The New York Times had an interesting article this weekend on how Target apparently spent the last 10 years trying to get on the better side of East Harlem. Along with the requisite local philanthropy, there was the Target sponsored free Sundays at the Studio Museum in Harlem, gala dinner events and opening alongside Harlem specific line launches by local celebrities. Was this "wooing" or bribery as some in the article suggest?: LINKWe are kind of thinking that the store just has an overall better perceived value than many of the affordable retailers out there. The commercials are always creative and on point but when you walk the floors, the interior still feel like any other suburban big box retailer. The perception of having better product with the designer lines are also key and that shuttle bus probably won a lot of folks over (even though a lot of people are still waiting for that west-to-east shuttle).
When dropping by a couple of Sundays ago, there was heavy traffic to be found both by pedestrians and folks getting out of the parking garage. Whatever they did, Target might be the formula to follow for all those other big box brands to make there way into Harlem. Photo by Ulysses
Give me a break. These are common knowledge NIMBY installations. None of you want a big box on YOUR block and you know it. You want it 5 blocks away though no doubt. Well heeled communities have the political clout to stop them from coming in and thousands of communities have ordinances preventing them from coming in. There's even a website with an action plan to help communities fight big box, documenting the myriad of negative fall out.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bigboxtoolkit.com/
There's lots of diversion out there, discussion that boils down to diversion arguing for big box retail. It's not that complex. When well heeled communities actually fight and manipulate to get big box to come to their door steps, like they might for green spaces & parks, wake me. Don't hold your breath.
Certain communities simply lack the where-with-all to fight, lack the resources, the connections, and East Harlem is one of them, so they get DUMPED on, Car Dealerships, Big Box, crap no one wants next to them. These communities are "easy prey" for big box and all the commercial NIMBY out there well heeled communities would never allow.
They kinda blew it for me with their funding of an uber right wing candidate in the Midwest. It was so outrageous I looked it up on Snopes to be sure it wasn't a hoax but nope. They done did it.
ReplyDeleteIs something like the Target/Mall development a desirable feature to have on your block? There was an apartment I looked at a few years back on 416 East 117th (Pleasant Ave & 1st) and I wonder how these guys feel having the mall right at the end of the street. Part of me thinks the convenience is a great thing, but do the negatives outweigh the benefits?
ReplyDelete@Chris: That neighorhood is pretty darn desolate so I don't see it being that big of a problem.
ReplyDeleteBTW, if folks want to KEEP the shuttle bus pictured above running E-Mail or call Target. They plan to discontinue it at the end of the month unless they have a reason to do otherwise.
I was going to make the same comment about the shuttle bus. I was told yesterday on my ride back to 116th and Lex that they are discontinuing it after this coming weekend. Getting to Target from my part of Harlem takes forever. The shuttle made is so much easier.
ReplyDeleteHuge mistake canceling the shuttle bus. It has been consistently full on the occasions I have used it. If anything, I wish they would drive across 125th to Lenox and down to 116th.
ReplyDeleteWhile Target has long held a better reputation than most big-box suburban retailers, they are paving the way for the likes of Wal-Mart to set up shop. I pray (and I don't pray) that Wal-Mart self-implodes before it sets up in any of the 5.
ReplyDeleteIt disgusts me to think of the number of mom and pop shops that will close because of Target's opening uptown. And on top of that, they support for the radical right-winger in the Midwest is incredibly disconcerting.
If the suburbanization of Manhattan continues, it will be a sad mark on this City's storied history.
JCL: Do you happen to prefer buying your shampoo in bodegas? No?
ReplyDeleteIf people in general prefer to shop at Target, it will be successful. If people instead prefer to go to the little shops on the corner -- and to pay extra for that convenience -- then they will remain successful and Target will suffer.
I fail to see how public benefit can be derived from policy actions that are literally intended to block consumers from acting upon their real preferences. Especially when such actions would also deprive them of access to more competitive pricing. At this point, any factors that help to ease the strain on individual household budgets should be welcome, and they will also have a net positive effect in the broader local economy (by lowering the cost of living, the level of expendable income is effectively increased).
Shielding a handful of "mom and pops" from the vicissitudes of market forces and competition strikes me as a rather dubious priority for public policy -- especially when such protection would have to come (literally) at the expense of everyone else.
cmb: if you live West of there, you might as well go to the Target in Marble Hill (first stop on the 1 in the Bronx)... it's great, always well stocked, and 1 block from the train. There is also a Marshall's right next door.
ReplyDeleteOr... if you live near 145th Street, you can take the BX19 right over the bridge to the Target there. The complex also has a Home Depot and several other big stores... but it's a slightly longer schlep from the bus stop.