

As Police Costs Rise, Towns Reconsider Big Boxes

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

"When . . . a large development wants to be in your town, you see the tax values surrounding that. . . I think the tendency is to think this is really going to give us a solid foundation," George Fowler, mayor of Pineville, North Carolina, told the Charlotte Observer. "But you don’t realize at that particular point the impact it’s going to have on the services you have to provide."… Read More

Small Manufacturers Denounce Big Retailers

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Big retailers are increasingly coming under fire from small and mid-sized manufacturers. Last month, more than 1,000 employees and owners of small manufacturing firms attended a rally in Connecticut to denounce Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Target, and other chains for forcing large manufacturers to move their factories to China. … Read More

Wal-Mart Distribution Centers Capture $150 Million in Subsidies

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Since the 1980s, Wal-Mart has received at least $150 million in local, state, and federal subsidies to build 47 distribution centers in 32 states, according to a study by The Palm Beach Post.

Onlythose subsidies that have been quantified in published reports were counted. "That number likely grows by tens of millions when unquantified breaks, such as government bond financing for construction, and ongoing breaks, such as those given to businesses in enterprise zones, are included," the newspaper notes.

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Radio Stations Refuse to Pull Anti-Wal-Mart Ads

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 1 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Five radio stations in St. Louis are refusing Wal-Mart’s demand that they pull ads critical of the company’s labor practices. The ads, sponsored by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 655, discuss working conditions, wages, and lack of health care at Wal-Mart stores. Wal-Mart claims the ads are false and misleading, but the UFCW stands behind their accuracy. … Read More

Controversial Mall will not Boost Jobs or Revenue, Study Concludes

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Developers of a massive shopping center in Leominster, Massachusetts, claim the project will create 869 new jobs and boost the city’s property tax revenue by $400,000 annually. But a study by a nationally recognized land use economist has found that the development will destroy about as many jobs as it creates and provide the city with only $51,000 in additional revenue. To put that into perspective, if the new revenue were used to cut residential property taxes, each of the city’s 17,000 households would save just $3 annually. … Read More

Homer, Alaska, Bans Big Box Stores

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The town of Homer, Alaska, has capped retail store sizes at no more than 20,000 square feet in its central business district and 40,000 square feet in other commercial areas. The measure will remain in effect until the Planning Commission implements permanent regulations setting impact standards and size limits for large-scale retail, expected within six months. … Read More

San Francisco Weighs Restrictions on ‘Formula’ Businesses

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Matt Gonzalez has introduced legislation requiring that neighbors be notified whenever a formula retail store or restaurant seeks to open in their neighborhood. Residents would have the option of requesting a public hearing and formal review by the Planning Commission.… Read More

Santa Monica Mandates Small Storefronts on Promenade

Date: 1 Sep 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In an effort to prevent further consolidation of small storefronts into large chain outlets along the Third Street Promenade, the city of Santa Monica has adopted an ordinance that limits stores to no more than 50 linear feet of street frontage. The City Council has also directed city staff to compile data on the number of formula businesses in the district and draft options for limiting their proliferation.… Read More

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