How will Fred Meyer fit into Palmer

Spectrum

by Michelle Church

Fred Meyer will soon appear at Palmer's front door. Actually, Fred Meyer will soon be Palmer's front door. The store will be located across the Glenn Highway from Carrs on the Palmer side and will take up the property between the Chevron station and the post office, including where the new Baptist church now stands. It will be what you see when you first enter the heart of the community. Although this newest Fred Meyer store will be smaller than the Wasilla store, it will be the biggest commercial building in Palmer. We wanted to take a look at the potential effects Fred Meyer will bring as Palmer's "first big box store."

On March 9, the Frontiersman ran a great front-page story on the community, "Palmer, AK -- A City Reborn." The article discussed growth within the city and how establishment of so many new small businesses was bringing a renewed reputation for Palmer as a shopping destination. Neal Fried from the state Department of Labor has been making the rounds describing the incredible growth happening everywhere in the Valley, particularly in the Palmer area. Palmer is now the second-fastest growing region. This helps to explain why the national chains are turning their attention to the Palmer side of things.

There is no doubt that Fred Meyer will change things in Palmer. But change can be a good thing if it's done thoughtfully and deliberately. A large retail store like Fred Meyer will bring added local employment opportunities. Fred's will bring local competition to the grocery market and competition is generally good for the consumer. If the store is integrated into the community correctly, it can serve as a draw to other businesses in town. The store is hoped to bring a boost to local sales tax revenue allowing the city to more adequately deal with increased government needs caused by a growing population. The increased tax revenue would be a source of funds available to build on the unique characteristics of Palmer that set it aside from other communities in the Valley, like street lighting, landscaping and other amenities that enhance the experience of being in Palmer.

The truth is Palmer is a unique community and that uniqueness is a valuable asset. Palmer has been described as a small town with a big view. There is a magical sense about Palmer because of that enormous mountain backdrop and yet the town itself has a very human scale to it. The city buildings are unpretentious with a historical air about them. Sidewalks are prevalent and people use them. That's one of the best things about Palmer, people walk here. They walk to work, they walk to lunch, and they walk to complete daily errands. There are lots of eye level windows making it an interesting experience. There is an unmistakable friendliness to a community that allows its public to come in contact with each other eye to eye on the streets. It creates the opportunity to say "Hi! Beautiful weather!" or, "Gee, nice wind." This community contact is important to Palmer.

So, the question becomes "How will Fred Meyer fit into Palmer?" National retail could be a great thing for the community or it could bring change that collides, and worse, erodes Palmer's character. There are questions that need to be asked and Fred Meyer representatives have indicated they are willing to listen to the community concerns. Fred's has promised some community open houses where community concerns can be expressed and hopefully integrated into the design strategies of the store's exterior layout. Some of the questions Friends of Mat-Su will be asking include: How will the traffic issues be addressed? It is our understanding that Cobb Street will be the main access to the store with a secondary access off Evergreen. Traffic on these streets is already heavy because of the post office and banking facilities. We worry that Cobb Street may become an impassable corridor clogged with cars making pedestrian traffic less inviting. If you need a car to safely get to and from Fred Meyer, it will create an artificial barrier within Palmer, similar to the one that exists between Carrs and the rest of the city. The traffic jam will make walking less desirable or even impossible. This will lessen the likelihood of a flow of commerce into town. There needs to be some way to ensure continued safe pedestrian access. We will ask what the signage will be like. Will the standard boxy tall sign bearing Fred Meyer's name block the mountain view? A sign sitting on the ground, called a monument sign, would be so much more respectful of the recently acquired Scenic Byway designation of the Glenn Highway. This designation is a marketable asset for tourism in Palmer and should be a serious consideration in the developments along the roadway. And the recent winds certainly demonstrated another good reason to keep signs low to the ground. We will ask about lighting. Can the lights needed for safe operation of the store be "directional lights" so that the northern lights can still be visible within the city limits? Because of the relative small size of the property and the central location of this store, we will ask how the loading areas will be visually buffered. And we will ask if there will be substantial landscaping and will the landscaping be maintained, something that has not been done well at the Wasilla store.

We encourage everyone to watch for notices of the open houses. They will be held at the Palmer Depot probably in early May. Attend these open houses and give Fred Meyer's representatives your input. Let them know they are welcome in Palmer and let them know that Palmer should benefit from their locating here as much as Fred Meyer will benefit from Palmer's patronage.

Michelle Church is the executive director of Friends of Mat-Su, a local community planning organization. She can be reached at 746-0130.