Proposal hopes to use tax incentives to bring new grocery stores to parts of Stamford
The mayor's office says it supports the idea, while the Connecticut Food Association trade union has questions.
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A proposed ordinance, spearheaded by Stamford City Board of Representatives member Ryan Hughes, is hoping to bring more supermarkets to certain parts of the city by offering tax incentives.
Both Hughes and residents of Downtown, the South End and East Side say that since the Fairway in Harbor Point closed in 2020, there are really no convenient, full grocery stores nearby.
"We get home a little late, and the last thing we really want to do is take a 15-minute drive to go to a grocery store," said Chris Ciarleglio, who lives in Harbor Point.
"I just have to deal with the fact that I can't have a certain ingredient," added Paula Warncke, who also lives nearby.
Hughes proposes to do something that no other municipality in the state is doing at the moment - create something called an Urban Grocery Store Development District, which would allow the city to assess properties below market value, and then charge new grocery stores a lower tax rate.
"It's not going to be a large subsidy, but we're just saying as a city - 'We want to help you,'" Hughes explained. "It literally puts on the map showing potential retailers and developers where we want to incentivize, and where we need grocery stores."
In a statement, a spokesperson for Mayor Caroline Simmons says her office supports the idea, writing, "This new ordinance aims to provide limited financial support to grocery retailers so that there can be access to a grocer to residents living in areas of the city where there are less options within a close distance to their homes. Grocery retailers take many factors into consideration when determining which markets to enter, and while this tax abatement aims to support their efforts, these businesses will still need to make decisions based on long-term profitability. Therefore, we do not anticipate that the ordinance will disrupt current grocery providers in Stamford but rather add a small number of additional options for residents."
Still, Wayne Pesce, the president of the Connecticut Food Association - a trade union representing different parts of the industry - says he is skeptical the idea will work, with concerns less tied to competition, and more tied to the vetting process.
"Everything has to align for a brick-and-mortar retailer in the state of Connecticut to be successful," he said. "For the city to pick the wrong partner would be disastrous for taxpayers."
Pesce says the best way to avoid that disaster would be to make sure the tax incentives go to people with proven, local track records.
"If somebody is gonna put their finger on the scale, let's put our finger on the scale for somebody who understands the community."
Hughes hopes to have a final draft of the ordinance in the next few weeks. Then, depending on when a public hearing is held, the Board of Representatives could vote on it as soon as November.
Meanwhile, the real estate firm that runs the old Fairway building says on its website that it does have a lease out for a new grocer to take over a small section of the building.
