ERIN SCOTT/Reuters
- About 60 cities and towns have pushed back on dollar store openings over the last several years.
- The count, compiled by The Hustle, includes small towns as well as cities such as Kansas City.
- The municipalities' approaches range from outright bans to zoning restrictions.
Dollar stores are in thousands of towns and cities across the US. But some are trying to fend them off.
Roughly 60 towns and cities have made changes to their zoning laws since 2018 to prevent dollar stores from opening within their limits, a report published on Friday by The Hustle found. In many cases, the action started when a city council voted against a specific project or imposed a larger ban on the stores.
Cities that have attempted to curtail dollar store openings range from a small town in Georgia to major metro areas like Kansas City.
Some of the efforts have been successful, not only keeping chains like Dollar General and Dollar Tree away but also clearing the way for retailers that communities want.
Stonecrest, Georgia, became the first city in the US to ban dollar stores completely in 2019, The Hustle reported. Two years later, the town celebrated the opening of a grocery store operated by German discounter Lidl after campaigning several retailers to open stores in the area.
Other communities haven't emerged victorious. Last year, a developer for Dollar General got approval to open a store in Nottawa Township, Michigan. Nottawa's board of trustees had previously voted against a zoning request from the developer, but it changed course after the developer sued the town.
Dollar General did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment on the article. A Dollar Tree spokesperson said that it opens stores in "previously vacant retail space in neighborhoods that have retail needs, keeping centers and other adjacent businesses open and serving communities, especially those that are underserved."
Dollar stores have opened thousands of new locations over the last several years. Dollar General had just under 20,000 stores at the end of 2023, with plans to open 800 more in 2024.
Dollar Tree, which also owns the Family Dollar chain, has about 16,000 stores.
Last year, Dollar General opened its first store in Montana, giving the chain at least one store in each of the 48 contiguous states.
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