By Waindim Tufoin
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
The ripple effect of store closures: Impact on employees and communities
Imagine walking down the street, seeing houses on both sides. Then you get to a shopping center, and there are several stores with a “store closing; everything is half off” sign. What would come to your mind? Why are they closing? What about the building? Will a new store move into it? Will they destroy it and build something else? What about the employees? How are they going to move on?
When a store closes, it immediately affects the employees. Their world just turns upside down. Finding a new job, living situation, income, taking care of others. Those are just some of the problems that can occur for the employees of closing stores. It can also affect the families of these employees.
Back in 2019, employees at Rite Aid in Hyattsville, Maryland, would get the news of the store closing. There were questions about why from some people in the community, but for the employees, the next step had to be planned. Christian Pillay was a senior in high school when his mom told him the news that she would have to find a new job.
“Getting the news that it was closing was kinda weird. I was wondering why they were closing in the place. People went to the store. I went to the store; my friends did too. I thought they were making money, but I guess not,” said Pillay.
Rite Aid was closing stores around the country, and in 2023 they filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. They now operate as a private company.
Living with his mom and grandmother, the news had to settle in quickly because his mom was their main source of income.
“At first, I was wondering what my mom would do. How she would move on, like what job would she get next. It’s me, her, and my grandmother who needs assisted care at times,” said Pillay.
According to CNBC, 26% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, but Christian’s family was able to get by the Rite Aid closing because he stepped up and his mom found a new job.
“She would get another job, but the few weeks of wondering wasn’t great, and it’s been good ever since,” said Pillay about his mom. “I started working. Two jobs. One at UPS and the other at FedEx. [My] family needed money, and I needed money, so I started working,” said Pillay.
At the end of the day, Christian was happy to not be affected by a sudden closing like others may be.
“Luckily, we weren’t greatly impacted by the situation, but I know that’s not the case for everyone when a store closes,” said Pillay.
This is an example of someone making it past a store closure, but another person can really struggle. So, when you look at the next store closing sign, really think about the community, as it will not only affect you but the people around you.
Vacant buildings: A growing concern and opportunities for renewal
Remember the questions from the beginning? One of them was what happens to the building.
In Hyattsville there’s a problem with stores leaving areas and staying vacant. The Rite Aid building that Christian’s mom worked at is still empty to this day. There’s a building up the street from Rite Aid that used to be a home for Kmart. It’s been empty since 2020. Tick Tock Liquors, a liquor store three minutes away from Rite Aid, has been vacant for over a decade.
These stores being vacant frustrate the people in the area, and they want to see something done with them.
“These buildings are eyesores, and they take up space. Either a business needs to be in there or destroy it and build something useful,” said Riley Williams, a Hyattsville resident.
“They need to take the building down (the old Rite Aid building) and build affordable housing. Or someone needs to move in there for business. It doesn’t make sense that the building has been empty for this long. Someone needs to do something with it. We need housing, so build housing. That’s what I would do with the building,” said Pillay.
These stores take up a lot of space. The old Kmart has roughly 100,000 square feet of space with a 13-acre parking lot. Using old buildings and turning them into mixed-use buildings that have office spaces, stores, and housing has become common. There’s one just outside of Hyattsville in Washington, DC. That could be a solution to the problem in the area.
“That could work. I’ve seen some of those buildings in Bowie. Looks like a good way to combine the need for housing and physical stores. I think we’ll always need both, and by using land wisely like that, it can be efficient,” said Williams.
Prince George’s County has already announced mixed-use development projects in other parts of the county. Some of which have been completed. National Harbor, College Park, New Carrollton, Hampton Park and Largo are all mentioned.
The benefits of these projects are huge. Walkability, living space, jobs, revenue, efficient land use are all benefits from mixed use developments and these areas of Hyattsville could use it.