(Fox Business) A San Francisco lawmaker introduced a proposal that would require grocery stores in the city to provide six months of notice before closing a store and to explore a replacement supermarket at the vacated location.
Dean Preston, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, introduced what he calls the Grocery Protection Act – which is based on a proposal the board approved in 1984 that was vetoed by then-San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein.
Preston’s proposal would require grocery store owners to provide six months written notice to the Board of Supervisors as well as the Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD). The store would also be required to post notices at all entries and exits as a means of informing customers and the general public. The rule wouldn’t preclude closures due to a store being unprofitable.
“It was a good idea in 1984, and it’s an even better idea now,” Preston said in a press release. “Our communities need notice, an opportunity to be heard, and a transition plan when major neighborhood grocery stores plan to shut their doors. Meeting the food security needs of our seniors and families cannot be left to unilateral backroom decisions by massive corporate entities.”
A San Francisco supervisor proposed a law requiring grocery stores to give six months notice before closing a location. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The six-month notice requirement would be waived if the closure is caused by business circumstances that weren’t reasonably foreseeable at the time notice would’ve been required, or if the closure was due to a natural disaster or emergency.
It would also not be required if the business is in the process of actively seeking capital or business that would allow the closure to be postponed or avoided, and the business has a reasonable and good faith belief that giving the closure notice would’ve precluded the store from obtaining the capital or business needed to stay open.
