The Co-op Food Stores

added 02/06/08

by Terry Appleby, Co-op General Manager

As you know from reading this report in the Co-op News over the past few months, we have been working on the development of a new store on the Lyme Road in Hanover to replace our current convenience store. After several meetings to define the program elements, our architects, UK Architects of Hanover, have produced an exciting design for a store that will serve as a gathering place for the community.

During the first week of September, we interviewed three construction companies and chose Trumbull-Nelson to build this new store. Co-op management have been busy putting together pro forma data, and it appears the new location has a good chance to be at break-even after the first full year of business. We are trying to be conservative, but realistic, in our estimates. At this writing, we expect to have preliminary cost estimates from our contractor by early October. If all the budget issues can be resolved, our next step will be to take the plans to the Town of Hanover for approval.

There is still much to do, but the project is really taking shape, and I believe you will be happy with the results. The store is projected to be much larger than the current Community Market, and therefore will be able to have a much broader product line. Plans call for a real produce section, a deli, and expanded frozen food, meat, and prepared foods sections. There will be seating for patrons, as well.

One area we would like to ensure does not get overlooked (or under-built) in our plan is “green” design. Our architects assure us that the building will be designed with a number of environmental features. However, cost pressures often force businesses to abandon green features because the technology can be expensive, and the “payback” time might not justify the expense. Over the next few months, we will be investigating environmental systems for possible inclusion in our project. We would like to be able to choose more, rather than fewer, green options. And that is where you come in.

A key principle of cooperation is member economic participation. Specific to this issue, we hope to set up a member loan program designed just for the Community Market. This will allow members to help finance the store through loans with a lower interest rate than we might be able to get from commercial lenders. If we can raise some of our capital needs from members in this way, it will be easier to make green choices for construction. You could play a role in these critical choices.

Many cooperatives across the country use member loan programs to satisfy their borrowing needs. Weaver Street Natural Market in Carrboro, North Carolina, has borrowed between $500,000 and one million dollars from its members. River Valley Market raised more than a million dollars from members for the store they expect to open next March in Northampton, Massachusetts.

We hope to have the loan program in place by the end of 2007. If you have the means to participate, please consider the possibility. We’ll provide more information in coming months. We will have only one chance to build the new Co-op Community Market. Let’s try to make it as green as possible.