Instead of Walmart #eotr

I am not surprised that Walmart reneged on its agreement with DC to build two stores east of the Anacostia River. I, for one, am not sorry that Walmart will not inflict its presence on my community.

Rather than bring some outsider into our community, it is better to lift up the people who already live here.

Instead of Walmart we should establish a series of worker owned-and-operated cooperatives. We need a series of cooperatives that would mimic the different departments of a Walmart, offering the same or similar merchandise at the same price, only with workers in control and paid a good wage.

We would want: a produce stand, with local produce whenever possible, a baker to provide a complete selection of wholesome baked goods offered at a Walmart price, a butcher who would use local suppliers whenever possible. We would want a housewares cooperative and a hardware cooperative. While we want low prices, we do not want Home Depot cheapsie merchandise which breaks after a very short time. In short we would want a series of cooperatives to supply the goods of every department in a Walmart store.

Obviously we would want a wide selection of cooperatives offering every sort of clothing and shoes from children’s, to senior’s, from casual to career wear.

In addition to the sort of goods available from a Walmart store, we would want a gas station with a repair shop attached to it. We would also want a carwash cooperative which also offered detailing for those who desired it.

We would want a veterinarian cooperative along side a pet groomers cooperative.

We would need a laundromat cooperative with a dry cleaners attached to it. The laundromat should offer a wash and fold service and free wifi. The dry cleaners should offer simple mending along with alterations.

We would want a fast food cooperative whose offerings would include at least some healthy choices such as cole slaw and hard boiled eggs. We would also want a coffee shop which also offered some healthy snacks such as toasted almonds, tangerines, and similar fare. Obviously both restaurants would offer free wifi.

We would also want a recording studio cooperative where local musicians could record. The studio should have a music store attached to it where musicians could buy or rent instruments according to their needs. They should also have video equipment available for the purpose of creating the music videos necessary for today’s marketing. The recording studio cooperative should also offer an online store where their customers could sell their music.

To establish such a project it would be necessary for the city to recruit an expert consultant to oversee it. The individual must be someone experienced in the establishment of worker owned-and-operated cooperatives, someone fully committed to the spirit of the project. Under no circumstances should the city employ some parasite from Goldman Sachs, HSBC, or any other disreputable institution; but only someone with a record of success with such projects.

The cooperative consultant should send out a call to bid to the widest possible audience, no more funneling funds to those with the best connections. Only DC residents could apply, with special preference to those residing east of the Anacostia.

The bids would be assessed on the credibility of the business plan and the experience of the team.

The cooperatives would elect an executive council to run the cooperative center as a whole. It would be like a shopping center management, except it would be organized as a democratic entity. It is crucial that this be entirely controlled by the workers, and not managed by some unaccountable private corporation.

It is also crucial that this be an entirely DC operation with special preference for cooperative teams residing east of the Anacostia river. It is necessary that this be Of East of the River, By East of the River, and For East of the River.

Ideally this would be financed by a combination of grants and loans from the city. Failing that it could be financed by loans from a community minded institution such as the Industrial Bank or the Amalgamated Bank, loans that would be guaranteed by the city.

In this way the money generated by the project would remain in the city, going back into our economy rather than some bank in the Cayman Islands.