SEATTLE — The city council approved new legislation allowing shuttered grocery stores in Seattle to be replaced with another grocery chain, blocking efforts to prevent competition and to improve food access.
This ordinance, unanimously approved by the council on Tuesday, comes in response to the October closure of a Fred Meyer in north Seattle and a Whole Foods market on Capitol Hill. The goal is to make sure people have access to at least one nearby grocery store and pharmacy.
“The closure of the Fred Meyer on Lake City Way has had a tremendous impact on our community, as well as the closing of Bartell’s, a Walgreens, a Starbucks and numerous small businesses,” City Councilmember Debora Juarez explained. “Lake City is desperately trying to come back and hopefully not find ourselves being a ghost town.”…