Whole Foods

At-large candidates don't have much to say about Whole Foods issue in JP

adamg — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 11:26:22 +0000

The Jamaica Plain Gazette quizzed the seven candidates on some JP-specific issues. Only JP resident Sean Ryan had any criticisms of the way the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council handled the matter.

Speaking of the neighborhood council, the Gazette also reports that among the Whose Foods protesters outside the new store on its opening day earlier this week was Ben Day, the council's new chairman.

Day said that he was there to support locally owned businesses, affordable housing and culturally appropriate food in Hyde Square.

The Gazette did not say when Day is planning protests outside the Rent-a-Center or CVS or whether he considers Scottish food culturally appropriate for Hyde Square.

Whole Foods opens early in Jamaica Plain

adamg — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 22:11:57 +0000

The Globe reports the store where the Hi-Lo used to be opened today instead of its announced Wednesday date.

That didn't fool Whose Foods, though. Patty Neal tweets:

The 20-something protestors at WF have a drum circle! The customers are shouting at them "We love Whole Foods!"

Jamaica Plain Whole Foods to open next week

adamg — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 00:23:58 +0000

Neither community opponents nor union picketers could stop it, the Jamaica Plain Gazette reports.

Newest attraction for photographers in Jamaica Plain

adamg — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 17:15:31 +0000

Roving UHub photographer Gretchen snapped the new Whole Foods sign in Hyde Square this morning, adds:

I chatted with the workmen this morning and discovered I wasn't the only person who had stopped to take pictures.

Larger turnout for JP Neighborhood Council election

adamg — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 12:30:26 +0000

The Jamaica Plain Gazette reports at least three anti-Whole Foods candidates won seats in the Saturday election for the advisory council, which saw turnout of twice as much as the 2009 elections.

Backers of the 'less radical' candidates fight back in today's JP elections

adamg — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 19:37:55 +0000

Today's Election Day in Jamaica Plain, for seats on the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (one of the polling places is at JP Licks - vote, buy some ice cream, it's a wonderful thing). Steve Garfield, who lives in Jamaica Plain, posted a copy of a flier distributed around the neighborhood urging votes for non-anti-Whole-Foods candidates (this is JP after all), and wonders who's behind it (since it has no identification on it):

Today is the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council elections,

johnmcloughlin — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 18:43:31 +0000

Till 7:00 PM, vote at Forest Hills T stop, JP Licks, Stop and Shop.
More info:http://www.jpnc.org/

Whole Foods: We haven't even opened in JP yet, and we've already donated $36,000 to local groups

adamg — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 12:45:27 +0000

Julio Varela posts a statement by Whole Foods in response to Whose Foods' demand it fork over 1% of its annual revenues to stop gentrification in the neighborhood, and the Jamaica Plan Neighborhood Council's sorta demand it create a fund specifically for use by JP community groups:

The JPNC recently requested that Whole Foods Market create a fund for use by JP community groups, which is a request that has never been made to any other retailer joining JP. Creating a fund for a specific community is not how we do business, nor have we ever found it necessary given our history of community involvement. Our outlook at this time has not changed, and we are now focusing 100% of our energy on opening our new store in Jamaica Plain.

Earlier:
JP group may or may not rewrite proposal that Whole Foods may or may not sign.

JP group may or may not rewrite proposal that Whole Foods may or may not sign

adamg — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 11:32:46 +0000

The Jamaica Plain Gazette keeps us up to date on the JP Neighborhood Council, which is now busy "redesigning" the agreement it may or may not want Whole Foods to sign and which it may or may not have discussed with the company at a meeting that may or may not have left the door open to further negotiations earlier this month.

[T]he JPNC did not directly ask Whole Foods to sign anything, and Whole Foods did not directly say no, Howley told the Gazette. She said that certain requests "made it unsignable" because they addressed practices that Whole Foods never does as a company. She declined to specify those requests on the record.

JP council will ask Whole Foods for something after all

adamg — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 11:43:25 +0000

Exactly what, however, is a secret, the Jamaica Plain Gazette reports:

“We'll certainly share info when we can, but we're concerned that sharing with the public what we’re asking before we ask it could compromise the effort and be perceived as acting in bad faith," said a statement from the JPNC's "Negotiating Team" sent to the Gazette by member and council chair Andrea Howley.

After months of angst, outrage and arrests, neighborhood group asks Whole Foods for, well, nothing

adamg — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 23:53:41 +0000

The Globe reports on a meeting between Whole Foods and select members of the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council:

After the meeting, representatives from the supermarket chain said the neighborhood council did not ask officials from Whole Foods Market to sign a deal, but simply discussed a list of requests and topics.

Guy who can't stand JP Neighborhood Council running for JP Neighborhood Council

adamg — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 20:06:23 +0000

The Jamaica Plain Gazette reports on the upcoming election for seats on the advisory Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council. It turns out only one publicly pro-Whole Foods candidate is running: A guy who, in an interview with the Gazette, kept complaining about the "far, bizarre left" politics of current council members.

You might want to check that Whole Foods receipt today and tomorrow

adamg — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 15:21:53 +0000

Seems they forgot to change their register systems in Massachusetts to take the tax-free weekend into account:

Troublewithtribbles took this photo; Dave, another WF customer, reports via e-mail:

I bought flowers and a card this morning and got charged sales tax. I also bought a $2.50
breakfast. So the supervisor passed the tax off as the meals tax.

Photo copyright Troublewithtribbles. Posted in the Universal Hub pool on Flickr.

Sonia Chang-Diaz apparently sick of Whole Foods issue

adamg — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 12:24:05 +0000

The Jamaica Plain Gazette reports the JP Neighborhood Council has formed a five-member bargaining committee to try to wrangle a "community benefits agreement" out of Whole Foods. The move comes after council members talked to local groups and politicians about the impending store - but not Chang-Diaz, who refused to talk to them. You may recall it was Chang-Diaz who first proposed Whole Foods help start an affordable-housing fund or stay out of JP.

At a meeting last month, the council noted that Stop & Shop signed one of these agreements as a condition of moving onto city-owned land off Centre Street. Whole Foods has a lease to move into the vacant Hi-Lo property.

JP Neighborhood Council wants Whole Foods to do more than just open up shop

adamg — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 01:36:51 +0000

The Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council voted tonight to try to begin negotiations with Whole Foods on a "community benefits agreement" that would set specific financial and neighborhood goals for the chain to meet as it opens its store in Hyde Square.