Bruce Variety is closing. But what circumstances and government policies lead to a successful and popular business closing?
I give my frank assessment in this video, as well as share some Bruce Variety and Bethesda memories.
Bruce Variety is closing. But what circumstances and government policies lead to a successful and popular business closing?
I give my frank assessment in this video, as well as share some Bruce Variety and Bethesda memories.
6 comments:
If they're closing as you say, why does the sign say they're moving?
I asked them about that when I called, but they did not have an immediate answer. It's certainly possible they could find a new location somewhere. All we know at the moment is that they are closing their current location, and what forced that action is the topic of my video.
I doubt they're moving considering they're liquidating the entire store.
I don't think we can force the owners to continue by petition if they don't want to.
Time to face reality: that land is way too valuable to be a one level strip mall surrounded by parking.
Strosniders and the other quaint shops are next.
Everyone is looking at Bruce's through rose colored glasses
You're exactly right, but the critical point is that the land only attained its maximum value when the new zoning was put into place.
Had the shopping center been ineligible for mixed-use redevelopment, it and the popular businesses within would have remained there as long as they continued to meet customers' needs.
But that scenario is not favored by developers. Hence, the politicians they fund use government power to manipulate the real estate market (via the new zoning code) for the private benefit of a few. That's not capitalism. It's not "progressive." And it's not right.
The central question for me is, was Bruce Variety failing on its own merits, and simply not viable as a business any longer? Or, was it forced out by higher rents after the shopping center became eligible for mixed-use redevelopment?
In the former case, the government and taxpayer are not responsible for keeping a failing business going. Let the market decide.
However, the latter case is squarely the fault of the county council and planning board. You can't plan by nostalgia. But you also can't have a functioning city without hardware stores, gas stations, auto dealerships, etc. That's just Planning 101, and MoCo is currently failing that course.
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