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Posts Tagged ‘rural infrastructure’
Grocery store finds new life
March 13th, 2009
We’ve heard the story time and time again: Grocery store owner in a rural town reaches retirement age, wants to sell, but struggles to find an interested buyer. With no buyer in sight, the store closes. Substitute “hardware store” or “grocery store,” and most small towns in the Upper Midwest have experienced this scenario first hand.
Last month, we learned that the community of Clark, SD banded together to reopen their “variety store.” Today, we report that the community of Menno, SD (pop. 729) stepped up to save their grocery store.
The Yankton Press and Dakotan provides details for the story. () When it appeared the store’s owners who were ready to retire couldn’t find a buyer, the Menno Area Development Corporation took action by:
- Forming a corporation to purchase and run the store
- Selling $145,000 in shares to residents who wanted to keep the store running
- Hired a young store manager from Rapid City, after she answered an ad in the State Wide Classified
- Secured a $23,559 grant from USDA Rural Development to help purchase $100,000 worth of energy efficient freezers, coolers and checkout equipment.
- Convincing the community to support the store (and it sounds like the new manager has a lot to do with that as well)
The story is uplifting and motivating. It proves that communities don’t have to accept decline as inevitable.
What’s really exciting about the story
Digging deeper into the story, however, I found other reasons to be excited.
First, the store’s manager, Amber Taylor was 27 years old when she took over. She had been living in the Rapid City, proving that not everyone from Gen Y is interested in living in an urban area.
Second, like the Nick Graham story, the community values the store and is willing to volunteer their time to work at the store.
Third, the community appears to be supporting Taylor with mentors. A story in the March 4, 2008 edition of the Town and County Weekly News, suggests Taylor is being mentored by the former store owners and another retired former grocer who retired to Menno. A review of the Menno Area Development Corporation minutes also informs us that the Southeast Enterprise Facilitation Project has played an important advisory role.
The idea that communities need to provide mentoring support to entrepreneurial endeavors is often neglected. It may, however, be one of the more important roles around.
At the end of the day, the Menno community should feel proud of their efforts. They have provided us with another example of a “Reimagined” future for rural places.
Tags: Buy Local, Gen Y, grocery stores, Menno SD, nick graham, retail, rural infrastructure, yankton press and dakotan
Posted in Economic Development, Gen Y, In the News, Quality of Life, Rural | Comments (0)
Rural Infrastructure — The Clark Story
February 13th, 2009
The stimulus package currently in Congress focuses on job creation and infrastructure development. While the urban infrastructure most discussed revolves around roads, schools, and mass transit, the rural infrastructure appears focused on broadband internet.
After reading about the establishment of a “community owned” variety store in Clark, South Dakota, I was reminded that rural infrastructure comes in many forms. I was also reminded that decisions about prioritizing any community’s infrastructure needs is best decided by an informed citizenry at the local level.
The Clark Hometown Variety Store
According to an article in the Watertown Public Opinion, the community of Clark has been without a place to buy many household necessities since the community’s convenience store closed three years ago.
After struggling to reestablish the store through more traditional means, 115-120 community residents “stepped up” and purchased stock ($500 a share) in the newly formed community-owned variety store.
Since opening its doors on Christmas Eve, the store has been an economic boon for the community. Greg Furness, President of the Clark Chamber of Commerce, is quoted in the Public Opinion article saying people from Watertown and Huron have been making the trip to purchase fabric. The store also employs one full-time and four part-time workers.
More importantly, the store fills a need within the community. Communities that offer places to purchase necessities are much more attractive places to live. In many ways, they are a necessary part of the community’s infrastructure, just like good roads, schools, etc…. (source: Joe O’Sullivan, “Clark community store revived”. Watertown Public Opinion, Feb. 9, 2009).
Other forms of rural infrastructure
I’m not the only one who considers stores like this a vital element of a rural community’s infrastructure. The Center for Rural Affairs also categories grocery stores and public libraries as infrastructure. I’d probably place “third places” in the infrastructure category as well.
This brings us to the broadband internet debate. I believe that broadband internet is vital to the economic development of all rural communities. In fact, I’d go a step further and say that we have to develop greater access to wireless internet as well. Young people will demand access to both, and will move away from communities where they can’t get it.
The stimulus package is a pretty complex bill, and I admittedly haven’t paid all that much attention to it.
I just hope that the federal government’s approach to stimulating the rural economy isn’t limited to increasing broadband service. If it is, there will be a lot of rural communities left out of the stimulus plan altogether.
Tags: broadband, Clark SD, economic stimulus plan, grocery stores, retail, rural infrastructure
Posted in Economic Development, In the News, Rural | Comments (2)