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Racists: " Stop making our neighborhood desirable!"

PearlWatson

PearlWatson

Well-Known Member
How are you ever going to solve "food deserts" if racists won't allow stores that sell healthy food?


The Trader Joe's grocery-store chain has dropped a plan to open a new store in the heart of the city's historically African-American neighborhood after activists said the development would price black residents out of the area.

The lot is at Northeast Alberta Street and Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and has been vacant for years.

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Critics said the development would displace residents and perpetuate income inequality in one of the most rapidly gentrifying ZIP codes in the nation.

The Portland African American Leadership Forum said the development commission had in the past made promises about preventing projects from displacing community members but hadn't fulfilled them.

It sent the city a letter saying it would "remain opposed to any development in N/NE Portland that does not primarily benefit the Black community." It said the grocery-store development would "increase the desirability of the neighborhood," for "non-oppressed populations."

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Its store would have been the anchor of a two-building development that included space for four to 10 shops and 100 parking spaces. A company owned by African-Americans in Portland had been slated to build it.
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https://news.yahoo.com/trader-joe-39-drops-black-neighborhood-store-plan-224732374.html
 
On the other hand, I just read that studies have shown gentrification does not usually cause residents to move out of a neighborhood, so I think the fears in this instance were ill-placed.
 
One Brow said:
It's not a food desert. There's a Safeway about 10 blocks from that location.
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10 blocks is not an insignificant distance, especially for anyone who walks to the grocery store.
 
One Brow said:
It's not a food desert. There's a Safeway about 10 blocks from that location.
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That's good news that one grocery store within 10 blocks disqualifies it for a "food desert." I was getting worried the racists in that neighborhood would be nutritionally challenged.
 
Gameface said:
10 blocks is not an insignificant distance, especially for anyone who walks to the grocery store.
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I agree, going that far on foot would limit the number of trips.

However, if 10 blocks is all it takes to make a food desert, many, many suburbs will qualify. By comparison, there is only one supermarket I know of in all of East St. Louis (and a few surrounding cities). There are a coupld of smaller markets, but many people wind up trying to buy groceries at Dollar General or gas stations.
 
One Brow said:
I agree, going that far on foot would limit the number of trips.

However, if 10 blocks is all it takes to make a food desert, many, many suburbs will qualify. By comparison, there is only one supermarket I know of in all of East St. Louis (and a few surrounding cities). There are a coupld of smaller markets, but many people wind up trying to buy groceries at Dollar General or gas stations.
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The closest place to buy food near my house is about 2 miles away. Very unpractical to get there by foot, considering you would have to cross a busy highway. At the far end of our subdivision it would have to be at least 4 or 5 miles to the nearest store.
 
LogGrad98 said:
The closest place to buy food near my house is about 2 miles away. Very unpractical to get there by foot, considering you would have to cross a busy highway. At the far end of our subdivision it would have to be at least 4 or 5 miles to the nearest store.
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*impractical

Sounds almost like a fare shake for giving bennies to perpetually unemployed welfare recipients bitching about a jobs creator moving into town IMO.
 
Are grocery stores just more prevalent in Utah? When I lived in Zion, IL I remember there were only two stores even remotely close, both over 3 miles away and I think they were farther than that. But I'm guessing that within a 2 mile radius I have at least 7 grocery stores near me. In CA the grocery stores were also always pretty close, often less than a mile away.
 
franklin said:
*impractical

Sounds almost like a fare shake for giving bennies to perpetually unemployed welfare recipients bitching about a jobs creator moving into town IMO.
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Trust me, this is very unpractical.
 
Gameface said:
Are grocery stores just more prevalent in Utah? When I lived in Zion, IL I remember there were only two stores even remotely close, both over 3 miles away and I think they were farther than that. But I'm guessing that within a 2 mile radius I have at least 7 grocery stores near me. In CA the grocery stores were also always pretty close, often less than a mile away.
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The Creeping Walmart is taking over. In our area the Walmart is huge, and services probably 1/3 of Sparks, which is a decent sized chunk. Further south there are some local chains, like Scolari's, but they are about 5+ miles from me to start off with. There used to be more stores like that (we have one Smith's here, in the entire Reno/Sparks area that I know of, and several Scolari's), but they are fading as Walmart moves in. Not to mention Costco and Sam's. Centralizing is the theme, and the days of the corner market are long gone.
 
Gameface said:
Are grocery stores just more prevalent in Utah? When I lived in Zion, IL I remember there were only two stores even remotely close, both over 3 miles away and I think they were farther than that. But I'm guessing that within a 2 mile radius I have at least 7 grocery stores near me. In CA the grocery stores were also always pretty close, often less than a mile away.
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I believe I've driven through Zion. It's small, and rural, IIRC. It's not unusual for low-density areas to have supermarkets scattered. I live in O'Fallon (pop about 30K), and there are 4 supermarkets within 5 miles of me. Contrast that to 1 in East St. Louis (and none in Cerntreville, Alorton, Brooklyn, Fairmont City, Washington Park), with ESL having a larger populaiton just by itself.
 
One Brow said:
I believe I've driven through Zion. It's small, and rural, IIRC. It's not unusual for low-density areas to have supermarkets scattered. I live in O'Fallon (pop about 30K), and there are 4 supermarkets within 5 miles of me. Contrast that to 1 in East St. Louis (and none in Cerntreville, Alorton, Brooklyn, Fairmont City, Washington Park), with ESL having a larger populaiton just by itself.
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There were plenty of bars and liquor stores much closer.
 
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