Tofino set to ban Starbucks, Tim Hortons and McDonalds
 

TOFINO — District of Tofino council wants to keep its unique charm by keeping out franchises like the golden arches, Starbucks and Tim Hortons.

Council made a motion Tuesday directing staff to draft a bylaw that would ban franchises in Tofino utilizing a section of the official community plan which discourages future development and location of large-format retail chains and fast-food chains that do not reflect the character of Tofino, according to Coun. Stephen Ashton who proposed the motion.

Ashton said he is concerned Tofino would lose its distinctness among other communities.

“We are very unique where you can come to this place and you don't have a Starbucks, Tim Hortons or a McDonalds,” he said.

However, Ashton admitted that already existing franchises in the municipality could not be banned.

“I think that we have to be proactive,” he said.

Bob Long, chief administrative officer, said the bylaws will have to be enforceable and council will have to assess the risks involved.

“There is something called the Charter of Rights and Freedoms,” Long said to council. “And sometimes these types of things can conflict with each other. You can't really enact legislation that is contrary to those freedoms and rights.”

However, Ashton said one community he knew of passed a bylaw banning restaurants without table service.

“It's do-able…there's different ways of doing it,” he explained. “I'm not suggesting that that would be a solution, but that's how they got around franchises.”

Ashton also said many people believe there is such a bylaw in place already.

“This helps solidify that talk that's already out there,” he added.

Long said staff will do the best it can.

“Then council will know what the risks are associated with that kind of legislation,” he said.

© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

nicely done wonder how van would be if this was in effect

They beat to their own drum on the Island they don't use drumsticks either, does't really surprise me.

No different than Cannon Beach down in Oregon or the White Rock strip, really. I, for one, enjoy that fact.
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Think its a good idea



kind of like Maple Ridge.. although that seems to be on the verge of changing now
and the No Wal-Mart rule in many areas which is nice too

Tofino is a great place and its a good idea they are not letting those big frachises in. all of the coffee shops are locally owned which they should keep it that was since it adds so much character to the town. I booked a cabin a couple months back at crystal cove for nov long. Man I can't wait to go and sit in the hot tub on the deck with the g/f w00t
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I'm glad to see this.

I remember how big of a deal it was when Steveston got its McDonalds... There was a lot of opposition.

lol reminds me of when I went to Harrison during the past summer, I asked the chick at the front desk if there was a coffeeshop like a starbucks nearby, and she scoffs at me like "psh, there's no Starbucks here."

http://s3t.tvali.ge/thumbs/df0f82df9...700fba7c8d.jpg

you dont decide where a walmart is built...

it builds itself.

This is kind of stupid. If people want to go to Starbucks or whatever, they are creating a demand for it. And that demand should be allowed to be accommodated if the businesses want to do so. Fucken hippies.

I don't agree with this, especially for small tourist-driven towns like Harrison and Tofino where a lot of shops are mom & pop owned.

You can easily grab a coffee and a muffin from a mom & pop shop and support their living, but if Starbucks moves in tourists would likely go straight to the Starbucks because they are familiar with it and not even bother with the independent shops that depend on these tourists for a living.

If you want to go to a mom and pop store for a Costco muffin and coffee, feel free to do so. But you should also have the choice of something else, without some stupid hippies telling you that your tastes are too 'corporate' to have access to them.

It's not about taste, or hippie elitism towards corporate brands, but rather the sustainability of the town. If they are invaded by the big brands, Tofino in the future would not be the same as Tofino is today.

They are banning "the likes of" Starbucks, etc. It is about hippie elitism. If they are "invaded" by the "big brands" it just means that there are enough people going there to sustain such stores. Instead of working for a "mom and pop" store selling expired muffins and old coffee, people will be working in a Starbucks training as a barista, or Tim Hortons, working their way up into management if they desire, etc.

They just don't want to work for corporations tha drug test :p
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Sure they will make a living, but it'll make Tofino look like shit. If I go to Harrison or Tofino I am wanting to GET AWAY from the city and the likes of Starbucks and WalMart.

It may be selfish of me, but I don't want to see old mom and pop in a blue bib working as a fucking greeter at the walmart. I want them to serve me old coffee and make me eggs bacon and hashbrowns in a quaint diner.

Why do you keep comparing indepedently owned coffee shops to hippies? I am pretty sure opening and operating your own buisness is the polar opposite of a "hippy"

And why do you associate locally owned stores with shitty coffee and equally shitty food?

Adding a local starbucks will add NOTHING to the local environment and will shut some local shops down, losing the local charm as a result if more and more big brands invade. Once that occurs, tourism can be affected, especially if your small tourist destination is known for its quaint privately owned coffee shops or stores.

When you go to Tofino im assuming you're trying to get away from everything. Won't feel much like a vacation if you're surrounded by the usual starbucks and mcdonalds. People go to Tofino because it is so quaint: its part of Tofino's brand identity.

Add in all that stuff and you get a Richmond, now who the hell wants to go to Richmond?

edit* not to mention locally owned coffee shops power the people living there. Invasion of franchises will cause them to hand over a % of their profits. I'm sure a good portion of the town is against franchises.

lol @ 'quaint' being used in 3 posts in a row.

LOL who the hell would want to manage a Starbuck's in Tofino? If you've been to Tofino you can clearly see that independently owned 'mom and pops' stores have a better chance of thriving than a corporate branch. It is the 'little town' charm and ambiance that attracts tourism in the first place. People that go to Tofino are the same people who wants to 'get away from the city' and the last thing they would want to see is anything corporate related.

OK maybe some of these stores have good coffee and food. I probably shouldn't have said that. But people do the same thing, calling all Tim Hortons McDonalds, etc "shitty food". It may or it may not be, it's all subjective. That's kind of my pooint I guess.
My point is, if you want to have a Starbucks or a Timbit, you should be allowed to do so without other people preventing it arbitrarily. You might want to "get away from it all" and I might too. But other people might not, and some may want to serve those people and make a profit.
If the mom and pop stores have a better chance of thriving, then why are they banning the 'corporate' stores? Let the people decide if they want to open a business there, regardless of whether they are a chain or an individual store.

I also disagree with this. Sure is nice to support mom & dad shops. But let's say I want to grab something cheap (McDonalds). A McD meal is like what $6 to $7 while if I go to a local burger place it might cost more. Also, what if a person have a weak stomach and they know eating at those big chains place won't hurt their stomach while those local shops they aren't sure about that.

Also, this is a competive world. If the mom & dad shops can't operate because of some big brand name store is near them, then they should never be in business.

If I wanted state controlled economy, I would have stayed in China.

lol i started writing when after HondaRacer's post, opened this page in a tab and looked at something else, then came back
I wouldn't say that their reasoning is arbitrary. They're trying to preserve the essence of the small town. As for people who Dont want to get away from it all, why would you go to Tofino in the first place? If you're talking about people living their, those people usually move somewhere else.