Q&A
The City of Davis' General plan states: "All neighborhood shopping centers shall include neighborhood grocery stores / supermarkets except for the property located at the southeast corner of Pena Drive and Fifth Street (commonly known as Fifth Street Commerce Center) and the site at the northwest corner of Mace Boulevard and Alhambra Drive." Currently two neighborhood shopping centers in Davis lack a grocery store anchor. A group in West Davis is actively pursuing ways to secure a grocery store in their neighborhood. These local residents must now travel almost daily to other areas of town to shop, which is inconsistent with the City's goal of reducing greenhouse gases. What role should the City Council play in fulfilling the intent of the General Plan's neighborhood grocery store policy?
[Don's response:] Neighborhood centers should be just that - the center of the neighborhood. A grocery store is one of the anchors for that.
I would love for there to be neighborhood grocery stores in the two centers. It is not enough to proclaim in a General Plan that a grocery should be available. Nor does zoning unto itself ensure that a viable grocery store can locate and survive in a location that might run counter to prevailing market forces. We can even provide some incentives or support the efforts of community members to create new options. We cannot dictate the success of a business or demand that a private interest invest in a business.
I am very concerned about the vitality of Davis Manor Shopping Center and Westlake Center in particular. I believe that our primary concern must be to secure attractive active uses in both these locations.
The Planning Commission and the Business and Economic Development Commission are actively engaged in this matter. I have personally conducted several Office Hours sessions at the Westlake Center Video Store, held two neighborhood house gatherings in Stonegate, attended public community meetings on the topic of the grocery store zoning at the center, and met with the center owner and advocates for a neighborhood grocery to undersand the issue and try to find common ground.
Westlake is the site of three failed attempts to operate a small supermarket. Various factors contributed to these failures, including store management, poor location of the center with little street traffic, competition from larger stores in Davis, and customer loyalty to other stores in Davis. At any rate, it is arguable that the market does not support a small supermarket.
That does not mean that a grocery store would not be possible at this location. I agree with many that a store larger than a convenience store and smaller than the failed stores has not been given adequate consideration.
The City has discretion in this matter insofar as the center owner has requested a zoning change to permit other uses rather than a grocery. That discretion gives us some degree of flexibility in considering the issue. We can and should pursue the following:
- Complete a market analysis of this location for a small market - this is the direction of the Planning Commission.
- Allow the complete assessment of a mid-sized store (about 10,000 square feet). Require any appeal of the Planning Commission's rejection of a smaller grocery space to demonstrate active good faith efforts to test the market and work with local groups on the ideas of farm to table options and other models that might fit the space and location.
- Direct city staff to make informal inquiries to grocery operators to get an improved current sense of the market forces. This has happened over the years without promising results.
- If necessary, consider granting any exemption from the grocery store zoning requirement as a conditional use only, leaving open for the future a requirement that we revisit the possibility of a grocery store.
- Support and encourage the active use of the two centers as focal points for their neighborhoods. In addition to grocery stores, both centers need active uses to draw people in. Both have attractive restaurants currently and both have a collection of businesses. Copy shops, craft stores, study centers, or the like may draw a clientele.
- Consider the location of "green business zones" in both centers, featuring retail outlests for such items as solar panels, electric cars, rain harvester and composting items, and other small scale items that will support our community goal of response to climate change.
