NIMBY strikes again. I’m guessing that some of the same folks who were against Dollar General coming to town are also concerned about global warming. If so, forcing people to trek into Traverse City in CO2 emitting vehicles strikes me as a bit hypocritical.
The idea that money spent in a Dollar General store would not stay in the community is also silly. Wages paid to local workers in the store stay here. Money spent on inventory will go elsewhere, whether it is purchased by a locally-owned store, a franchisee of a national company or a company-owned store. The only way money for inventory stays here is if the inventory is made here. Meanwhile, by going into Traverse City, those dollars spent there will stay there, not migrate back to Maple City. People like me in Glen Arbor will just continue going into Traverse City to spend our money at Meijer or Home Depot where it is even less-likely to find its way back to Maple City as those stores are more likely to employ people from Traverse City.
I just wonder who the local person is that has the capital and is willing to invest it in a town that cuts off its collective nose to spite its face. I hope those Orioles are worth the price of lost jobs and fewer reasons for young people to stick around instead of moving in to Traverse City or even beyond. Maybe Amazon’s drones will reach Maple City and chase the birds away. Afterall, this is 2019, not 1919.