A new era for Minonk

With the coming of the huge shopping centers in Bloomington and elsewhere, small towns like Minonk are fortunate to have one grocery store. Shopping malls and a mobile population spelled trouble for those small stores. The small stores that survive the best are the one's that specialize and do not have to compete with Walmart. That is why antique stores and specialty stores continue to exist. They don't deal in necessities, just in specialty items that we are interested in.

The opening of Just Stuff, the new antique mall in the former Brackney building, appeals to the specialty consumer. People don't mind driving to Minonk to look for an antique or collectable. It's like being on a fun trip. Comparative pricing is not practiced as often for these type of items. Unlike buying toothpaste, buying antiques involves emotional motives rather than rational motives.

It is my opinion that it makes sense for the city fathers to encourage the downtown business owners to restore their storefronts to their original facade so as to project the old fashioned nostalgic feeling that antique buyers revere. Shoppers coming to the new antique mall will want to dine in a quaint or old fashioned type restaurant or maybe just walk downtown and enjoy the ambience of an old fashioned town. In the process, they may just stop and buy some groceries, flowers, or candy or whatever else they might need.

The point I wish to make is that if downtown Minonk can be restored to its original granduer, I believe that people will come to Minonk to shop because it will be a pleasant place to visit. Let's face it, shopping is an emotional experience regardless of what you buy. People may decide to come to Dollar General in Minonk to make a purchase instead of running to Walmart simply because it is a more pleasant experience than battling the traffic in Bloomington, not to mention the time and expense for the travel.

Speaking of the new Dollar General store, people have told me that their prices are comparable to and in some cases cheaper than Walmart. This should definitely draw people from the other small communities.

In my opinion, as Bloomington becomes larger and more crowded, more people will be willing to buy locally. One thing we have to accept is that we may pay a few cents more buying locally. Sooner or later we have to recognize that the higher price we pay for toothpaste in Minonk is offset by the fact that we live in a crime free, pollution free, traffic jam free community with a good school system and reasonable property taxes. The more we spend locally the better community we will have to live in.

Some people think that many of the items sold by Dollar General will hurt the sales to the local grocery store, Minonk Foods. This may be true to some degree because Dollar General does sell some can goods, beverages and chips, although many of the items may not be name brands. However, I feel that the increased shopping created by Dollar General will cause more shoppers to stop at Minonk Foods as well.

My advice to Minonk Foods is to concentrate on having a high quality meat and fresh produce market, items not sold by Dollar General. I also hope that Dollar General will concentrate on items not sold by the grocery store. Some people told me that they would like to see more clothes in the Dollar General.

While I am sure the city fathers are also grateful for Dollar General coming to town, I hope that the city does not succumb to every demand made by Dollar General. Already, per Dollar General's request, the city has agreed to remove a tree near the south driveway to the store. This tree was put in by a former council and it should require the vote of the current council to have it removed. I hope the city does not allow Dollar General to remove the large catalpa trees to the east of the store.