Illinois Conservation Voters©

 

Knowing the Right People

 In the land of the free and the brave, it still comes down to "Who you Know" when it comes to business in the city of Rockford.  In the case of an owner of a chain of IGA grocery stores and the Rockford Local Development Corporation, they know the right people.  The owners of the Torres family market do not.

            Here we find an American success story about to be crushed by, of all people, their very own city government.  The Torres family emigrated from Mexico 20 years ago to realize their dream of owning and operating a specialty grocery store in Rockford Illinois.  After years of hard work, their business grew and was thriving.  So in demand was their service, they decided to move to a larger building located on South Main Street in Rockford in order to expand.  In fact, things are going so well - now the big boys want in on the action.

                The relocation of the Los Torres Grocery Store, 1-1/2 years ago, had an amazing affect on the neighborhood they moved into.  The Torres family landscaped around their new building with trees and roses.  Their work had a contagious affect.  After years of neglect, neighboring properties started to make changes; the Banquet Hall across the street re-landscaped their area.  Guadalupe Torres Jr., eldest son of the owner, explained to me on the phone that, "There were vacant lots with garbage.  Now, the garbage has been cleaned up and the lots are kept mown.  This happened in the entire 5 to 6 block area where our store is."  Lupe, as he calls himself, went on to say "The area needed a lot of improvements.  No one wanted to put an established business there before we came in." 

The Torres family did such a good job revitalizing the area that the city, indeed the entire county, started to take notice.  Especially a development firm by the name of Local Development Corporation, headed up by Sanders Howse and the Grays IGA chain store owner.

Now, Sanders Howse, head of the Rockford Local Development Corp., knows the right people.  The thought of putting in a 9 million-dollar shopping center, including a new Grays IGA Grocery Store, in a cleaned up section of town is to good to pass up.  The only problem is that the Los Torres market is right in the middle of where they want to build. 

Well, that's really not a problem when you know the right people.  According to Lupe, the IGA grocery chain owner never even bothered to make an offer to buy the Los Torres market.  They didn't have to; when you know the right officials in the city government, you just have to ask.

            Now, the City Council of Rockford tentatively approved eminent domain procedures during their April 10^th meeting.  That means that the city is poised to take the land where the Los Torres family market is and then give it to the Grays IGA grocer and the Rockford Local Development Corporation.  Wait a minute, can they do that?

            Lopes Torres tells me, "Our clients and friends are very sad about this matter.  We never thought anything like this could happen in America.  What kind of democratic government is this?  We thought this kind of thing only happened in Mexico and in other third world countries.  We are very disappointed and disillusioned."

            Maybe the Torres family spent too much time working in their family owned grocery store, when they should have been making promises to the right people and attending black tie functions and fundraisers.

Lopes Torres said they are not "looking to get rich, we just want what is fair," and that "what has been offered so far does not even come close."  Well, you don't have to be fair when you know the right people.

 

To learn more, or if you can help, visit the Illinois Conservation web site at www.mccv.com or send mail to Illinois Conservation Voters, P.O. Box 9, Fox River Grove, IL 60021

Fax 847-658-7079