The neighborhood where we live is changing and Condo Boards in the area need to start getting actively involved in their neighborhoods. The London Drugs moved out and was replaced with a Dollarama and then Urban Fare grocery stored changed into a Save on Foods in less than a year. The Urban Fare while ridiculously expensive at least provided organic items and specialty items and had great quality chicken and beef which of course drove local organic stores out of business so there's that. At first one thinks ok, great maybe we needed a cheaper store but the Save On Foods while it does seem to provide cheaper items they bring in a lot of cases and bulk items and don’t understand how many people shop in this area with a cart so case items are not as practical for many to buy. Earlier this week, I had to run to the post office so I was in Shoppers Drug mart and grabbed a package of chicken breasts which are the same price as what Save on Foods sells. Well, the same price but not even close to the same quality, who knew Shoppers Drug Mart would have a better quality of meat than Save On Foods. A similar three/four pack of chicken breast at Save on Foods which were literally one breast of the Shoppers chicken cut into three and I paid the same price for it! So now I know how Save On Foods can charge less than other stores, they conserve. Some things are cheaper at Save On Foods and some aren’t but the change in quality of the store is what concerns me. We used to be a neighborhood that had Urban Fare and West Elm and now we have Save On Foods and Dollarama. What does that say about the neighborhood? It tells me the property values are decreasing and if the neighborhood hadn’t already been changing it is now on the down turn with the help of Dollarama. Typically neighborhoods close to downtown are eclectic made up of all different types of people and socioeconomic backgrounds that’s why we all live here we love the diversity and walking neighborhoods. The Calgary beltline is the hub of the city it’s not only a great place to live because it’s convenient to downtown … but it’s suffering and needs some help.
There is plenty of evidence to support the downturn neighborhoods face when chain stores start putting down roots. Dollar stores negatively affect the neighborhood. The Institute for Local Self Reliance cites a Clemson University study that found property values could drop by 16-21% when a dollar store is nearby. The impact is so significant in communities with high concentrations of low and fixed income residents because the crime rate soars. From our own experience in the beltline the differences in the area where London Drugs once was compared to the Dollarama are significant. The amount of homeless people and drug addicts now wandering around the area have increased significantly and this is due in large part to the new Dollarama, it has negatively impacted the neighborhood.
We have a commercial part of the building and in some instances the commercial owner can assist owners in dealing with boards and property managers but when they make decisions that negatively impact the building in such a way there needs to be a mechanism for change. When the commercial owner chooses to bring in a Dollarama into the neighborhood without the consent of the other owners in the building the commercial owner has single handily reduced our property values and increased crime. When London Drugs moved out the board decreased the security for some reason which was a bad move on their part because it was always needed. Now the building should have an onsite security guard but who should pay for that cost? The commercial owner to protect us from their renter? If the owners had been given the option to vote on the type of businesses and our board was experienced enough to do some research on the effects of dollar stores the neighborhood might look differently and our condo fees and property values may not have suffered the same blow.
It's not only important for board members to join local neighborhood organizations to try and combat these types of chain stores it’s probably prudent for owners to start enacting bylaws or ensure they are included during the formation of the corporation. The bylaws should include specific bylaws for the commercial owners. An extraordinary resolution should have been approved by all owners in the building. Just wait, I can hear the cries now, it can be done in a way that doesn’t hold up or cause issues with the commercial owner. The bylaws can automatically allow for certain businesses like London Drugs or Best Buy or any other types of businesses that don’t negatively impact a community but approval should be required when there are businesses that clearly affect the building in a negative way. There has always been a certain level of crime in the neighborhood it’s expected living so close to downtown but the crime rate in the beltline is higher than the downtown core with 49, 727 events last year compared to the core which only had 38,919 events. The area couldn’t really handle another entity that alters the community in such a way. The beltline didn’t really need the Dollarama to invite more crime, loitering and whatever else comes with dollar stores. The boards of these buildings need to start enacting bylaws to help maintain their communities and control of their buildings and we need to start now.
Here are some links:
17 Problems: How Dollar Store Chains Hurt Communities - Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ilsr.org)
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