Eric Drobny
Professor Marx
English 134
December 3 2004
Giving Up Society
I exited US Highway 101 South at Madonna Road, squinting into the sun through the windshield of a friends borrowed truck. As I neared the Central Coast Plaza that includes Staples, Bed Bath & Beyond and other retailers, I wondered what was to become of the Dalidio farmland, just south of the shopping center. 130acres of farmland sit just ten yards from the center, separated only by the newly paved Dalidio Road. I thought about how neat it is that we can have agriculture in such close proximity to large scale retail and both can prosper. I parked the truck in the plaza parking lot and strolled across the street to get a sense of the farmland. Rows and rows of cabbage lay in front of me, with tractors scattered, idle in the fields after a hard day of work. A slight breeze accompanied the warm, late afternoon sun. Sunlight leaked through the lines of eucalyptus trees on my right, and it looked as if the sun were meant to shine on these crops for years to come. A dirt path surrounds each field, making a perfect trail for me to saunter on. Just next to Highway 101, the Dalidio farmland paints a beautiful picture of the central coast of California. Despite my positive feelings and the serene look of this agricultural land, the future of the Dalidio farmland is being threatened. On April 26, 2005, voters will decide whether or not a 650,000 square foot shopping center will replace the Dalidio farmland. My spirits were crushed when I realized that this area could soon be destroyed by an enormous retail center. An additional shopping center of this size will ruin the unique economic structure of San Luis Obispo, while also slowly dissolving the cityÕs small town feel. Small business will suffer the loss ; the citizens will lose tax dollars, and the economy of the city of San Luis Obispo will suffer greatly in the future.
Ernie Dalidio, a wealthy farmer and owner of the currently disputed agricultural land, decided over a decade ago that it was time to quit cultivating on this plot of land. At the time, he was farming another parcel of land near Cayucos, California and had his hands full. Retail was rapidly replacing formerly cultivated land all around him, so he felt inclined to do the same. He hired Bill Bird, a local developer and businessman, who had developed the neighboring Central Coast Plaza. Bird and Dalidio were ready to sign the papers that would authorize construction of the project, however Bird had other problems. A lawsuit had recently been filed against him regarding his development of the Central Coast Plaza. He owed thousands of dollars in back taxes, and had neglected to pay them. The following ten-year period was plagued by lawsuits and large-scale money disputes, delaying the construction of the development. The city left it up to Bird and Dalidio to resolve the problems; they ended up waiting over a decade before finally approving the development on July 6 of this year. However, citizens have succeeded in gathering enough signatures on petitions to schedule an election to decide whether or not to overturn the CouncilÕs decision. A special April 26 election will decide whether or not a shopping center including stores such as Target, Circuit City and Old Navy will be built[1].
With Bird and Dalidio up to their necks in economic troubles over getting the Òsuper centerÓ built, the city is also suffering. With CaliforniaÕs current budget crisis affecting San Luis Obispo, the city is desperate for a quick source of revenue, but the proposed 41-acre shopping center is not a good long-term solution. The City Council made the decision to allow the shopping center based on the sales tax revenue that can be gained quickly, rather than long-term stability of the economy. Big-box retailers like Wal-Mart and Target, possibilities for the shopping center, generally are solid five to fifteen-year investments. However, the city has agreed to give back one half of the sales tax profits generated from the new project to the developer for a minimum of thirty years. Even if the shopping center lasts 30 years, money will be earned at a slow rate because half of the revenue will be lost to the developer. The projected amount of sales tax revenue will be about $750,000 for the first year. Costco and Home Depot, both located in the Central Coast Plaza, generate about the same amount every year, but their developers donÕt get the benefits. Economic progress for the city of San Luis Obispo is not getting a big-box retailer like Target or Wal-Mart, but instead investing in locally owned businesses that will last twice as long. Small businesses offer stability for the economy in the long term, whereas large-scale retail provides adequate sales tax revenue for a shorter amount of time.
All across the United States, nation-wide chains continue to appear in small towns, stripping away the unique aspects of each town. This results in the elimination of family owned stores, which are popular in the downtown areas of places like San Luis Obispo. Today, downtown is the most popular site for shoppers, but with another shopping center being planned for the Dalidio farmland, the big-box retailers would take away revenue from the downtown area. Downtown is an area where a wide variety of shopping can be done, while at the same time getting the small town feel of the city. In the few times that I have been to the downtown area, I noticed young people, the elderly and families coming together in harmony to complete the aura of a small town that San Luis Obispo gives off. At a large-scale shopping center like the one that is being planned for the Dalidio farmland, the small town feel is lost and the soul of the city is stripped.
While large-scale retailers take away from the quaint, small town feel in places like San Luis Obispo, they also tend to cause strife in other ways. If the marketplace is indeed built, an overpass will be constructedat Prado Road, in order to decongest traffic to the shopping center. Bird is willing to provide 70% of the money for the construction of the overpass, in return for half the sales tax generated by the marketplace over the next thirty years. The overpass is not a practical project for the city and with other things needing attention, it is a waste of money. The Los Osos Valley Road (LOVR) Overpass is a project that others suggest should be given attention. Enlarging this overpass would also decrease traffic problems. ÒThe city has placed itself in a very dangerous position as it relates to the development agreement and the long-term financial commitments of the Prado Road overpass[2],Ó says David Booker, the Founding Director of the First Bank of San Luis Obispo Bank.
The Prado Road overpass is one of the many reasons why both the general population and those with power in the city oppose the Dalidio Marketplace. Christine Mullholland, a recently re-elected member of the San Luis Obispo City Council, is strongly against the development of the shopping center. Last summer, when the Council voted to approve or disapprove the development, she was the only member to oppose it. She believes that the bigger the project, the bigger the costs will be for the city. More importantly, the citizens will have to pay for the project through taxes. In her document on the http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/ website, Mullholland gives facts about the economic disadvantages of putting an enormous shopping center in the city[3]. There has never been a project in San Luis Obispo with infrastructure costs so high and she believes that the citizens should not have to pay for it. Because they have agreed to give back half of the sales tax revenue for 30 years, the city will be forced to make a long-term investment. She also believes that the city should be focusing on other projects that will generate money for the future, such as the LOVR overpass. Mulholland presents a valid argument for the economic well being of the city of San Luis Obispo. MullhollandÕs prominence in society as a city council member provides further support for keeping DalidioÕs land for agriculture.
Gazing across the fields of Ernie DalidioÕs crops, I thought about everything I had read, seen and heard regarding the proposed shopping center. As Chris Kenton said in a recent article in Business Week about the destruction of Santa Maria, Òwe are, in the end, giving up a society in favor of our economy. When every decision is dictated by the most immediate profit opportunity, it makes sense to tear down a city in order to build a mall[4].Ó Agriculture is an integral part of not only San Luis Obispo, but all of California. I slowly walked back towards the truck after the sun had set, picking up a few pieces of scattered trash, that had no doubt come from the nearby Central Coast Plaza. As I drove away, I noticed one of the fields devoid of crops, wondering if it would be rich with agriculture ever again.
[1] Field
Of Dreams, New Times, April 4, 2002 (reprinted on http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/field.htm)
Ð whole paragraph referenced