Controversial Target Helping Or Hurting Davis Community?

DAVIS (CBS13) - A big box store in Davis? Some people loved the idea, others had concerns. Now a new study shows Target may be helping to boost the local economy, but some downtown business owners disagree.

Susan Handy, a professor in environmental science and policy, and her colleagues UC Davis studied what that impact might be of adding target to the college town's community.

"There was a lot of debate about whether this would hurt downtown or maybe this would be a good thing for Davis," she said. "We voted on it."

The vote to add Target to the community passed by a slim margin in 2006. The store opened in October 2009.

And the new numbers show the store might be helping locally.

"What they are doing less is shopping outside of Davis," she said. "So instead of driving to Woodland, they were staying in Davis."

The UC Davis study shows that shoppers in Davis are driving about 18 fewer miles a month to do their shopping than before Target opened.

With shoppers not leaving city limits to spend, that keeps dollars in town. But is it only at Target? What about the mom-and-pop shops that line downtown streets?

"What we were surprised to find is that there was very little impact on how frequently people shop in downtown," Handy said.

But that's not what Lori Rumsey, owner of Mother and Baby Source, says.

"Our numbers plummeted since Target opened and numbers speak volumes," she said.

Since Target opened its doors, she's also watched her neighbors close theirs.

"I see businesses that have been around for a long time close because of Target," she said. "I guess I see why the study says it's keeping more people in the town of Davis - because they shop more at Target. Unfortunately, they aren't shopping downtown."

But Handy says it's more than just Target.

"We've seen the loss of a lot of local businesses, but there's a lot of things happening in the economy at the same time," she said.

In the meantime, Rumsey is trying everything to keep her customers coming in and hoping to stay afloat.

"It's absolutely devastating because it's our livelihood and honestly we chose to be business owners for a reason. We chose it because we have love for our community."