The Revitalist

CoolTown Studios posted Friday about cities taking an anti-chain store stance. They link to a NY Times article about the scourge of chain stores expanding beyond Manhattan and into the indie hinterlands of Brooklyn and Queens. Not surprisingly there are a lot of people who are less than enthusiastic. CoolTown also mentioned that San Francisco had passed an ordinance requiring that chain stores undergo greater scrutiny in the development approvals process. Apparently, the ordinance defines stores with 12 or more locations as "formula retail" that will undergo additional permitting reviews and actually be banned in certain areas of the city.

The chain store question is obviously a hot one (and chains do have their defenders). I'm not surprised to hear Brooklyn hipsters grumbling about the loss of funky storefronts. And I can certainly see that a city has a vested interested in maintaining a particular look and feel. And I can see why people want new and interesting places to live/shop/eat/work. But an ordinance like San Fran's worries me. While it isn't going to limit the local cafe owner who wants to open two or three satellite locations, it does place restrictions on his ability to grow his business. Maybe San Fran can afford to be picky-choosey about what businesses it wants, but is this a good strategy for municipal health/growth?