Whitefish supports local businesses

I am writing in response to the proposal of a Shopko Hometown store at the current Mountain Mall. This was introduced at the City Council on May 21.

First and foremost, the majority of our population celebrates small business, locally run and owned by hardworking people from our community.This is what Whitefish has always tried to support.

This type of store is the last that I believe can succeed in our area. We have everything we need and more in Whitefish, and Kalispell is just over the hill and is saturated with stores of this type. Our locals shop our small stores and get what they need from box stores when they go to Kalispell. People are conditioned to drive for these needs. A very small population will support a low rate corporation like this..

To top it off, if this takes place there are up to 24 businesses that will be displaced by this. NOT eight or so like was stated at the meeting. These business owners have been a part of the community and are our family, friends and shop owners — don’t let this be taken away from us.

It will also take the money out of the hands of countless other stores downtown. The economy is on an upswing and we don’t need a corporation. We need to let our business owners recover and have lease space available to those people from our community who have been brainstorming on their ideas waiting for economy to come back. There are next to NO available commercial spaces in Whitefish. Don’t give them to a store that is bound to not be accepted and fail. Remember Dominoes?    

I will be surprised if you don’t face a very large outcry from our small town on this very bad for our town plan.

We don’t want Shopko Hometown here.

— Raven Woods