The impending closure of the Leadville Alco store may add more trepidation in the minds of many as to the future of Leadville but it is actually an opportunity to reevaluate our community direction and the core ideals and goals that we cherish.
SOME HISTORY
Alco is a national chain of discount retail stores that targets communities without other direct competition such as Target and Wal-Mart. On October 12th, 2014, Alco Stores Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy citing “increased competition” and “declining consumer and business confidence, which has led to decreased customer traffic and reduced levels of consumer spending, particularly on discretionary items.” (Bloomberg.com, October 13th, 2014)
The Leadville Alco opened for business in March of 2008, and indicated at that time that they would employ approximately 25 associates. (Leadville Herald, December 6th, 2007)
An Alco manager has an average salary of $49,272 and sales associates make approximately $8.10 per hour nationally. The building that the Alco was in, is a 26,669 square foot facility that was purchased in 2011 by Leadville Holdings LLC for $1,795,000. This company is owned/ managed by Genesis Investment Properties which is located in Hamilton, New Jersey.
So what does the closing mean to the community of Leadville?
JOBS
A topic of discussion at several business meetings and economic development seminars recently has been the lack of able and willing workers in the community. Many local restaurants and retail stores have difficulty finding quality employees, and find it hard to compete with “over the hill” jobs at ski area hotels and restaurants that are able to pay higher wages. Since these Alco store jobs were low paying positions, besides the one management position, perhaps this will lead to compression and induce these workers to find jobs in other local businesses. One gap in our local infrastructure that has been discussed is transportation. Lake County and the City of Leadville need to at some point address the lack of a shuttle or bus system linking residential areas with the retail core and Colorado Mountain College. This will increase both retail activity and the ability for workers to commute locally.
TAXES
There is no doubt that the closure will have an effect on municipal retail tax revenues. Grocery sales will inevitably increase at the Safeway store, which is located outside of the city limits, which will impact the City in a time that they are already cutting jobs and tightening their purse strings. Our local population will likely make the trip over the hill to Target and Wal-Mart, just 35-40 minutes away to purchase items they cannot find locally. A bright note on the economic horizon is the scheduled opening of several new restaurants and commercial businesses in 2015. Local residents should be encouraged to “shop locally”, and main street businesses will likely benefit from the closure of box store competition.
BEDROOM COMMUNITY
Many of the issues that Lake County and the City of Leadville face are directly caused by being a bedroom community to the resorts close by. Commuter towns are attractive because of the lower cost of housing, but these municipalities struggle because of a lack of an economic industry. The lack of sales tax usually causes property taxes to rise, and the brunt of the impact is on local property owners. Another potential impact is that bedroom communities raise housing prices and attract upscale service businesses leading to a process similar to Gentrification. (This will be discussed in a subsequent blog.)
SUMMARY
The closing of the Alco store is not another indication of the impending economic doom and gloom of Leadville, it is a sign post on the road to community identity, and a reshaping of what is important for the City and County. Personally, I was never attracted to the consumer goods sold at the Alco store, and instead of buying a sweatshirt or hat made in China, I would rather purchase a Melanzana product made right here in Leadville. The “as seen on TV” product offerings were just a way to siphon off the hard earned dollars from our local population, and send them to the chains headquarters in Texas.
In a perfect economic world, our local businesses will benefit from the closure and increased sales due to less competition. When local business owners benefit, ideally they will spend their profits within the community, and enhance the values that we as neighbors strive to obtain for ourselves and our families.
With the pursuit of the Main Street program, and the goal of revitalizing our downtown core as the heart of the County, this closure actually aligns quite well with our current direction.
We as a community need to band together and pursue economic development goals that strengthen and enhance our ability to establish better infrastructure. By shopping with local merchants, we align ourselves together to provide improvements to our quality of life. Only we can provide better schools, parks, community programs, and emergency services. The opportunity is now to make the community we live in one that we are proud of!