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City officials: Shop locally
Thelma Grimes/San pedro Valley News-Sun
In a budget update to the Benson City Council last week, Finance Director Jim Cox stressed that with decreasing sales tax numbers, it is very important that residents shop locally.
Presenting budget information for the month of August, Cox described city sales tax numbers as "sluggish," down $31,000, a 14 percent decrease from the same time last year.
Looking at the big picture, Cox said, "The numbers say there is no sign that there is any economic recovery occurring. We didn't go as deep into recession as our sister cities, but there are no signs yet that we are coming out of it."
During the annual economic luncheon in Benson, Robert Carreira, the director for the Cochise College Center for Economic Research, had the same sentiments, stating things are still bad, but will likely not get any worse.
Decreasing sales tax numbers appear to be a trend that may occur for an unspecified amount of time. According to figures provided by Carreira, in all of 2008, the City of Benson collected $3.5 million in sales tax revenue. This is a 7.1 percent, or $267,000 decrease from the year before.
However, the decline may not be from lagging retail sales, but instead the drop in construction and real estate sales in Benson. Real estate, leasing and rentals dropped 74 percent in 2008.
Getting an exact picture of how retail sales are really doing in Benson is tough, according to Carreira, and is also a reason why some residents travel outside the city to shop.
Carreira explained that Benson has a two-tiered retail sales tax structure, charging a 2.5 percent sales tax for food. Cities such as Tucson and Phoenix have a much lower sales tax rate.
Even with Wal-Mart's opening in 2006, it is still not unusual for residents to travel to Tucson or Sierra Vista for groceries. Numerous Benson residents are grocery shopping at Fry's super store off Houghton Road in east Tucson.
But shopping for lower prices elsewhere, Cox and other city officials continue to stress, hurts the community.
"It is absolutely life critical that residents shop in town," Cox said. "The primary revenue source for our general fund is sales tax revenue. The general fund pays for the library, parks, and for police and fire protection."
Vice Mayor Toney King said he encourages residents to shop locally.
"We need to make sure we keep our citizens shopping in Benson,' he said. "The reality is they are spending the same amount or more on gas. I am encouraging all the citizens of Benson to shop locally."
Gas prices are also a lot higher in Benson than elsewhere in Southern Arizona. Residents buying groceries at Fry's in Tucson may also be tempted to fill up there as well. While gas prices at the Tucson station ranged between $2.15 and $2.25 over the last several months, prices in Benson ranged between $2.30 and $2.50 a gallon.
Fry's is also offering customers incentives to shop at the super store and fill up at the nearby gas station. For every $100 spent inside the grocery story, customers are given a 10-cent per gallon reduction on gas. Someone using that incentive, last week would have paid $2.09 a gallon for regular unleaded.
Residents have questioned gas prices and the food tax for years in Benson, and with the slowing economy, they are still asking if prices will go down.
In the meantime, Cox said the city will keep doing what it takes to survive.
"The city is responding with controlled expenditures," he said. "We can survive in this climate so long as we have no unexpected expenses. We hope we can keep swimming through this recession and hold it together until things get better."
Carreira said the silver lining for Benson is that retail sales numbers, despite the decreases between 2007 and now, are up at least 30 percent since 2005. This is due to Wal-Mart's opening in 2006.
In a budget update to the Benson City Council last week, Finance Director Jim Cox stressed that with decreasing sales tax numbers, it is very important that residents shop locally.
Presenting budget information for the month of August, Cox described city sales tax numbers as "sluggish," down $31,000, a 14 percent decrease from the same time last year.
Looking at the big picture, Cox said, "The numbers say there is no sign that there is any economic recovery occurring. We didn't go as deep into recession as our sister cities, but there are no signs yet that we are coming out of it."
During the annual economic luncheon in Benson, Robert Carreira, the director for the Cochise College Center for Economic Research, had the same sentiments, stating things are still bad, but will likely not get any worse.
Decreasing sales tax numbers appear to be a trend that may occur for an unspecified amount of time. According to figures provided by Carreira, in all of 2008, the City of Benson collected $3.5 million in sales tax revenue. This is a 7.1 percent, or $267,000 decrease from the year before.
However, the decline may not be from lagging retail sales, but instead the drop in construction and real estate sales in Benson. Real estate, leasing and rentals dropped 74 percent in 2008.
Getting an exact picture of how retail sales are really doing in Benson is tough, according to Carreira, and is also a reason why some residents travel outside the city to shop.
Carreira explained that Benson has a two-tiered retail sales tax structure, charging a 2.5 percent sales tax for food. Cities such as Tucson and Phoenix have a much lower sales tax rate.
Even with Wal-Mart's opening in 2006, it is still not unusual for residents to travel to Tucson or Sierra Vista for groceries. Numerous Benson residents are grocery shopping at Fry's super store off Houghton Road in east Tucson.
But shopping for lower prices elsewhere, Cox and other city officials continue to stress, hurts the community.
"It is absolutely life critical that residents shop in town," Cox said. "The primary revenue source for our general fund is sales tax revenue. The general fund pays for the library, parks, and for police and fire protection."
Vice Mayor Toney King said he encourages residents to shop locally.
"We need to make sure we keep our citizens shopping in Benson,' he said. "The reality is they are spending the same amount or more on gas. I am encouraging all the citizens of Benson to shop locally."
Gas prices are also a lot higher in Benson than elsewhere in Southern Arizona. Residents buying groceries at Fry's in Tucson may also be tempted to fill up there as well. While gas prices at the Tucson station ranged between $2.15 and $2.25 over the last several months, prices in Benson ranged between $2.30 and $2.50 a gallon.
Fry's is also offering customers incentives to shop at the super store and fill up at the nearby gas station. For every $100 spent inside the grocery story, customers are given a 10-cent per gallon reduction on gas. Someone using that incentive, last week would have paid $2.09 a gallon for regular unleaded.
Residents have questioned gas prices and the food tax for years in Benson, and with the slowing economy, they are still asking if prices will go down.
In the meantime, Cox said the city will keep doing what it takes to survive.
"The city is responding with controlled expenditures," he said. "We can survive in this climate so long as we have no unexpected expenses. We hope we can keep swimming through this recession and hold it together until things get better."
Carreira said the silver lining for Benson is that retail sales numbers, despite the decreases between 2007 and now, are up at least 30 percent since 2005. This is due to Wal-Mart's opening in 2006.
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The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of bensonnews-sun.com.
another shopper wrote on Oct 23, 2009 2:46 AM:
" There are many things that just aren't available in Benson, such as furniture, good specialist DR's, the VA, good clothing stores, many speciality items. Many people combine their grocery shopping with their necessary trips to Tucson or even Sierra Vista. Our current economy may dictate where we need to shop to survive.
Many work in Tucson and live in Benson and it is more convienient to shop after work and they will save money so for them gas is not an issue. If you go to Tucson or Sierra Vista for medical care and combine the trip with shopping then gas is not the issue for you either.
Walmart does do ad match so you can take others ads into Walmart and get the same price. That is a good thing.
But, when we hear that city revenues are so far down, I have to question why we are buying properties even though they may be a good buy, or why we have been paying Brown and associates $70.00 per hour for months to do our inspections when we were paying Jeff Smith less than $20.00 per hour. And we are providing them an office free of charge at the city offices.This is fiscally irresponsible.
With so many people out of work, surely there is an unemployed inspector out there somewhere.
With my criticisim comes a suggestion. Why doesn't the city council propose that for 3 months Benson residents will not have to pay any food tax when they shop locally. This could easily be done by the local stores giving a voucher fpr a 2.5% discount on food purchases to anyone that can produce a valid Drivers Liscense with a City of Benson address and zipcode. These vouchers can be reedemed by the local businesses by turning them in with there tax payments as a credit. Thus the City of Benson would actually be giving every resident an immediate tax break. If this program was successful, then it could be continued indefinately. This would be money better spent than on the other items mentioned above. What do you think? "
Many work in Tucson and live in Benson and it is more convienient to shop after work and they will save money so for them gas is not an issue. If you go to Tucson or Sierra Vista for medical care and combine the trip with shopping then gas is not the issue for you either.
Walmart does do ad match so you can take others ads into Walmart and get the same price. That is a good thing.
But, when we hear that city revenues are so far down, I have to question why we are buying properties even though they may be a good buy, or why we have been paying Brown and associates $70.00 per hour for months to do our inspections when we were paying Jeff Smith less than $20.00 per hour. And we are providing them an office free of charge at the city offices.This is fiscally irresponsible.
With so many people out of work, surely there is an unemployed inspector out there somewhere.
With my criticisim comes a suggestion. Why doesn't the city council propose that for 3 months Benson residents will not have to pay any food tax when they shop locally. This could easily be done by the local stores giving a voucher fpr a 2.5% discount on food purchases to anyone that can produce a valid Drivers Liscense with a City of Benson address and zipcode. These vouchers can be reedemed by the local businesses by turning them in with there tax payments as a credit. Thus the City of Benson would actually be giving every resident an immediate tax break. If this program was successful, then it could be continued indefinately. This would be money better spent than on the other items mentioned above. What do you think? "
Christopher wrote on Oct 23, 2009 6:29 PM:
" Shop locally eh?
I tell you what. When I am able to shop locally and find everything I need to meet my household needs, then maybe I will think about it. I commute every day to work 40+ miles in to Tucson, so obviously I buy my gas there, which is anywhere from 15 cents less expensive to an astounding 50 or 60 cents less expensive, depending on where you look at prices in Benson.
The Walmart Supercenter, although offering a lot of items at exceptionally low prices, I find that the food values are terrible when it comes to such things as meats and other bulky items.
They say they ad match, but its for an identical item. So, Let's say Safeway has brand A, at $5.99 a pound, and Walmart has the same type of product for $6.99 a pound. Safeway has its own brand of meats, making Walmart's ad match impossible, since it is not an "identical" item.
Now you look at prices in Tucson and Sierra Vista, and you find the Fry's has a price of $5.49 a pound, or Basha's has it for $4.99 a pound.
When you have multiple things that you need to purchase to support a household, and you need to buy say, $200.00 or more in groceries and supplies, I find it more economical for me to spend $5-$10.00 extra in gas to go out of town, because it saves me an extra $30-40 dollars on my overall costs, allowing me to get more bang for my buck.
So answer me this. With those types of incentives for me to shop outside of Benson, what is in it for me to shop locally, pay more for less, and have to shop more often? I'll tell you what... Less money in MY pocket. "
I tell you what. When I am able to shop locally and find everything I need to meet my household needs, then maybe I will think about it. I commute every day to work 40+ miles in to Tucson, so obviously I buy my gas there, which is anywhere from 15 cents less expensive to an astounding 50 or 60 cents less expensive, depending on where you look at prices in Benson.
The Walmart Supercenter, although offering a lot of items at exceptionally low prices, I find that the food values are terrible when it comes to such things as meats and other bulky items.
They say they ad match, but its for an identical item. So, Let's say Safeway has brand A, at $5.99 a pound, and Walmart has the same type of product for $6.99 a pound. Safeway has its own brand of meats, making Walmart's ad match impossible, since it is not an "identical" item.
Now you look at prices in Tucson and Sierra Vista, and you find the Fry's has a price of $5.49 a pound, or Basha's has it for $4.99 a pound.
When you have multiple things that you need to purchase to support a household, and you need to buy say, $200.00 or more in groceries and supplies, I find it more economical for me to spend $5-$10.00 extra in gas to go out of town, because it saves me an extra $30-40 dollars on my overall costs, allowing me to get more bang for my buck.
So answer me this. With those types of incentives for me to shop outside of Benson, what is in it for me to shop locally, pay more for less, and have to shop more often? I'll tell you what... Less money in MY pocket. "
Daniel Watson wrote on Oct 24, 2009 9:14 PM:
" I have heard this argument for years. Everything in Benson is more expense.
My wife and I moved here to get away from the city. So when we hear people complain that Benson does not have the same services as the cities. I tell them yes Benson does have the same services it is just on a smaller scale with business owners eager to serve you.
I do shop locally to support my community. If we do not support our local community. Some day you will have to drive an hour to get a gallon of milk, buy a box of nails, get a washer repaired, pick up medicine, send a package UPS, get that part to fix your car, find that odd electronic item, get your oil changed, have a tire fixed and finally go out for a nice dinner.
I am tired of hearing how horrible Safeway is. Did you forget before Walmart they were the only grocery store in town and not once in 13years have I had a bad experience there.
My time is worth allot more than driving two hours round trip to save a couple of dollars.
Shop Benson invest in your community !!! "
My wife and I moved here to get away from the city. So when we hear people complain that Benson does not have the same services as the cities. I tell them yes Benson does have the same services it is just on a smaller scale with business owners eager to serve you.
I do shop locally to support my community. If we do not support our local community. Some day you will have to drive an hour to get a gallon of milk, buy a box of nails, get a washer repaired, pick up medicine, send a package UPS, get that part to fix your car, find that odd electronic item, get your oil changed, have a tire fixed and finally go out for a nice dinner.
I am tired of hearing how horrible Safeway is. Did you forget before Walmart they were the only grocery store in town and not once in 13years have I had a bad experience there.
My time is worth allot more than driving two hours round trip to save a couple of dollars.
Shop Benson invest in your community !!! "
Christopher wrote on Oct 26, 2009 9:47 AM:
" In response to Daniel's posting:
You say Benson has the same services as other cities, right?
Where is the movie theather?
Where is there a place that kids can go have fun and hang out other than a park?
Where is the mall?
Where is the incentive for kids not to get in trouble? They have no where to go, nothing to do, it's no wonder that they get into so much trouble.\
Even before Walmart came to town, I complained about the prices that Safeway has ALWAYS had. Higher than that of other Safeway stores. I have been shopping outside of Benson long before Walmart came to town.
To me, it just doesn't make sense to shop locally when as said above, I can go out of town and spend less money and get more out of it. Tis day and age, the economy is such to save money. that is exactly what i am doing. "
You say Benson has the same services as other cities, right?
Where is the movie theather?
Where is there a place that kids can go have fun and hang out other than a park?
Where is the mall?
Where is the incentive for kids not to get in trouble? They have no where to go, nothing to do, it's no wonder that they get into so much trouble.\
Even before Walmart came to town, I complained about the prices that Safeway has ALWAYS had. Higher than that of other Safeway stores. I have been shopping outside of Benson long before Walmart came to town.
To me, it just doesn't make sense to shop locally when as said above, I can go out of town and spend less money and get more out of it. Tis day and age, the economy is such to save money. that is exactly what i am doing. "
Daniel Watson wrote on Oct 26, 2009 2:18 PM:
" In response to Christopher
If you invest in your community all the things you have listed will come in time.
Ask yourself why would any prospective business owner want to come to Benson. If you and others are going to shop out of town.
About Safeway don't you think another grocery chain would have come into Benson if they thought they could sell items cheaper than Safeway.
Bottom line if you are so concerned about money. I just don't understand why you would not want to invest in your community. The more prosperous Benson becomes the likely hood that more stores will come to Benson. Which means more competition which means lower prices.
A better community means better schools, better public services and better JOBS !!!!
Shop Benson Invest in your community "
If you invest in your community all the things you have listed will come in time.
Ask yourself why would any prospective business owner want to come to Benson. If you and others are going to shop out of town.
About Safeway don't you think another grocery chain would have come into Benson if they thought they could sell items cheaper than Safeway.
Bottom line if you are so concerned about money. I just don't understand why you would not want to invest in your community. The more prosperous Benson becomes the likely hood that more stores will come to Benson. Which means more competition which means lower prices.
A better community means better schools, better public services and better JOBS !!!!
Shop Benson Invest in your community "
Brittany Watson wrote on Oct 26, 2009 2:39 PM:
" In response to Christopher and Daniel's comments:
I am 18, and a former student at Benson High School. I also worked at the Candy Station.
I agree there isn't much to do in Benson. But, in order to get a movie theater or a mall, Benson's economy needs to grow.
Which means, we should shop at the store in town more frequently, so that we keep the money in town, and help OUR town grow.
Instead, people choose to shop at Fry's in Tucson, and help Tucson's economy grow.
When we take that extra trip to save a "few dollars", we took that movie theater and mall away from ourselves.
That $25 dollars you saved at Fry's this week, could have been $25 dollars into a new and exciting place in Benson. "
I am 18, and a former student at Benson High School. I also worked at the Candy Station.
I agree there isn't much to do in Benson. But, in order to get a movie theater or a mall, Benson's economy needs to grow.
Which means, we should shop at the store in town more frequently, so that we keep the money in town, and help OUR town grow.
Instead, people choose to shop at Fry's in Tucson, and help Tucson's economy grow.
When we take that extra trip to save a "few dollars", we took that movie theater and mall away from ourselves.
That $25 dollars you saved at Fry's this week, could have been $25 dollars into a new and exciting place in Benson. "
Mark wrote on Feb 16, 2010 6:53 PM:
" So shop in Benson huh, what a joke!! There is no where to shop with all the stores closing down...Movie Gallery shut their doors. This town is nothing but a ugly eyesore of a town with boarded up buildings and a town center with a handful of stores remaining open. So the city council wants to increase sales in Benson. Maybe the city council and greedy Cochise county need to eradicate the 2.5% tax on groceries that they are robbing out of people's billfolds. It all boils down to city, county and state government in how they run their jurisdictions. What is the county doing with all this tax revenue...It sure aint coming back to the city of Benson. There's a monopoly in this town and it is between City of Benson and Sulpher Springs Valley Electric Co-op. This electric company runs this town and is nothing but a venoumous snake with the way they rob your billfold for electric service!! So, I think I will continue to shop in Tucson, so I don't have to be burdened on taxes on my groceries, where the county just doesn't give the tax money back to the community in helping businesses thrive and develop new businesses here in this godforsaken eyesore of a deadbeat town!!! "
Tucson Shopper wrote on Oct 21, 2009 3:02 PM: