Lincolnite

I think Hy-Vee is operating as a for-profit business. If those council members feel that strongly about providing a grocery store for that neighborhood, they should open one. Otherwise, it just looks like their typical petty politics to me.

I agree with meatball. It’s a business decision to move to a bigger, better location - and if you hold the lease, why knowingly put another competitor in to hurt your new store? I have to drive nearly two miles to get groceries, and it doesn’t kill me. It seems like petty pandering politics. I sympathize to some degree, but I don’t think it’s HyVee’s responsibility - after all, they’ve been doing the servicing of that neighborhood. Should we also be mad at Russ’s that they don’t have a store nearby already?

I just checked the state Constitution, and there’s an article in there that says all citizens of the state are entitled to a grocery store within walking distance of their residence.  So Emery is just defending the Constitution. 

But seriously, this is supremely idiotic, even for the Lincoln City Council.

I wonder if the people (like ‘jmk’, the first LJS commentor) who destroy Eschliman and Camp for playing petty politics are going to do the same to Emery, Spatz, and Cook.  My guess is no.

I actually don’t mind driving a little farther to get groceries. I have a Super Saver four blocks away but they rarely get my business.

I don’t blame Hy Vee for wanting to be in the middle of a growing area of town. I’m not sure that grocery stores do all that well in the middle of Uni Place. There was a Hinky Dinky in that neighborhood that went under a while back also.

There are those who don’t drive and a couple of miles further is a big deal.  The UNI place has a large group of folks who use public transportation and chose their place of residence because of a nearby grocery store and other services.

They could use Ideal grocery, and order online and have it delivered, if transportation is the only problem.

I (insert adult innuendo here) love Ideal.
I get my specialties and meat from them (besides Hollenbeck, then I head to another major chain for everything else.

I am kinda perplexed why they would close the 48th and leighton location.  It is the ghetto Russ’s of east campus and Wesylean.

Still I think it was very petty what the CC did.

Ideal is great and Leon’s isn’t bad.  But the point is that if you can’t afford to own a car Ideal is not in your price range.  I don’t blame HyVee for moving their store to the area where they can make the most money.  It is just going to be difficult for many of the lower income folks who live in that neighborhood to get to a decent reasonably priced store.  Anyone here ever hauled their groceries on a city bus?

Hy-Vee is closing the 48th and Leighton for several reasons (too small for their current idea on what constitutes a good store, it’s in a flood plain, it’s not feasible to expand there, etc.). The 84th and Holdrege location is supposed to be a replacement, but it’s so far away, that it’s not a good option for those of us who live in UNI.

I don’t know why it’d be so bad for them to let another grocery store move into the 48th and Leighton location - it’s far enough away from any other HyVee store that I don’t see it providing much competition, and the 84th and Holdrege store has all those people to draw from on the east side of town.

Except for Moses, all of you seem to have very little compassion for the poor and elderly in Uni Place. I don’t think it was petty for the CC to make a statement - I think it’s petty for Hy-Vee to keep a grocery store out of my neighborhood for 6 years (there isn’t much for an alternative location other than the strip mall at 48th and Leighton).

<em>The 84th and Holdrege location is supposed to be a replacement, but it

I do have compassion for the poor and elderly in Uni Place. But there are poor and elderly throughout Lincoln. I don’t see it as the CC’s job to ensure a grocery store within X number of blocks of each of their homes.

It’s interesting to me that this comes the same week as the story about how tax revenue is down, due largely to reduced car sales and reduced new construction/development. So what do Emery, Cook & Spatz do? They send a nice thank you to Hy-Vee (who is investing millions in two brand new stores) in the form of this petty vote, which is nothing more than a PR ploy for them to use at reelection time.

At the risk of sounding like I have no compassion, let’s point out some other things. As Mr. Wilson said, there’s a replacement store coming to 50th and O. There’s already a dandy Super Saver at 48th and O. The neighboring communities could not or did not support the EconoFoods that was at 48th and R (now Best Buy), or the Albertson’s that was at 48th and Vine (was another grocery after Albertson’s, is now Kelly’s Carpet or something).

I don’t think it’s the CC’s job to put groceries or anything else within walking distance of all Lincolnites. I don’t think it’s HyVee’s duty to allow another grocery tenant in their old space. Would it be nice of them to do so? Sure! Do they owe it to anyone? No, I don’t think so.

I pointed out Ideal as an option not from monetary reasons, but as a solution to the “I don’t have a car and can’t get there” argument. People always have options, even if they don’t like them.

Actually, when you talk with Hy-Vee, they consider 84th and Holdrege the replacement. The staff at 48th and Leighton is being transferred there, and the UNI store closes when the 84th/Holdrege one opens. The 50th and O street store is a replacement for the 70th and O store.

I just get tired of the bigger is better, let’s drive everywhere to get stuff and put on our roller skates to get through the store mindset. I also enjoy our “small town” neighborhoods such as UNI and Havelock and it’ll be sad if they disintegrate.

Sure, Hy-Vee has no obligation whatsoever to look after any of our neighborhoods or care about anything other than bottom dollar. But to deny a grocery store at 48th and Leighton for 6 years when it doesn’t pose a real threat to their business elsewhere?

6 years does seem excessively protective and unnecessary, especially when the 48th & Leighton location can’t be expanded to be much of a threat to the huge new stores being built. Would’ve been nice for someone at Hy-Vee to have a little heart and care about the neighborhood they’re leaving. But no one seems to care (I gotta drive miles for groceries, so should everybody else!). Everyone for themselves!

Will the larger store on 84th mean more opportunities for Hy-Vee to trick us into buying an item that seems to be on sale, according to the sign right in front of it, but really isn’t? If your going to put 8 count Hy-Vee tortillas on sale, why put them in the back behind stacks of 10 count tortillas (the package of which looks exactly the same)that aren’t on sale. Or is it just a question of poor merchandising and pricing errors on the part of an employee? Cheaters.

I work for Hy-Vee and helped set up the new store they are building at 84th and Holdrege for a few days. The store will indeed be much bigger than the old one, and imo worth the extra drive to get there.

I was unaware that they were planning on holding the lease at the other location but it does seem like prudent business tactics - I doubt we are the only ones who would do this.

I live in Omaha and drive 2 miles to the nearest grocery store (which is also the place I work, Hy-Vee) and it probably takes 3 minutes to get there and costs $1.00 in gas. I honestly don’t see the huge deal here.