Erin Redding

Professor Marx

English 134

December 5, 2004

Keep San Luis Obispo Unique!

When I began looking at colleges two years ago, I was attracted to Cal Poly in large part due to San Luis Obispo’s unique small town charm. The downtown area boasts distinctive shops and restaurants, a treat for any visitor. This is coupled with majestic mountains and lush agricultural land to create a stunning city contrasting in size and facade to other California cities such as San Francisco and Santa Maria. I recall mentioning to my future roommate over the summer that I hoped San Luis Obispo would never become too developed.

Last week as I drove down 101 towards the site of the proposed Dalidio Marketplace, I tried to picture how the Marketplace would change the overall impression of the town. Currently the area, located directly off the freeway, holds a few major retailers including Mervyn’s, Bed Bath and Beyond and Sears. This development is well balanced by lush greenery and fertile farmland that San Luis Obispo is well known for.

Despite the excellent impressions of the current appearance of the Dalidio farm from my first visit, I was not truly convinced of the genuine beauty of the landscape until my second visit. The rows of lettuce and cabbage provide striking evidence of San Luis Obispo’s exceptional agricultural economy. This economy is what draws thousands of visitors to the city for events such as Farmers Market.

My thoughts quickly shifted to how this picturesque landscape could be destroyed if the project were allowed to develop. The proposed Dalidio Marketplace located off of Madonna Road adjacent to the SLO Promenade would ruin the distinctive appeal of the city, much as similar projects have done in other small towns.

Currently the site is comprised of one hundred and thirty one acres of rich farmland. The Dalidio family has been farming this land since the early 1900s and since then the farm has been passed down from generation to generation within the family. However, in the last decade the land has become increasingly more difficult to acquire profits from and neighbors have been complaining about noise from farm machinery and use of pesticides.

In 1992 Ernie Dalidio wanted to stop farming on the land and joined forces with William L. Bird, creator of the Central Coast Plaza, adjacent to the farmland. Their proposed project would create a 650,000 square foot shopping paradise, housing retailers such as Tilly’s, Target, Circuit City, Lowe’s, Old Navy and TJ Max. (Griffy, Laura. Voters Will Decide the Fate of Marketplace on April 26. The Tribune. 18 Nov. 2004) Since its initial proposal, the project has received attention from the local media as well as debate from local residents. Fourteen years later, the issue still stands as to what is more important, more sales tax revenue for the city or preserving San Luis Obispo’s exceptional agricultural market.

The developers state many reasons why the Marketplace would be beneficial to the city, most prominent of which would be increased revenue and more choices for consumers. The site could offer two million dollars a year in sales tax for the city. Additionally, through the project the city would receive a desired freeway overpass at Highway 101 and Madonna Road. (http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/whybad.htm) As Bill Bird stated on the issue of the over pass, "The overpass benefits the city. It is something the city desperately needs, and it’s been on their transportation plan for years. They haven’t had the money to do it, so they made it a requirement of our project." (http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/field.htm)

The adversaries offer a list of rebuttals to these arguments. The development of the Dalidio Marketplace would inevitably lead to traffic gridlock along Highway 101 and Madonna Road. An overpass would only create more problems for the city. Not only would the overpass be harmful in terms of aesthetics and traffic, it would end up costing taxpayers . The developers would be required to pay its construction initially, but would be reimbursed with half the sales tax from the Marketplace for the next thirty years. This would total to about $750,000 a year and twenty two million dollars in all. (http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/christine.htm) This is tax money that could be better spent on police and fire departments, improving city streets, youth sports programs and protecting the local environment. The developers’ claim that the proposed Marketplace would bring increased revenue to the city is illogical considering that the sales taxes that would benefit the city are instead being used to reimburse these multimillionaires.

The opponents are able to give additional credible arguments of their own in opposition to the planned development. One argument against the marketplace is the threat it poses to San Luis Obispo’s quality downtown district. The size of the proposed project would equal the size of the downtown-shopping district. Two recent studies, one paid for by the Marketplace developer and one paid for by Downtown businesses, “show the Marketplace will cause significant, irreparable economic and social harm to the Downtown.” (http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/whybad.htm). These businesses are what make San Luis Obispo unique and what keep visitors coming back. As Mission Real Estate owner Frank Dufault stated “You drive through Bakersfield, Fresno, Tulare- they all look alike. San Luis Obispo is one of the top five most livable cities in the country because of our wonderful, unique downtown. For me, downtown is what SLO is.” Furthermore, the citizens of San Luis Obispo deserve the success of their businesses far more than a few multimillionaires, particularly William Bird who already makes more than enough money to live off of from the successful Central Coast Plaza as well as other investments.

Ernie Dalidio countered this position in a recent Tribune ad stating that “the stores coming to the Marketplace do not compete with the Downtown experience.” Furthermore, he believes that all shopping areas in San Luis Obispo will benefit from his development.

However, it is the small businesses that benefit the local economy most dramatically. According to http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/viewpoints.htm, one study shows that a Target provides one hundred and seventy seven new jobs while taking away one hundred and forty eight existing jobs from small businesses. It is the small businesses that provide better income and work environments for their employees. Small businesses are also far more likely to stay in town throughout difficult economic times when big box stores will close up and move to more profitable areas.

The opponents are able to offer a solution for shoppers wanting better choices. Other locations for the big box stores would allow the city to keep all the sales tax revenue, decrease the gridlock at Madonna Road and preserve the quality agricultural land. According to city councilwoman Christine Molholland, LOVR commercial center already hosts big box retailers and has room for more. There is already an overpass at this location and the city would receive one hundred percent of the sales tax from any future businesses. There are already plans for a Home Depot and Costco in the shopping center. These retailers alone are expected to bring the city $750,000 in revenue, the same amount as the city would get from the overpass deal with Bird. However, these developers are not getting any deals from the city. (http://www.savesanluisobispo.org/ christine.htm)

In all, there is no need for the Dalidio Marketplace and its development will only initiate the destruction of San Luis Obispo’s most treasured features. Voters will have the chance to decide on April 26 through a traditional election on the issue. Voters will be able to vote on three questions; to accept or reject the changes to the Master Plan that have allowed the project to move forward, to approve zoning permits given to the developers, and to approve or reject the tax deal with Bill Bird concerning the freeway overpass. (Griffy, Laura. Voters Will Decide the Fate of Marketplace on April 26. The Tribune. 18 Nov. 2004) In order to keep visitors coming and preserve the matchless appeal of the city, San Luis Obispo must vote next April to stop the Marketplace from being built on Madonna Road.