Welcome to Wal-Mart: bringing planned obsolescence to downtown Sarasota

- Greg Bowdish is a kayak guide and outdoor writer, and is currently finishing up his first novel, Love's Naked Nature, which will be out in the spring of 2013.

Only a fool would get between a Black Friday bargain bin and the grasping hands and gnashing teeth of mindless, self-destructive American consumerism.

Only a fool would think his uncomfortable words could somehow change the comfortable decisions being made in the comfortable rooms by those comfortable people who determine the direction of our community.

And only a fool would believe that Sarasota might forget about galas, dressing up lapdogs and dining on the sidewalk long enough to pull together and fight the Wal-Mart parasite that is right now quietly at work, trying to attach itself to the heart of our little city, trying to suck whatever life and profit it can from our downtown independent businesses and struggling working class.

Only a fool would think such things. I am such a fool.

But I am not alone in my foolishness. I know of many like me, who can see beyond this incredibly short-sighted solution to an empty retail space on Ringling Ave. We see decay in the cards. We see struggling workers wondering how they will get by on Wal-Mart wages. We see many downtown businesses losing a percentage of their market share---and with it, most likely, that critical percentage of profit that has kept those businesses afloat. We see empty storefronts on Main St. and large “Building For Sale” signs. We also see this impending disaster for our city for what it is: a highly-calculated and well-thought-out plan by the biggest corporate empire in human history. If Wal-Mart has chosen downtown Sarasota for a store, it can only be because they have done the math and determined the ease of which they can pull large amounts of money from our area to truck back to Bentonville, Ark.“But there are Wal-Marts all over Sarasota,” you say. “Why is downtown different than any other location for a Wal-Mart?”

Well, for starters, it is the core of our independent business community. It is made up of small retail businesses that rely heavily on the foot traffic that comes with a vibrant urban setting. It is also the area that most defines how we envision ourselves as a city and a community, and a major reason why many people have chosen to live here.

“But many of those businesses carry high-end merchandise, or are restaurants. They won't lose any business to a Wal-Mart.”

Not at first glance. But the flip-side to that argument is that many downtown businesses do, in fact, carry goods or provide services that Wal-Mart provides. For a great number of these businesses, losing maybe 10 or 15 percent of their business might take them over the edge. The higher-end businesses and restaurants then might find themselves sandwiched between vacant storefronts, which could have a severe effect on their business traffic. Remember, Wal-Mart would not even consider Ringling Ave. as a location for a store if there was not business to be had there---business that rightfully belongs to the local, independent small business owners who have already set up shop. According to politifact.com, the Walton family “own more wealth than bottom 40 percent of Americans.” They obviously are very good at pulling money out of communities and it would be preposterous to believe that their goal here is to bring money to downtown Sarasota.

“At least Wal-Mart will create new jobs in the area.”

That is a myth. You cannot create jobs unless you expand the market and create demand. Manufacturing, technology and tourist attractions are some great ways to expand the market because they bring demand for goods and/or services from outside our community, and local jobs are created to keep up with this new demand. Wal-Mart is bringing cheaper, foreign-made goods to our community (supply) to compete for an already existing demand.

“Well, having a Wal-Mart downtown could raise property values.”

Remember, we will undoubtedly end up with vacant retail spaces from the closed businesses. This will drive down property values. But there is another consideration: For the worker who does get a job at Wal-Mart, he or she will find that rents in the surrounding area are unaffordable. This can lead to groups of people cramming into single-family neighborhood homes, pooling their resources and trying to eke out an existence---which will also, undoubtedly, lower property values.

“I don't think it will happen anyway. That space is not zoned for a department store.”

The Sarasota Planning Board has already given it the green light, also stating that city commission approval is not required on the project. Thankfully, this decision is being appealed by a group of local residents.

“Well, what can I do about this?”

Educate yourself and those around you. Write the Sarasota City Commissioners and the Sarasota Planning Board and express your concern. Speak out at city meetings. Join local activists groups such as BOYCOTT Walmart in the Ringling Plaza (a group that is already over 600 members strong) or the Anti SRQ Walmart Direct Action Planning Committee. Engage in protests. Watch the 2005 documentary “Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices” and share the link with friends. It is free on Hulu and explains in great detail what is in store for our community if this Wal-Mart store is finally approved.

But the most important thing all of us can do is to realize that this is our time to shine. This is our chance to step forward and define ourselves. Are we going to be a forward-looking city of creativity and art and music and financial independence? Or are we going to allow the financial core of our city to be pipelined into the pockets of a few Bentonville billionaires, while our downtown storefronts are left as torn and empty as a cardboard sales bin after a Black Friday massacre in the video game aisle of one of their Wal-Mart Superstores?

The decision is yours, Sarasota.