New requirements for dollar discount stores in Brunswick, city readies large sewer project

BRUNSWICK — New approval conditions for dollar discount stores were passed into law Monday night by Brunswick City Council. Under unanimously approved legislation, such establishments will now be required to offer fresh food and not open within two miles of another dollar store, said city economic development director Grant Aungst. He said part of the reason for the change is keeping local economic doors open for other retailers, such as large grocers offering bigger selections of fresh food and produce, to move into Brunswick in the future. "This applies to dollar stores and those types of institutions that don't always bring value to a community," Aungst said. "Lots of legislation from around the country was looked at and it's not to say that dollar stores and small box discount retailers don't serve a purpose in certain markets. They absolutely do in the right conditions. We also want to make sure we don't have 20 of them in 13 square miles." Aungst said that four dollar stores are currently operating in Brunswick and that convenient stores don't fall under the umbrella of new legislation. "We have a Dollar General grocery store here in town that's already offering the fresh items," he said. "We just don't want to see certain other types of businesses get squeezed out from coming here some time down the road. We think the legislation presents a reasonable distance between each location too, where things aren't piled on top of each other. "There is a difference with the convenient stores for why they're not part of this. With the convenient stores, they're generally dedicated to selling items under a $10 threshold. There's a distinction. Whether it's a Dollar Tree or Dollar General or any other company, that's the kind of store that fits under this legislation." Eighty-eight percent of Americans shop at dollar stores at least occasionally, according to a June 2021 study from the nonprofit Consumer Reports. Some experts have said that dollar stores' massive growth in recent years has made it harder for larger grocers to open up or maintain operations, especially in lower-income areas. Food access advocacy groups have pointed to that pattern leading to decreased availability of fresh fruit and vegetables and higher consumption of processed foods. "I think that's an accurate statement," said Aungst regarding potential difficulties for a larger grocer. "I'd add that we want to make sure that any store or any retailer in the city of Brunswick sees its highest and best use, while still meeting code. It's as simple as that." Consumer Reports also found that roughly 75 percent of U.S. residents live within five miles of one of Dollar General's 17,683 stores while only 60 percent live that close to a hospital. It was also stated that Dollar General, Family Dollar and Dollar Tree stores nationwide outnumber the combined number of McDonald's and Starbucks. In other news Council approved a first reading of legislation paving way for a $605,000 sewer improvement and flood mitigation project with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which is covering the vast majority of those costs. Work is set to begin this spring at Healey Creek and along Magnolia Drive with a target completion date of June 30, said City Manager Carl DeForest. "I know they're going to be increasing the capacity of the sewer relief lines and redirecting some of the water to take some of that strain off certain lines," he said. "It's something that's been in the works and it shouldn't take too long to get done, about four to six weeks. There's going to be a lot of work done to improve the water quality and cut down on the flooding in the area. The sewer and creek work kind of overlaps into achieving that." New restrictions on use of the city of Brunswick's municipal logos were also approved with that legislation passing its third reading before Council. According to officials, changes are meant to stop outside parties such as magazines and nonprofits from using city logos for promotional purposes. Ohio Revised Code does not provide protected use to municipal logos outside of those associated with police, fire or EMS services. Permission for use of logos can still be obtained for certain projects and events through the city manager's office. Contact reporter Jonathan Delozier at (330) 721-4050 or jdelozier@medina-gazette.com.