Knight Chair in Investigative & Enterprise Reporting
Finding problems facing small cities — continued
Economy and business
Our survey found that the area economy was the fifth most important problem facing small cities, and business was the sixth. Because the two problems are similar, we combined them and found that both problems were discussed a total of 43 times.
Five out of the seven cities we surveyed discussed the economy, and four of these cities also discussed businesses. Mount Vernon and Albert Lea both discussed businesses that sold alcohol. In Mount Vernon, citizens debated whether or not the city should allow a liquor store to open 300 feet away from a church. In Albert Lea, businesses were caught selling alcohol to underaged citizens. The city found six places that violated its “Best Practices Policy for liquor violations.”
But most of the discussion about the economy and business in the cities we surveyed focused on a need for jobs and attracting new businesses or improving existing ones. And in three of the cities we surveyed, the debate about business showed conflicts between the city, businesses and citizens. In Logansport, a citizen commented that the city's Downtown Development Review Board, a group that oversees business development, “ ... places an undue burden on business owners.”
Concern about the downtown came up in four of the cities we surveyed, and it was discussed most often in Owosso. In one of the meetings, the Owosso mayor pro-tem was “concerned about our downtown and doesn't want people avoiding our downtown,” according to meeting minutes.
One business at the center of citizen complaints in Owosso was the city's farmer's market. Citizens complained about the bias toward certain vendors and how the market is managed. One citizen complained that some vendors are excluded and suggested the city take over the farmer's market.
In Albert Lea, there was lengthy discussion at a city council meeting about an ordinance that would allow adult entertainment businesses to stay open later, until 1 a.m. Later, it was discovered that one of the council members owned an adult entertainment business. But the council voted to withdraw the ordinance after many public comments and the possibility of litigation to block its enactment. One citizen questioned why the council was even discussing the ordinance. The same citizen said “The council should be more concerned about the community and the selling of properties, houses and bringing people into this community.”
Another citizen spoke on behalf of his eleven-year-old daughter who said she wanted the council to know that she does not want adult entertainment in her city, and she is concerned for the future.
Both the Mount Vernon and Owosso city councils discussed a need for more jobs. In Mount Vernon, all three comments about the economy were about a need for jobs. According to the minutes, a citizen focused on young adults needing jobs According to the minutes, she “spoke regarding young adults in the city not being able to get jobs. They can't afford to go to school, and some of them have felonies. She asked who could help them.”