Hello!
There is a small group of us representing this petition and the concerns outlined below at noon today at the Township office. If a large number of people show up, they will postpone the meeting and put together a community input session.
Our goal of the session today is to review the submitted plans (which you can do online by reviewing here.)
Basically, the design is the same as any other. It will fundamentally change the aesthetic of the west end of the township and will open the door to more being added in the future. If you are outraged, TELL THEM.
Here is what we are sharing later today...
Why we are here:
With 297 signatures on our petition as of 7:45 this morning, we deserve to have the opportunity to express our concerns before any further approvals are given to the development of Dollar General at this site. We would like a special public comment opportunity that allows for multiple channels of input. Not just one day at one time, but thoughtfully scheduled sessions that allow for daytime, evening, and virtual options. We are willing to schedule these meetings in collaboration with the Township and provide a facilitator.
This is a significant decision and should not just be waved through quietly. We are demanding to be heard because of the following concerns, which were compiled from input from Township residents through their own opinions and research. This is not an exhaustive list of input, which is why we are seeking further opportunity for others to share their own reasons for concern.
Mission of Long Lake Township
“It is the mission of the Charter Township of Long Lake to provide for the health, safety, and well-being for all citizens of the Charter Township of Long Lake by providing municipal leadership dedicated to sound fiscal management, protection of the natural and historic environmental resources, and to preserve and enhance the features that make the Charter Township of Long Lake unique to improve the quality of life for present and future generations.”
The following list of concerns make it clear that the decision to move forward with the site plan for this retailer is a failure to fulfill this mission related to the commitments cited in bold above.
List of concerns:
1) Notification of those within 300’ of the proposed site
a) Two neighbors within that space did not receive notification of the meeting topic.
b) We would like to see proof of notification.
2) What if any subsidies or allowances is the Township providing Dollar General?
3) Traffic impact -
a) Traffic study was done over just one day.
i) There is no way you can adequately understand traffic patterns with any less than a week of study in both summer and winter months. This was woefully inadequate.
ii) This traffic study should have also included information related to the addition of traffic due to the incoming storage facility.
iii) What about the boat traffic on the road created by Gilbert Park launch? This will create more congestion in the area which can lead to accidents and fatalities.
b) What are the weight limits on the roads? DG delivery trucks are semi-trucks, are the roads capable of handling the weight?
c) Wear and tear on road from construction and delivery trucks.
4) Crime
a) Studies have shown an increase in crime near these types of discount retailers.
i) Is Dollar General planning to fund the additional policing? The Township only just received its own officer, and now it’s possible that we will have less access due to increased crime at this site, neighboring businesses and residences.
ii) This particular retailer has a proven history of having illegal activity in their parking lots nationally. Why would we attract that to our Township?
5) Property values
a) A 2022 study by Clemson University found that the presence of a nearby dollar store diminished property values by 16-21 percent between 2016-2019, while the presence of a nearby grocery store increased property values by 14-15 percent.
i) That will impact to township on tax base if everyone fights to get property tax reduced
b) A community’s architecture, its public spaces, its landscape, and its businesses give it a unique sense of identity — and a unique sense of identity creates the tangible market value essential to successful economic development. One of the forces that create economic value is uniqueness; something is worth more if it is one-of-a-kind than if it is one of many. Being able to distinguish one community from another is crucial in supporting tourism and in attracting new companies and workers. Not only do visitors seek out unique businesses, but industries also seek out communities that provide their workers and customers with a healthy commercial district, an interesting mix of businesses, and a distinctive identity. The homogenous corporate design of dollar store chains whittles away at these unique characteristics.
6) Wine and packaged alcohol sales
a) Will this location be permitted to sell alcohol?
b) Master plan and township docs do not include anything about adding liquor/wine/mead/beer retail sellers. How will this be addressed if there is not guidance to do so?
7) Impact to local economy?
a) Retail business impacted - Long Lake grocery, Lake Ann grocery, Fresh Coast as well as the Long Lake Culinary Campus that the Township supported could all be negatively impacted:
i) Dollar stores don’t just edge out existing grocery stores; they use predatory tactics to drive small grocers out of business and make it much less likely that a new grocery store will open in the same neighborhood. And when a town or neighborhood has more than one dollar store, the odds are even greater that a new grocery store would not be able to survive there.
Part of the reason their strategy often proves lethal to grocery stores has to do with the economics of food retailing. Grocery stores run on very thin margins, typically one or two percent. Because perishable food is generally a money-loser, grocers rely on sales of packaged foods and other goods — all the items sold in the center aisles — to cover their overhead and stay afloat. Take away a portion of these center-aisle sales and the whole enterprise can collapse. 1
As (this) report shows, in small towns and urban neighborhoods alike, dollar stores drive grocery stores and other retailers out of business, leave more people without access to fresh food, extract wealth from local economies, sow crime and violence, and further erode the prospects of the communities they target. 1
Dollar stores are taking a toll on grocery stores and, in many cases, reducing people’s access to fresh food. In small towns, which are often served by a single locally owned supermarket, a dollar store’s arrival typically cuts sales at the supermarket by about 30 percent.2
ii) This is bad for the health of Township residents. Dollar stores are dismal substitutes for grocery stores; they stock little fresh produce and sell only a narrow range of processed foods, such as canned soup and soda 1
Although the number of items and amount spent was not statistically different for shoppers at the different stores, dollar store shoppers purchased a median of 1,266 calories, which was more than double the median calorie purchases for the shopper at the other store types. A greater percentage of shoppers purchases sweet baked goods at dollar stores relative to shoppers at corner or gas-marts, and a greater percentage of dollar store shoppers (58%) purchased sugar-sweetened beverages, than corner store, gas-mart, or pharmacy shoppers. The researchers also found that dollar store shoppers were more likely to purchase candy – in fact, they were more than three times as likely to purchase candy than corner store shoppers (Caspi et al., 2016).3
iii) Chain dollar stores hire fewer people than the grocery stores they often force out of business. Dollar General stores hire an average of six people, for example, while Fresh Coast currently employs 70.
Dollar stores employ fewer people than the grocery stores they eliminate. Dollar General outlets have a nine-person staff on average, while small independent grocery stores employ an average of 14 people.4
Dollar store jobs are not only fewer in number but also low wage and low quality. Employees are monitored intensely and subject to a “web of contradictory work policies.”7 Store managers earn a salary of about $40,000 but must work long hours without overtime. Court records reveal that dollar chains frequently face class-action lawsuits for violating fair labor laws, typically paying millions to settle such suits out of court. These companies also lean heavily on taxpayers to subsidize their employees’ healthcare.5
b) There are already 4 of these within an 8-mile drive of this location, increasing the likeliness that the store could fail. What will we do with a giant tan empty box with zero character or aesthetic appeal?
c) Not a source of healthy food - impact to community health by high caloric content products.
8) Environmental impact
a) Non-permeable paving means that the stormwater run-off will impact the neighboring Bullhead Lake Nature Preserve as well as the Long Lake Watershed.
i) Has a soil study been done on Wheelock Welding, which is slightly higher in elevation than this planned site, which could then create hazardous soil conditions if disturbed during construction?
b) The Master Plan describes this commercial zone as “pedestrian-scaled node with limited traffic impact and that will reflect the residential nature of this part of this Township. It is anticipated that this Activity Center will develop with commercial uses and services that generate less traffic and activity but will provide logical connections, services, and enhancements to nearby natural areas and existing neighborhoods.” Explain how the complete removal of all natural elements for the storage facility and now Dollar General could possibly fit that description?
c) Long lake Township study advocated dark skies – This plan calls for security lights on all night which will impact dark skies and neighbors. The yellow sign they are known for would illuminate all nearby homes and businesses, disrupting their right to privacy.
d) (As seen at Interlochen) - open baskets of corrugated, trash uncovered, parking lot littered around the area. This will increase garbage floating around the area, forcing neighbors to deal with the debris and filth.
e) Wildlife impact - bear, deer combined with the increase in traffic means more accidents, injuries, and police and EMT support.
f) The noise of the additional traffic will be detrimental to neighbors’ well-being and property values.
9) Precedent
a) “Commercial” development opens opportunity for large scale commercial retailers - are we setting up for Walmart, etc.?
b) Location, location - why not on M-72, already a commercial corridor. Keep formulary retailers out of neighborhoods.
10) Township
a) If business suffer loss - what is impact to township?
b) Wear and tear on roads from corporation with no responsibility to pay for maintenance, police, fire, etc. No public responsibility to community
11) Long lake master plan - Hamlet -
a) Need to review master plan for conversion of local biz to commercial development
b) Land division ordinance # 34 – does this comply? Application by Midwest V LLC indicates that “Project Includes land dividing the parcel to create this 3-acre parcel. Parent parcel is 9954 N. Long Lake Road.”
Citations:
1 ILSR-Report-The-Dollar-Store-Invasion-2023
2 Sales drops of roughly 30% have been reported in numerous accounts of small-town grocery stores after a Dollar General opens. See, e.g., “Where even Walmart won't go: how Dollar General took over rural America,” C. McGreal, The Guardian, Aug. 13, 2018
3 EVALUATION OF SMALL BOX DISCOUNT RETAILERS AND NEGATIVE OUTCOMES IN UNINCORORATED DEKALB COUNTY
4 Dollar General. 2018 Annual Report; U.S. Economic Census.
5 “New Data Show How Big Chains Free Ride on Taxpayers at the Expense of Responsible Small Businesses,” S. Mitchell, ILSR, 2013