SURVEY: What Is Your Stance on the New Whole Foods Store in Boston?

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SURVEY: What Is Your Stance on the New Whole Foods Store in Boston?

March 2, 2011 by Julito Varela

Posted in Boston, Leadership | Tagged Boston, gentrification, Jamaica, JP, Latino, LATISM, Whole Foods | 12 Comments

12 Responses

on March 2, 2011 at 12:05 pm | Reply Kate

um…you really don’t think you’re going to get a valid sample like this, do you?
- on March 2, 2011 at 4:48 pm | Reply juliorvarela
  
  I can track URLs and am keeping track of those that come from JP. Also, the poll does not allow for repeat votes. It is a very valid method in my opinion.
on March 2, 2011 at 2:39 pm | Reply Dax

Hi Julio,

I have been following your coverage of the issue. While I don’t agree with you, I do appreciate how even handed you’ve been! Better than me, probably! Thanks for posting a poll.

Also, I started browsing around the rest of your blog. Very interesting!
- on March 2, 2011 at 4:45 pm | Reply juliorvarela
  
  Dax, thanks for those kind words. I have seen your comments as well on varying pages and have to say that you have keep a rational and level head on this. You provide some very good insight and you are more than welcome to write a guest blog here to share your views in a more open and unedited forum. I can host your blog if you are interested.
on March 2, 2011 at 3:33 pm | Reply hannonhomesjp

Yes I’m an evil Realtor in JP… but I wasn’t always and I live cheaply.. i live in 1200 square feet with my family of 4. I live around Forest Hills. I’ve lived in JP since 1985. I’m white. I’m from a working class background. I’m an ecologically minded person who learned to pick up trash (do my good deed for the day) as a 5 year old. I shop at Costco (i’m cheap and I think the company is one of the best to employees you can find – ask an employee and check out the CEO) I shop at trader joe’s and I shop at whole foods. (I only buy sale items.. I soak my own beans.. ) I try to stay away from packaged foods and I buy what’s in season. I loathe stop and shop, and any other mainstream store that sell food that I think is part of the reason we live in a culture with high ADD other neurological shortcomings.. I feel as though when I walk down the street between Hyde Square and Jackson, I’m not welcome. I grew up in Miami Florida, where people mingled far more than here. I don’t see this as “gentrification” I see this as a good anchor for a neighborhood to see more activity and interest. Whole Foods has a rap that far exceeds their reality. They are amazing employers, they contribute to the neighborhood. They aren’t as expensive as someone would think. It is far better than another empty store. Jamaica Plain is always changing.. I’ve seen it… I don’t think you are going to see properties being sold out from under loads of people because of whole foods. there are many improvements being planned between Jackson and Forest Hills. I’m on several committees working on those changes.. (new lighting, wider sidewalks etc) If I were a store owner in Hyde square or Jackson I would be thrilled. If anything should go in the neighborhood it’s Rent-a-center that’s no service… that’s a company that feeds on the poor…worse than a bookie, robs people.. why is that allowed?
- on March 2, 2011 at 4:47 pm | Reply juliorvarela
  
  Thanks for the comment!
on March 2, 2011 at 5:33 pm | Reply Ben Mauer

Hi there,

I have to say that I don’t believe a single question is a way to get a valid sample, and after reloading the page it appeared that I could vote again (though I did not).

The other issue I have with the survey is the wording of your post. It asks “What Is Your Stance on the New Whole Foods Store in Boston?” but what it should really ask is “What Is Your Stance on a New Whole Foods Store in Jamaica Plain.” I wouldn’t necessarily be against a Whole Foods store in other areas of Boston where there is not such a delicate balance of low-, moderate-, and affluent folks as well as a neighborhood clearly struggling to hold on to its cultural diversity.

Thanks though for your proactive response.

Ben
- on March 2, 2011 at 5:45 pm | Reply juliorvarela
  
  Hey, Ben
  
  Repeat votes are not not recorded since this is cookie and URL enabled. I plan to share results later tonight.
  
  Just because you reload doesn’t mean you can vote again. I have final results and actual URLS. I think the actual question works. You guys should do the same thing from your end.
  
  Peace,
  J
on March 2, 2011 at 10:44 pm | Reply Heather

First of all, the survey is flawed, as it does not offer an option for those who are undecided or have mixed feelings. I have attended the last 2 meetings with an open mind, wanting to hear the arguments for both sides. There has been some inflammatory rhetoric, which has only served to further the distance between the 2 sides and lessen the opportunity for dialogue. I left the Monday night meeting feeling deeply saddened and and frustrated by the divisiveness this issue has generated.
I think that all of the points made by the Whose Foods? People, the vast majority of attendees, ARE valid and cannot be ignored by those who want WF. If WF moves in, real estate prices WILL go up, and many low and moderate income people will be forced out. These are the same people who bring so much of the cultural diversity we value to our neighborhood. WF won’t START the gentrification of JP ( that’s already been happening ), but WILL ramp it up another notch. Traffic WILL increase in an area that’s already often congested. WF is a corporation, and JP has fought for decades to keep out chains and big box stores. It is a company that does not allow its employees to unionize. And while their 365 brand and bulk foods may be reasonably priced, the rest of what they sell is expensive. I am middle class and white , and I rarely shop at WF because I cannot afford to.
However, WF offers food that is healthy and nutritious, much of it organic. Their food is not highly processed and doesn’t contain the crap that contributes to illness and obesity. WF did not push its way in to JP. HiLo closed without notice, leaving employees suddenly unemployed. Knapp Foods offered the store for rent. WF is interviewing the HiLo employees and offering them training. HiLo was not a friend to the community, but WF could be. What I have NOT yet heard are the names of any locally- &/or Latino-owned businesses that might be able to take over the space and afford to pay the rent. Before working so hard against WF, maybe some viable alternatives should be proposed. Two things we don’t need in JP are another vacant store in Hyde Square or another dirty, poorly managed store like HiLo. Maybe some of the energy being used against WF could be used to make demands of WF and work with them.
I don’t think WF is the best option for the HiLo location and JP, but until I hear some realistic alternatives, I don’t feel like putting my energy into opposing it. I would rather take part in a community dialogue than a shouting match between the ‘good guys’ and the ‘bad guys.’
- on March 2, 2011 at 11:44 pm | Reply Julio Ricardo Varela
  
  Thanks, Heather. Am not claiming I am Rasmussen here. Just asked a simple question. Thanks. Hopefully the dialogue continues. You make good points.
on March 3, 2011 at 9:51 am | Reply Denise

Boy I miss my JP.
- on March 3, 2011 at 10:04 am | Reply Julio Ricardo Varela
  
  And JP misses you.