(letter to the community from Brenda Pyatt, published 6/13/07 in the Hancock County Journal Pilot. Used with permission)

Community Development Update – Give us a chance to compete

I like to shop. And even more, I like to find bargains. I had an exciting moment as a mother recently when my daughter stated that she has a hard time paying full price for something that she might find on sale later. I have trained her well. But in addition to rejoicing that I had raised a good bargain hunter, I also used that ‘teachable moment’ to share with her the importance of supporting our local merchants, which is often the best bargain.

A bargain is not getting the cheapest price. It is more than saving money. Part of a bargain is getting the quality product you want at a price you can afford and a price you are willing to pay. But a real bargain also contributes to the local economy so that the economy can give back to you and your community.

I try to buy all my gas in Carthage because the taxes that come from that purchase support improvements that the city can make to the roads on which I drive. If I buy my gas for a few cents cheaper in another town or state, I may save a few cents (and not really much more than that if you add up the total you save), but it isn’t a whole bargain because the taxes I paid in that other town are going to fix up their roads. I do drive on their roads too, occasionally, but not to the extent that I drive back and forth here in Carthage and Hancock County. If I have to pay a few cents more in Carthage for that gas, I get a benefit that outweighs that few cents.

The same goes for buying food, clothes, etc. That sales tax revenue comes into the city and the county and helps them provide all the services I want and need. If I buy a ‘widget’ in Carthage for $50.00, the sales tax on that ‘widget’ will be $3.38 (6.75%). Seventy-five cents (1.5%) of that tax comes back to the city of Carthage. About thirteen cents comes to Hancock County (.25%). The rest goes to the state of Illinois. My total cost is $53.38. If I get my ‘widget’ for $45.99 in Quincy, the sales tax will be $3.56 (7.75%). None of that goes for the local services here. And then you have to consider the cost of travel. Using the IRS mileage rate, the cost for a drive to Quincy is about $41.23 (85 miles at 48.5 cents per mile). Even if I bought three other things while I was there (so I could divide the mileage cost between the four items), the cost of my one ‘widget’ would work out to be $59.85. I need to buy a lot of ‘widgets’ to make it a real bargain to buy them out of town.

And most importantly, we want our local merchants to continue to be here. It should be worth a few extra dollars (that we can probably afford) to keep them here. I am not saying that we can’t buy anything in other places. We all do that, and we will continue to shop out of town. I am just saying that when we are looking for something we can easily buy here in Carthage, we need to measure the expense together with the benefits of having our storefronts filled and our merchants here. They are important to our community because the sales tax revenue they generate helps keep our community going. And they are also important for the many donations they make to every good cause that comes along, for the jobs that they give to our neighbors, and for the active part that they take in our community.

There is one other element that should also be considered when we look at our shopping habits. As the community development director I am always looking at ways we can bring new businesses into our community. It is important to remember that when a new retail business is looking at our community, their primarily concern is whether local folks will buy their product. If they get the sense that local people do not shop in our community, they won’t want to locate their business here. It would not be a smart business move.

Most of us are bargain hunters. When you are looking for a bargain, you can’t say that you have truly found it unless you give our local merchants the chance to make a bid on the item you want. And then you weigh the other benefits of shopping local into your final decision. You will often find that shopping “Carthage….of course” is the best bargain there is.

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