Petco signed a lease with the owner of 745 South Street in Roslindale Village and is slated to begin construction in February 2015 and open for business in April 2015.
On December 2, 2014 Roslindale residents and local Roslindale Village business owners will meet to oppose the opening of a Petco store in Roslindale Village.
We, the undersigned, call upon James Myers, CEO of Petco, to listen to the residents and business owners of Roslindale and not open a Petco store in Roslindale Village for the following reasons:
- A Petco store in the Village, like most large chains, would likely be able to drive out of business the three nearby locally owned pet product and service stores such as the Pet Cabaret, that are located within one mile of the proposed Petco location that try to compete with it.
- “Mom and Pop” shops, like the Pet Cabaret, are much better for our local economy than national chains. Local shops inject three times the money into the local economy compared to a chain like Petco. A well regarded study showed that 45% of the money spent in locally owned stores stays in the local community but only 15% of the money spent in national stores remains in the community. This disparity can result in a net decrease in local economic activity when sales at a chain store replace sales at a local shop, even if total sales increase.
- Roslindale Village is a unique destination because of our small, locally owned businesses. Petco does not fit in Roslindale Village.
- There are already six Petco stores within 5 miles of the Village – we don’t need another.
- Locating a Petco store in Roslindale Village will cause traffic problems. Because there is no parking in front of the building, customers and drivers will park illegally on South Street causing traffic jams and accidents. Trucks will have to unload on a regular basis on South Street, a major thoroughfare. This will snarl traffic and make walking on the sidewalk unsafe.
Ed. Note: Picture credit - Mike Mozart via Flickr, CC 2.0
