Saturday, September 19, 2015

Storefront vacancy assessment ordinance seems like a good idea


Pacifica Tribune Letters to the Editor, 9/16/15.  "Vacancy ordinance" by Bob Hutchinson
Image result for Fairmont Shopping Center, Pacifica, CA picture
Fairmont Shopping Center
Image result for Linda Mar Shopping Center, Pacifica, CA picture
Linda Mar Shopping Center

"Editor: Councilman Mike O'Neill deserves a big pat on the back for trying to get a commercial vacancy ordinance on the City Council agenda. 

For far too long Linda Mar and Fairmont Shopping Centers (both owned by mega giant KimCo) have been driving small businesses out of town by raising rents higher than is sustainable. They are so big that they don't really care. 

Now there are a ton of vacant storefronts which ends up costing the city in lost sales tax, jobs and added police patrols. By charging a vacancy assessment it gives the landlord an incentive to keep rents lower, fill vacant units and keep them filled. This has been done successfully in cities all over the country. 

The City Manager, Economic Development Manager, and the rest of the City Council need to be backing Mike, residents, and our small business community on this, and stop making anymore excuses for KimCo."

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Reference - Kimco Reality, About section, "Our Core Principles: Integrity, Creativity, Stability". "INTEGRITY is clearly the paramount foundation of our business. The strength and integrity of our leadership is reflected through the highest standard of business ethics and in delivering the best possible value to our shareholders and institutional partners. CREATIVITY is a deliberate strategy of our opportunistic and strategic investments. We are an industry innovator who leverages our competitive advantages of size, relationships and experience to do what we do best – own and operate neighborhood and community shopping centers. STABILITY is the strength of our management team, the diversified value of our portfolio and our pioneering history and experience."

Reference - City of Pacifica:  Linda Mar Shopping Center,  Fairmont Shopping Center.

Note photographs.  Linda Mar Shopping Center/RadioShack location (note Denny's in background right) from Loopnet.  Fairmont Shopping Center/Comcast location from Serve All Contracting/Painting Portfolio/Exterior Paint slides. 

Posted by Kathy Meeh

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Typical BS from someone who knows nothing about how real estate works. Charge the owners of property a vacancy fee or tax and they pass it on to the other tenants.

Coming from the guy who caved to 7-Eleven, Mike O'Neill shows he has zero clue.

Anonymous said...

Great! Now let's start charging vacancy fees for vacant homes, apartments, etc. Oh, and how about charging fees/penalties for businesses whose sales numbers don't meet some arbitrary quota established by City Council. Heck, let's start charging everyone for anything that doesn't meet our expectations. Whoever said we supported a free market system in Pathetica, anyway? Well done, comrade!

Anonymous said...

Start a vagrancy ordinance and the city will make nothing but $$.

Anonymous said...

The issue is, KIMCO at the moment has no interest in actually leasing out those vacant properties. I have personally tried to get information on one of the vacant spaces and after leaving multiple messages over the last 6 months I have yet to received an call back.

Steve Sinai said...

I used to think a vacancy ordinance was the dumbest idea. Now I'm all for it.

Anonymous said...

It's another band-aid. Treats the symptom but not the cause. The cause is a moribund bedroom community shopping anywhere but here. Makes us vulnerable to the type of property owners who know they do not need tenants or us to make money off their holdings. It's clear this city has zero clout with Kimco. So, purely as a matter of principal we should charge the bastards a vacancy fee! Like a mosquito trying to bite a buffalo..futile, but oddly enjoyable.