ESCANABA — The Delta County Board of Commissioners voted not to rezone a Perkins parcel for commercial use earlier this week — a parcel Dollar General was looking at as a potential site for a new store. While the chain is continuing to explore its options in Perkins, people opposed to the spread of “small box” discount stores in the Upper Peninsula are seeking further action from the county.

County commissioners agreed to not rezone the parcel in question from Residential to Commercial 1 during a meeting on Tuesday, July 21. The board’s decision was in keeping with a recommendation made by the Delta County Planning Commission earlier in the month.

Roughly 50 people were in attendance at the planning commission’s July meeting. Multiple attendees voiced concerns related to the prospect of a Dollar General store in Perkins. Additionally, anti-Dollar General comments were heard at this week’s county board meeting.

On Monday, July 20, Angela Petkovic of Dollar General’s public relations department sent information on the company’s plans in Perkins to the Daily Press via email.

“At this time, we are currently in due diligence phase for a new Dollar General in Perkins, Michigan that would be located off M-35. This means we are reviewing the opportunity to add a new store in the area, but we have not committed to doing so just yet,” Petkovic wrote.

Six to 10 people would be employed at a Dollar General store in Perkins if one was established there.

According to Petkovic, Dollar General is aiming to decide whether or not it will build a store somewhere in Perkins in the coming months.

“Based on our current timeline, we anticipate to have a final decision on this by fall 2020,” she wrote.

Mary Martin, administrator of the Facebook page “Save Our Rural Independent Stores” (SORIS), described the outcome of Tuesday’s meeting as “winning a battle.” However, she said the war is not yet over.

Moving forward, SORIS will push for a county-wide moratorium on small box discount stores. A moratorium like this would not be the first of its kind.

“A lot of communities and a couple of counties, particularly in the southern United States right now … are rising up all over the place to put moratoriums on more dollar stores,” Martin said.

If the county was unwilling or unable to introduce a moratorium, Martin said she would be in favor of an ordinance requiring well-publicized public hearings before these stores are built.

While the board’s vote not to rezone the Perkins parcel was unanimous, Martin was concerned by the fact that some commissioners at Tuesday’s meeting said they were in favor of economic development and believed people would be able to vote with their wallets. She said independent, locally-owned stores are often unable to continue operating when faced with corporate-owned competition.

“When these rural stores leave, they don’t come back, and communities are left with a junk shop that sells junk food and contributes nothing of value to the community. The profits from this store leave not only the community and the county, but the state,” Martin said.

Martin also said that many people do not have the time and information they need to make informed decisions about their shopping habits.

“I am guilty of shopping at dollar stores prior to this whole thing,” Martin said.

Currently, Martin is researching small box discount store moratoriums that have been OK’d in other communities. She said she is hopeful that a similar ordinance will be approved locally.

“I think there’s a lot of good energy in Delta County to make something really good happen,” she said.