San Mateo Times – Should the city help protect indie shops?
BURLINGAME – La Pinata is gone, so is Sweet Treats. Apple has moved in, as has J. Crew. The flight of small, independently owned businesses from Burlingame Avenue over the last several years has some citizens worried that the thoroughfare is on the way to becoming a soulless strip of franchise outlets and ritzy boutiques. But what can the city do? Well, it depends on who you talk to. Other cities on the Peninsula are engaged in balancing economic vitality and neighborhood character. In San Carlos, the city council is considering a moratorium on coffee shops on Laurel Street, now that a second Starbuck's Coffee has opened in the downtown area. Some business owners in South San Francisco are torn between revitalizing Grand Avenue and maintaining its store diversity. Burlingame Avenue faces a different conundrum than Laurel Street, however. While some argue that a "first wave" of chain retailers would pump up business on Laurel, Burlingame Avenue is confronted with that infamous byproduct of economic success, gentrification.
One strategy for maintaining neighborhood character has been put into effect in Los Gatos. In 2002, the Town Council voted to establish an ordinance controlling "formula" stores. National or regional retail chains with seven or more outlets must acquire a conditional use permit to move into the downtown area. The law gives the city the authority to deny a permit if it deems that the proposed business is not in harmony with the character of the neighborhood or would cause an over-concentration of one type of business. "Some would say, 'Why don't you let the market do its thing?'" said Bud Lortz, Los Gatos' community development director. The answer, Lortz said, is that "it requires a tremendous amount of work and effort to make sure that the downtown has the right mix of uses." Other cities in the state and nationwide have adopted similar measures. Calistoga does not allow formula restaurants and makes chain retailers apply for a conditional use permit. In April, the town of Nantucket, Mass., banned all chain businesses from its downtown area.
Burlingame City Planner Meg Monroe said she's concerned that these laws could amount to discrimination and put the city at risk for lawsuits. But Los Gatos Town Councilman Mike Wasserman said the town hasn't had any legal troubles with the ordinance. "We have the right to protect and preserve our community," Wasserman said. "A town or city certainly has the right to look after its own best interests." Monroe disagreed. "We couldn't make a list of businesses we didn't want in town," she said. "We'd be in court so fast our heads would spin." Karim Salma, whose firm owns the block of the Avenue that intersects with California Drive, disputes the idea that economic vitality and independent business don't mix. Of the four stores that are in the process of opening on the 1100 block of the Avenue, including the restaurant Mijana, all but one are independently owned, Salma said. The fourth, La Corneta Taqueria, is a spin-off of a San Francisco-based Mexican restaurant. As the city develops a Downtown Specific Plan over the next several months, all options are on the table, Burlingame City Councilman Russ Cohen said. He didn't rule out at a chain store ordinance. "I think anything is possible for Burlingame," Cohen said. "With this specific downtown plan that we're going to be developing in the coming months, the slate is clean."
– Written by Fiona
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