SEATTLE — Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell wants to make it easier for grocery and drug stores to open in vacant retail spaces in the city. He proposed a new law aimed at increasing access to healthy food.
The proposal seeks to ban what Harrell calls “anti-competitive covenants,” which are restrictive agreements put on a property’s deed or lease that prevent new grocery stores or pharmacies from opening in that location.
Harrell highlighted that at least two such covenants have been recorded in Seattle, restricting properties from being used as grocery stores for up to 50 years. The mayor’s initiative is driven by the need to increase access to fresh food in areas affected by store closures, such as the upcoming closure of the Fred Meyer store in Seattle’s Lake City neighborhood…