State legislators are considering a bill that would make it more difficult for big-box stores like Wal-Mart to build in Maine.
The bill would require anyone proposing a retail development larger than 75,000 square feet to pay $40,000 up front for an independent study of the effect the development would have on the community.
While opponents of Wal-Mart might feel this is an appropriate protection for small communities that would be hurt by a big-box store, this is a law the state doesn’t need. It will only add a layer of bureaucracy to the local planning process, which already has enough protection for communities built into it, and it will send the wrong message to companies that want to do business in this state.
Large stores like Wal-Mart undoubtedly have an effect on the business communities in small towns. These big-box stores are competing for consumers with big advantages. Wal-Mart can buy enormous quantities of products and sell them at low, low prices, as the company’s slogan promotes. It’s difficult for mom-and-pop shops to compete with that.
However, that’s also the free market. Competition can drive down prices for consumers and force existing stores to adapt and offer people reasons to continue shopping there. Many people might choose to continue shopping at a local hardware store, for example, because of the customer service and knowledgeable workforce. When the state intervenes in the free market, adding regulation upon regulation, it can only be bad for the economy in the long run, which is bad for all of us.
This bill wouldn’t affect just big-box stores. If Hannaford or Shaw’s wanted to build a supermarket larger than 75,000 square feet, which isn’t uncommon, they would also have to pay $40,000 for an independent study of the effect on the local economy.
Communities already have plenty of ways to protect existing businesses through the planning processes. Most communities have zoning ordinances that allow businesses of this size to locate only in certain areas. Projects typically have to get approved by a local planning board before they can go forward, and planning board meetings give residents and business owners an opportunity express their concerns about a new project.
People can influence the process, even in the face of a giant corporation like Wal-Mart. In recent years, a group of residents organized in Westbrook to oppose a proposed Wal-Mart Superstore there. Called Westbrook Our Home, the group effectively managed to convince the Westbrook City Council to adopt restrictions on big box stores that led Wal-Mart to opt not to build there.
The only communities vulnerable to Wal-Mart are ones that lack a thorough planning process and good community planners. These are typically smaller, more rural communities that would be less enticing places for Wal-Mart to build new stores. However, if the state wanted to help, it could provide regional planning agencies to assist them.
Adding an extra obstacle to building any store larger than 75,000 square feet is not the answer. That would discourage many businesses that could potentially create new jobs and tax revenue from building in this state.
Brendan Moran, editor
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