Economic Development Elk Grove Style - GMO Hiring Soon!

October 15, 2013 |  Much has been said about Elk Grove's well-documented jobs to homes imbalance and all the various stakeholders s...

October 15, 2013 | 

Much has been said about Elk Grove's well-documented jobs to homes imbalance and all the various stakeholders showing faux interest in bringing economic development and the supposedly well-paying jobs that comes with it.  

We continually hear from Mayor Gary Davis about his "laser focus" on bringing in more jobs and Council Member Pat Hume's insistence that jobs will follow once more homes are built. Even though Davis and Hume are coming at it from opposite ends, each uses their particular mantra to justify their support for and the need for the city's planned 12-square mile expansion via the sphere of influence application.

Working for minimum wages is like "having fun!"
While politicians will be politicians with Davis' "laser focused" soundbite becoming something of a punchline, so-called business leaders and developers with economic interests in the city also wrap themselves in the economic development flag as they seek their particular interests. We saw this recently as McDonald's and Gil Moore ramrodded through the highway billboard ordinance changes.

Moore and Susan Green of McDonald's both said that if the burger behemoth's proposed store on Sheldon Road and East Stockton Blvd. could have a highway billboard, not only will it be a great amenity for the motoring public, it would benefit the city and taxpayers. They reasoned the billboard would entice more people to stop in Elk Grove to eat and get gas at Moore's strip center.

And truth be told, there is a kernel of truth in that. With Moore's strip center, Elk Grove will no longer be "fly over country" for drivers going up and down Highway 99, rather it will turn the city into a destination.

More visitors to Elk Grove, even if it is a quick stop off the highway, will generate greater sales taxes. In the skewed tax system we have in California, as anyone has viewed our city's budget can attest, gas stations as a group are usually one of the top revenue contributors.

Of course when Green, Moore and any other wheeler-dealer wraps themselves in the what's-good-for-me-is-good-for-you blanket, they are not always painting a complete picture either. In this case the other portion of the incomplete picture are the workers. 

If you want to find out what workers get, just apply at one of GMO's outlets. The pay may be crummy, but hey, as the Craigslist job description says, it is all about "working the register, cleaning, stocking, customer service, more cleaning and having fun!"

These are the jobs coming to Elk Grove. 

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7 comments

Ronald McDonald said...

http://247wallst.com/retail/2013/10/15/fast-food-jobs-cost-america-7-billion-a-year-does-mcdonalds-make-america-poor/?mod=marketwatch

Anonymous said...

Well if these are the type of jobs we have, then we must make accommodations so that the workers who actually work here, can live here. Don't tell me that there will be bus routes either or light rail someday. Will the buses run from Elk Grove to Sacramento at midnight when restaurant workers get off or shift change at Wal Mart?

Anonymous said...

Oh there will be plenty of housing, just wait until they get all those low-income units built.

I also heard through the grapevine that the city is being petitioned to have the Golden Arches placed above the Aquatics Center. We're on the path to becoming a Destination City for sure and most likely will be known for that the world over.

Thriving City said...

Mayor Gary Davis keeps saying that he doesn’t want Elk Grove to look like the city of Rancho Cordova with liquor stores on every corner. But he also doesn’t acknowledge his what his home city did right. All of those business centers that resident from Elk Grove commute to every single day!

Rancho incorporated in 2003 after the city of Elk Grove; so like Elk Grove it was under the County of Sacramento’s control until then.

Therefore, it was the developers who decided that Rancho would be the mega business center it is and Elk Grove would be the bedroom city it is.

Smarter planning would have been to “split the baby with the bath water” and do half of both.

So which city is really “thriving” here?

Anonymous said...

Thriving.....
That's a great point about RC incorporating after EG, yet they have made great strides in revitalizing that city. That's a great comeback next time Cooper states that we've only had local control for 11 years.
Looks like RC's leaders had more pride in maintaining an assemblance of balance than EG's leaders have shown. - Here, it's all about $$$$, not pride or quality of life.

JeffO said...

Writing a great political speech when campaigning, and having clever sound bites is much easier than delivering on those "laser focused" ideas. Actions speak louder than words. Remember that come reelection time.

Jim White said...

First, we have a clown as mayor.
Second, he couldn't make a decision without stumbling through it.
and
Third, SOI will pass easily and Elk Grove will have more and more fast food restaurants then we need. If anyone looked at the contributions made to his campaign, you would see why. Sad to see Elk Grove disappear.

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