Chicago aldermen considering new restrictions on where dollar stores can be built

An ordinance restricting where dollar stores can be built in Chicago got delayed when it came up for debate Wednesday in the City Council.

The legislation would prohibit operators from adding new “small-box retailers” within a mile of dollar stores they own. It would also require new stores to display placards with maintenance and emergency information.

The crackdown is an effort to rein in the harmful effects dollar stores have on food access in poor neighborhoods while pushing operators to better maintain the stores, according to sponsor Ald. Matt O’Shea, 19th.

Facing maneuvers by opponents to block an expected Wednesday vote, O’Shea instead tabled the ordinance himself. Aldermen could take an up-or-down vote on the plan at a newly scheduled council meeting Jan. 31.

The bargain stores undercut and push away more holistic grocers and mar neighborhoods with poor maintenance, O’Shea argued at a Monday meeting of the council’s License & Consumer Protection Committee.

“This is a real problem citywide, and it’s especially a problem in underserved communities,” he said.

The proposal targets medium-size stores that typically charge less than $5 for goods. It makes a number of exceptions to narrowly focus on dollar stores, including passes for pharmacies, gas stations and specialty food stores. It also includes exceptions for so-called “small-box retailers” that dedicate at least 10% of their floor space to fresh foods like meat, seafood and produce.

Dollar General representatives have already agreed to adding the healthier food options for the exemption, while other companies are considering it, O’Shea said. Dollar Tree, Dollar General and Family Dollar have 150 locations across Chicago, he added.

“This is not a struggling small business barely making ends meet,” the Southwest Side alderman said. “This is a Fortune 200 company that has demonstrated absolutely no interest in being a good neighbor or being responsible to local government.”

While most members of the committee voted in favor of the ordinance Monday, several opposed it. Some aldermen argued the company has recently worked to address concerns, as lawyers and spokespeople representing Family Dollar and Dollar Tree sat in the back of the council chambers.

Ald. Silvana Tabares, 23rd, was one of 47 aldermen who earlier sponsored the ordinance, but removed her support after meeting with Dollar Tree representatives, she said.

And Tabares pointed out no dollar store representatives were invited to testify in front of the committee. “This panel is very one-sided,” she said.

The restrictions preventing new dollar stores from opening would make it harder for people in low-income neighborhoods to get essentials like diapers, soap and canned goods, Tabares said. She called on O’Shea to delay passing the measure and work more closely with the companies.

“This seems like an overreach, to cast such a wide net for the whole entire city of Chicago, especially noting that these types of stores are more relied upon in some parts of the city,” Tabares said.

The criticism from Tabares and others drew a harsh response from O’Shea, who said he wouldn’t hold the ordinance and had tried for years to reach out to dollar store companies for collaboration, but had long gotten no response.

“I’ve heard more progress from dollar stores since I’ve been in this room the last three hours than I did the last four months,” O’Shea said.

For much of the hearing, aldermen from across the city shared stories criticizing dollar stores for attracting crime and leaving communities stuck with low quality goods.

When Ald. Jeanette Taylor’s two daughters worked at a Family Dollar in 2021, they were robbed at gunpoint three times, she said. She blamed the recurrence on the company’s lack of a relationship with authorities.

“They are the worst ever. I wouldn’t trust them to serve me a fruit, a vegetable or nothing else because their stores are filthy,” the 20th Ward alderman said.

Ald. Michelle Harris, 8th, said she sees Family Dollar “as what they are,” adding that the stores provide valuable products some residents want. However, her Far South Side ward is “saturated” with the cut-rate shops, she added.

“You haven’t shown me you can take care of what you already have and you’re opening up more,” she said. “Any business that wants to come to the 8th Ward should feel welcome to be there. But I feel you also have to be welcome to do your part, so that I don’t have to walk across the trash.”

Ald. Ronnie Mosley, 21st, has fond memories of shopping at dollar stores with his grandmother because of their affordability, he said. However, he now sees the stores’ quality dwindling, he added.

“The problems are never fixed,” he said, citing trash, break-ins and expired beverages. “We owe it to our residents to have a standard.”

Dollar Tree and Family Dollar representatives said they are working to upgrade and repair stores, with $1.5 million spent since October and a new hiring push. They called for the council to rescind the proposed ordinance in a statement shared by spokesperson Natalie Bauer Luce.

“If passed, this ordinance will make it harder for dollar stores to operate, and it will limit one of the few low-cost, high-value options for essential household goods and force residents to travel further and likely pay higher prices,” Bauer Luce wrote.

jsheridan@chicagotribune.com

Originally Published: Jan 24, 2024 at 10:00 am