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Issue #52
Posted August 28, 2009
Founded in 2007 by The Hillsdale Alliance
Also in This Issue
* Help clean up schools
* Food Front looks ahead
* Grocery prices compared
* The Datebook
Hillsdale News Sponsors

Forum persentation

Visit Meyer & Wyse site

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Visit Food Front site

Alissa at Korkage

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Visit Korkage Wine Shop



Legacy sponsorship


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Visit a unique undertaking of Celeste Lewis Architecture, LLC



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Visit Dianne Rodway's site

Jeff Devine
Chiropractic Physician


Om Base Yoga

Commentary:

'Ownerly' Advice
for Food Front

Alissa at KorkageAs noted elsewhere in this issue, August 31st is the first anniversary of Food Front's opening its store in Hillsdale.

Congratulations to the Food Front community. And thanks for being here and contributing so much.

Getting the store up and running has been a huge task for a small operation. The challenges of the first year have been considerable. As one manager told me, the effort required to start the store has been as large as running it.

As a birthday present, I'm giving Food Front (and you) a price comparison and some friendly/ownerly ideas for the future.

Yes, "ownerly."  That's because Food Front's more than 6000 owner/members, including me, own its two stores. That means I (you?) have a vested interest in what I write.

Elsewhere in this issue you will see how Food Front's prices for items on my shopping list compare with prices at Fred Meyer, Albertsons and New Seasons.

Bottom line: if you want to save money on food, shop at Fred Meyer. It's owned by Kroger, a large, savvy corporation headquartered in Ohio.

If you are willing to pay a bit more and want to support local businesses, Food Front and New Seasons are similar in pricing. Alas, there are a few "sticker-shock" exceptions like organic corn, India Pale Ale, Tillamook Cheddar Cheese Loaf, and Florida Natural orange juice. More on those later.

The comparison between Food Front and New Seasons has a couple of wild card considerations.

For one thing you can't "own" New Seasons the way you can Food Front. Co-op ownership brings with it some benefits in pricing, specials and the occasional modest dividend. If you track the specials (and you have to), you can make up some of the differences resulting from "shock and awe" priced items.

In addition, for those of us in Hillsdale, Food Front is here; New Seasons is in the traffic-surrounded mess called Raleigh Hills.

On the downside, the Food Front store is small. And although it tries mightily to make the most of its cramped space, it can't stock the variety of any of its competitors. For that reason, it tries hard to find out what its customers want.

And New Seasons in particular is not just any competition. As foodie I know put it, "New Seasons is unquestionably the best grocery outfit in the country."

But that's good. From my own experience in business, I believe tough competition makes you better. The tougher the competition, the better you have to be.

So, in the spirit of competition, pride of ownership, and Food Front's first birthday, what can our cooperative do to make itself better? Here are six "gift" ideas.

* No more "sticker shock." Even if Food Front takes a loss selling Tillamook two-pound cheese loaf for less than $9.99, it can't afford not to. Seeing that price casts price aspersions on every other item in the store. And those suffering the shock will share the experience with others. "Do you know what they want for Tillamook Cheese at Food Front!"

* Use the "power of free." The term comes from the fascinating book, "Predictably Irrational," which explores how free stuff seems to send us into ecstasy. What's the first thing that happens when you walk into New Seasons? The store is handing you tasty morsels.  Free.

* Friendliness (New Season's tagline, "The friendliest store in town" ) trumps "ownership," even in a cooperative. Again, "Predictably Irrational" explains how social norms and market norms send very different messages. While New Season's wants you to be a friend, Food Front wants you to be an owner.  Friendships are nurtured, last and grow. Ownership is a calculated financial deal. Food Front needs to play up friendship.

* Look bigger. Sure, Food Front is small, but if it worked on its synergies with neighbors like the hugely successful Baker & Spice, or if it connected to the now empty florist's shop next door, the little  grocery would "read" big.

* Tie the name to the place. Food Front (which sounds like some gastronomical conspiracy) is a name from nowhere. At the very least, slip in the word "Hillsdale."  "Hillsdale Food Front." Sounds better already. In the past 20 years we've built a community here around a name. By embracing "Hillsdale," Food Front would instantly anchor itself.

* Make yourself at home. I agree with Food Front's community outreach manager, Tom Mattox: the Hillsdale store lacks that "lived in" feeling of its counterpart on NW Thurman. Maybe a mural outside would help. Or copper pans or Wilson banners hanging from the ceiling. Or a flash of Fifties neon. (Note: Food Front now has a bicycle hanging from the ceiling. That's the spirit! How about a plow?)

There it is, Food Front, "my" store. Happy Birthday, and many happy (customer) returns.
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More money sought from state

Rieke Solar project stalled



Solar signWhat has happened to that $800,000 solar array that the school district wants to put in on the district-owned slope above Bertha Court (see photo to the right)?

The short answer: Nothing.

At least nothing but setbacks.

Now, faced with new costs and funding obstacles, it isn't clear when the array will be built, says Catherine Diviney, solar specialist for Portland Public Schools.

Originally, Diviney and other school officials had hoped the three large solar voltaic panels would be installed by the end of 2008. The array is designed to provide about 60 percent of the neighboring Rieke Elementary School's electricity needs.

But the collapse of financial markets last fall killed any chance of finding investors for the project. Also, federal tax credits for the project were set to expire by the end of the year.

Then, in February, with the tax credits extended by the new Obama administration, officials announced that developers had found a major investor. Sandra Walden of Commercial Solar Venture, the developers, said she expected construction to begin this summer.

All that was needed was one more investor to take advantage of state tax credits and a geotechnical study of the site.

But the study revealed that cost estimates were about $200,000 less than what was needed, bringing the total cost to approximately $1 million.

To pay for the extra cost, the district is applying to the state for federal stimulus money earmarked for energy projects. Diviney said that by the end of August, she hopes to hear whether the district's bid for the money has been successful.

Meanwhile,
the district and the developers are still looking for that second investor from Oregon, one who can take advantage of the state tax credits.

So when can we expect to see the solar voltaic panels pumping out electricity for Rieke?

"I have no idea," says a frustrated Diviney. "We just kind of keep plugging along. It seems we make one step forward and then meet another hurdle."

You're invited!

Aug. 29 is campus clean-up day



If you have two or three hours on the morning of Saturday, Aug. 29, Hillsdale's public schools could use a hand.

Neighborhood volunteers at all three - Rieke Elementary, Robert Gray Middle School and Wilson High School - will be sprucing up their grounds in preparation for the new school year. It's part of the district wide clean-up effort.

So pick a school and pitch in, say organizers.

Wilson's "Community Care Day and Campus Cleanup" runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. with a barbecue at noon. Meet at the school's Vermont Street entrance with your work gloves, garden tools, sunscreen and hat.

Robert Gray's cleanup lasts from 9 a.m. to noon. Parents, students and neighbors will join volunteers from the neighboring Portland Christian Center, which will provide a barbecue at about 11:30 for the volunteers.

In addition to the tools already listed, Robert Gray organizers suggest bringing a scraper or putty knife to scrape chewing gum off walkways,

At Rieke Elementary, from 9 a.m. to noon, volunteers will spread mulch and bark chips, trim bushes, edge lawns, pick up litter and generally make the school welcoming to returning students.

One year after opening...

Food Front is defining
its place in Hillsdale


Food Front EntryA year ago, after nearly a year without a grocery store, Hillsdale was relieved to have one again.

The much-anticipated opening of Food Front was cause for celebration then, and the one-year anniversary is cause for it again.

On Sunday, Sept. 13, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. the store will celebrate with free hot dogs, lemonade, music and events.

The new store promised to be different. What managers didn't count on was just how different - and difficult - the economic times would be.

As a cooperative, Food Front, which also owns a venerable store in Northwest Portland, was indeed different. It invited community members to be owners, and hundreds stepped forward to plunk down $150 to do just that, even before the doors opened. Today, Food Front's membership has swollen to more than 6000 members.

Adjusting to Hillsdale

Food Front's management knew the first year would be one of adjusting to tastes in Hillsdale. Its NW Thurman store served a younger, pedestrian-oriented clientele. The Hillsdale store is surrounded by car-dependent families and young children.

Moreover, in the year without a grocery, Hillsdale grocery shoppers had established new shopping patterns. Many drove to the Raleigh Hills New Seasons. The Burlingame Fred Meyer bulked up its organic produce section and won converts. As part of a large corporation, Kroger's, "Freddie's" could buy in quantity and sell at lower prices.

Food Front needed to win customers back to the Hillsdale location, say Holly Jarvis, Food Front's general manager, and Tom Mattox, community outreach manager.

The tanking economy went into deep decline just days after Food Front's opening. The hard times made it even tougher to get anxious customers to change, says Jarvis.

Mattox recalled people saying, "We really like the store and we like you, but we are going to keep shopping at New Seasons."

New Seasons, a locally owned, nine-store chain, had built its reputation on selling local produce and having a "friendly" face. Jarvis says that the New Season's atmosphere is akin to what some call "The Theater of Food."

That's not Food Front's thing.

Jarvis and Mattox also know that New Season pricing is in many ways Food Front's chief competitor. Food Front routinely monitor's New Seasons' pricing and adjusts accordingly, says Jarvis.

Mom and Pop Co-op

Compared to New Seasons, with its corporate offices and departments for advertising, equipment purchasing and planning staff, Food Front, with 100 employees in both stores, is a "Mom and Pop" outfit, says Jarvis.

As far as Fred Meyer goes, neither New Seasons nor Food Front can compete on price with the large chain. On some items, like Tillamook cheese, Food Front pays its wholesaler more than it costs to buy at Fred Meyer, says Jarvis.

Still, Food Front carries such relatively expensive "commodity" items as bananas, orange juice and cheese as a convenience, Jarvis said.

"We do a really good job on the majority of our items," she says.

What Food Front intends to be, say Jarvis, Mattox and Food Front board member Ted Coonfield is  "the neighborhood grocery store of value."

Coonfield, the driving force behind the founding the Hillsdale Farmers Market, says by "value," he  doesn't mean price. "You can always buy something cheaper somewhere else."

Food Front wants to offer "fair" pricing, says Jarvis. She's concerned that sometimes potential customers assume the store's smallness and independence mean its prices will be high. "That's a perception we have to overcome," Jarvis says, citing one recent price comparison in which Food Front came out well.

Food Front, which stocks 20,000 items, is more about quality and the convenience of being here in the neighborhood, says Coonfield.

He questions consumers' desire for variety. "We are variety junkies, but more isn't necessarily better."

"Owner appreciation days" and special owner prices, can offset higher prices too, say the managers. To attract customers, the special sale periods for owners were extended from two to three days. The store has also mailed out coupons and increased its advertising.

Small and Selective

Because Hillsdale Food Front is only 6,000 square feet, it has to be selective about its offerings, fine-tuning them to what customers want, says Jarvis. In its first year, Food front adjusted to Hillsdale tastes by adding more conventional food, non-natural brands, more non-organic produce, a larger milk selection and larger sizes for families.

The store also lost money, as was expected with a new operation. The good news is that, even in a bad economy, it didn't lose as much as expected.

In its second year, Food Front plans to have a stall in the farmers market by next spring and to offer sandwich specials for the lunch-time high school crowd. A gluten-free section will be set up in the store.

Coonfield says that the store needs to endear itself to the community. For their part, neighbors need to realize the importance of living harmoniously in a "foodshed" of local produce, just as they live in a watershed.

He would like to see Food Front's customer service improved. "You don't want just customer loyalty; you want a personal, passionate fan club."

And Food Front needs to be "as sensitive as it can about 'aberrant' prices.'

For all the talk of change, some Food Front customers, like Dianna Ponder, say that Food Front is doing just fine as it is.

She says the prices are comparable to those at New Seasons and Market of Choice. "If price is the only consideration, why not shop at Walmart, even though they don't pay a living wage?"

Most important to Ponder is the convenience of having a neighborhood market.  "It's about my time. And I don't want to drive and be environmentally unfriendly." While she likes the idea of the co-op - she's an "owner/member" - it's not a factor in her shopping at Food Front.

The staff is friendly, she says, and she likes meeting her neighbors at the store. "I feel good about myself when I shop at Food Front. I know I'm supporting my community."

Local grocery prices compared

On the morning of Saturday, Aug. 22, I set out armed with a clipboard, sharp pencil and tabular "shopping list" to do a price comparison at four area grocery stores. In particular, I wanted to see how Food Front compared with Fred Meyer, Albertsons, and, especially, New Seasons.

The list is not scientifically chosen. It's stuff I buy from time to time.

The results pretty much speak for themselves but there are some broad trends.

Food Front clearly competes with the much larger New Seasons on most items, but there are glaring anomalies, where Food Front is selling at 7/11 convenience-store prices.

On price alone, Fred Meyer wins hands down.

Albertson's lacks in many items on my list.

Factors beyond prices may be important to you. They include cooperative ownership and/or local ownership, size of store, variety, friendliness, responsiveness and helpfulness, proximity, convenience and non-food in-store services, such as a place to sit down and eat.

Legend: The fuchsia indicates the exclusive highest price for the item. Blue is the exclusive lowest price.

new grab comparison
The Date Book

Saturday, August 29, 9 a.m. - noon - Campus Clean-up Day

The community is invited to help clean up the the grounds at all three schools. See details in story above.

Wednesday, Sept.2, 7 p.m. -
Hillsdale Neighborhood Assn. meeting

Meets at St. Barnabas Church, 2201 SW Vermont. On the September agenda are updates on the Hillsdale Terrace Project, tree removal in Himes Park, the Sept. 15 MicroCinema presentation and the structure of the neighborhood association board.

Monday, Sept. 7 - Multnomah Historical Association

The association meets the first Monday of the month. Check its web site for time and location. The "Mary Lyman Becker History Center" is open on Thursdays from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. or by appointment. The address is 2929 SW Multnomah Blvd.

Sunday, Sept.13, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - Chalk Art Festival

Wilson Area Arts Council is sponsoring the 2nd annual Chalk Art Festival at the Hillsdale Farmers Market and sidewalk in front of Rieke Elementary School. The event is free. Chalk is provided.

Tuesday, Sept. 15, 7 p.m. - Hillsdale "MicroCinema"

Two local films "in progress" will be shown at The Watershed, Capitol Highway and Bertha Court. The filmmakers will be on hand to discuss their work. A $5 donation is suggested.


Saturday, Sept. 19, 6:30 p.m. -
Hillsdale Arts, Crafts and Dessert Auction

The live and silent auction at Hillsdale Community Church UCC,
6948 SW Capitol Hwy, features arts and crafts for all budgets from local
artisans. Entry is free. Proceeds benefit the church's Pipes and Pipes Project. Child care available. For more information call 503-246-5474.


Rick Seifert
Editor, Hillsdale News
(503) 245-7821
[email protected]