Arlington denies planned Dollar General amid debate on limiting such stores in city
The Arlington City Council unanimously rejected a development proposal Tuesday to build a Dollar General in north Arlington.
The store was proposed for an empty lot at 2500 Ballpark Way with a Walgreens down the street and a Kroger about a 12-minute walk away.
The developer can bring the proposal back to the City Council as many times as he would like, but council members hinted earlier in the day that they couldn’t see themselves approving the development.
During a work session earlier in the day, council member Andrew Piel expressed concerns about how the Dollar General would look in the area. He questioned the degree to which the city could dictate architecture, branding and signage. City officials told the council they could consider adding requirements in those areas, though branding would be difficult.
City officials cannot require a business to change its branding, such as the yellow sign with “Dollar General” in bold black letters, entirely, but it could build specifications that might help the store blend with other establishments.
Piel and other council members hinted they would vote against the Dollar General and even suggested zoning changes to prevent the store from coming to the neighborhood. Council members did express in an earlier work session concerns about whether Dollar General could sue the city for denying the store since zoning allows for such businesses in that area.
City officials told the council they could not deny the store zoning rights but could deny a development plan to construct the store, because it would not be going into an existing structure. City Attorney Teris Solis said the council would have to closely listen to the applicant’s proposal and make the decision based on the development plan instead of making the decision based on the fact that it is a variety store.
Concerns about ‘variety stores’
During the work session, the council expressed concerns about variety stores like Dollar General coming to the city. They said they were worried about the creation of food deserts and the effect on property values.
Council member Helen Moise, in whose district the Dollar General would have been, said she worried that the competition from the stores might scare off competitors that offer healthier food options.
Council member Raul Gonzalez said variety stores can serve a good purpose in communities, especially those where many residents don’t have cars or can’t drive and have to walk to get groceries. He said there may be a need for these stores.
Piel said too many of these establishments could cause potential homebuyers to look at other cities. Older houses that homebuyers might consider buying and fixing up need to be close by a grocery store, he said.
“Nobody wants to buy an old Arlington house and pay to fix it up,” when they don’t have good grocery stores nearby, Piel said.
This story was originally published December 8, 2021 at 9:43 AM.