What do Grand Forks retailers need to do attract shoppers and keep them from heading for Fargo or the Twin Cities? What new stores does the area need? Those are questions that would be answered in a $50,000 study a local group of retailers are seeking to fund.
They've gotten commitments from the Chamber of Commerce and the Convention and Visitors Bureau. Now, they're seeking funding from the cities of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks.
The Grand Forks City Council, by way of its Finance Committee, got a request for $20,000 Wednesday.
Chamber President Barry Wilfahrt said the firm the retail task force seeks to hire, Buxton Co., would use credit card data to tease out consumer spending habits to find out what they're buying in Grand Forks and what they're bypassing Grand Forks to buy.
Study results, he said, would be available both in written formats and in seminars and one-on-one consultations for all local retailers.
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When he headed the chamber in Watertown, S.D., he said, Buxton did a study for retailers there, helping them retain customers from leaving for Sioux Falls and helping developers attract eight new retailers to compliment the mix.
Wilfahrt noted that Watertown's city's sales tax collections went up.
Finance Committee chair Doug Christensen said he's willing to vote for the funding request, but he wants a long-term plan. There are lots of empty storefronts and just having a survey wouldn't be enough, he said.
Grand Forks has to deal with its remote geography, he noted, somewhat ignoring the sheer advantage of being an hour closer to Winnipeg than Fargo.
Wilfahrt said the information would let the private sector, retailers and developers do what they do better. He agreed, though, that the task force could provide more details.
Council member Mike McNamara asked why the public sector should involve itself when other groups in the city can take care of the matter.
Wilfahrt said different communities fund these sorts of studies differently, though cities do tend to get involved.
Reach Tran at (701) 780-1248; (800) 477-6572, ext. 248; or send e-mail to ttran@gfherald.com .
