Rusty Wolfe, Tree II, 2018. Lacquer on MDF, 24 x 24" |
One thing that the quarantine has crystalized for me is how
much we all need social interaction – how much we need community. Our small businesses are the vehicle that
provides much of that opportunity. We
are incredibly lucky to have the diversity of businesses that we enjoy, but it
is in jeopardy.
We are going to lose businesses, but we can start today to mitigate
that. Well-meaning citizens can’t do it
by themselves. The industry must play a
role. The government needs to play a role.
If you are in charge of purchasing anything at the company
where you work, start sourcing the things that you are currently buying online
at local businesses. If you are a
supervisor, empower your employees to purchase everything they can from local
businesses. Whether it is cleaning
supplies or copy paper, buy it from a brick-and-mortar store in Marinette or
Menominee Counties. This will take
effort. It will take time. But, it will make a difference. If we lose more small businesses, it hurts
our giving to non-profits, funding municipal services, and support of local newspapers,. It will make it even harder to recruit new workers
Take the example of what would happen if we lost our local
newspaper. Locally-produced, independent news is crucial for civic engagement. We cannot take our newspapers and local radio
for granted. In 2018, economists at The
University of Illinois at Chicago presented a study that examined how local newspaper
closures affect public finance outcomes for local governments. The conclusion is surprising: the cost to a
community that loses its local paper is enormous, $650,000 per municipal issue. (For example, think about financing a project
the size of the REC Center). Municipal
borrowing costs increase with a lack of civic engagement because a project that
is not planned and executed in the golden light of day is a risky project for a
lender to finance.
If you don’t have a subscription to the Eagle Herald,
Peshtigo Times, or The Menominee County Journal, get one today. If you have a lobby at your office, purchase
a second subscription for your customers in place of national magazine’s
subscriptions
This isn’t about my bottom line or that of any particular locally-owned
business. It is about preserving the
opportunities we have in our great community.
It requires each of us to do what we can.
Sincerely,
Kim Brooks