I hear the rallying cry about how "four Home Depots within eight miles are too many," but I really don't understand this new tack. From the ALL CAPS-challenged Atwater Village News Blog:
Home Depot and Dakota Communications (a high-priced marketing communications firm from the Westside) are telling residents about the 200 new jobs that Home Depot will provide if they go into the vacant Kmart Store.
That's NOT the truth. Richard Green, Home Depot Real Estate Manager, has publicly stated that they want the Kmart site so they can build a BIGGER STORE; TRANSFER the GLENDALE employees to the new GLASSELL PARK STORE, so they can build a NEW BIGGER STORE in GLENDALE and HIRE NEW EMPLOYEES for that store.
Do they know how far apart these two stores would be? Of course they do. It's 2.5 miles. It's on their bloody map.
And do they know the average Los Angeles commute is 28.4 minutes? I don't care how crowded San Fernando Road is, it never takes half an hour to get from Atwater Village to Glendale. You know, you can actually walk it.
The overall messages seem to be:
- Traveling 2.5 miles to shop at The Home Depot is OK
- Traveling 2.5 miles to work at the Home Depot is too much
And:
- See, those Home Depot people are a bunch of liars
And:
- See, it's not that I'm racist and hate migrants who seek work in Home Depot parking lots, and it's not that I only have a nostalgic preference for quaint bookstores and pizza chains frequented by white people, I actually have ethical problems with the way Home Depot runs its business and neighborhood outreach programs
Sometimes ALL CAPS doth protest too much. My NIMBY nightmare is a recurring vision of 200 Home Depot employees aimlessly wandering the streets of Atwater Village with no store to call their own. That, and getting another California Pizza Kitchen in northeast LA.
- PREVIOUSLY: No More California Pizza Kitchens!
7 comments:
I got a postcard in the mail from the pro-Home Depot people telling me to write to Eric Garcetti and tell them how much I heart Home Depot and how often I cry into my pillow over the fact there isn't one on every corner. He wrote back and told me to go to the little meeting about all of this folderol and then...I didn't go. So much for democracy!
I should have been more specific, I wrote an ANGRY EMAIL SAYING I WOULD RATHER A GIANT CHICKEN POOP FACTOR open there.
I actually specifically said they should divide the retail space, develop the lot differently...
A giant poop factory(y)?! Let's not offend the Hot Carl community.
Atwater Village already has its fair share of big box retail (Thank you, Jackie Goldberg). While it does a lot for the City and County treasury, it does nothing for Atwater Village. In fact, the only thing it will do is make traffic worse.
We do need more mix development, small and medium stores, restaurants and such.
It's what makes a community stronger. Not another Home Depot, Mimi's or Costco, please.
More Canele, more Indochine, more funky t-shirt stores please.
You know what would really rock there? A Lowe's.
I'd be on board for that and a nice bookstore/cafe.
Heads up all. Check out Sunland's
No Home Depot site;
http://www.no2homedepot.com
It's a big enough lot to be divided and for more than one building to be erected.
That 'hood has an El Pollo Loco, McDonalds and Denny's as "dining options".
Do you know any details of what transpired at that OCtober 11th meeting?
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