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The current lease is $300 per month. This was negotiated in 1977. It was an economic development initiative by the city council at that time in an effort to lure a business to Mineola.

For the first 5 years of the modified lease, the rent increases to $1500 per month, $1750 in the next 5 years, $2000 in the third 5 years, and $2250 in the final 5 years. This is total lease revenue of $450,000 over the 20 year extension. This equates to a 500% increase in the first five years, to a 750% increase in the last five years.

Our estimates are that EZ Mart pays about $2,650 per year in water utilities, about $1,200 per year in personal property taxes currently, and if they make the additional $350,000 of improvements they said they would, another potential $1,900 of property taxes on those improvements. We do not have any way of verifying the sales tax EZ Mart pays, but my personal estimate is about $10,000 per year. So, total tax and utilility revenue to the city is about $15,750 per year. Unadjusted for inflation, this would total about $315,000 over the 20 years of the lease.

It was originally estimated that it would have cost the city about $102,500 to demolish the building, remove the gas tanks, soil & environmental mitigation, and to pave a parking lot. It was later determined that the lessee would have had the responsibility of tank removal and mitigation, but that still may have left the city having to spend $50 to $80 k to make a parking lot.

So, adding that all up, it would have left us with an $845,000 parking lot. That is the total of lost revenue and actual construction costs. That would have been a terrible financial move for the city! The council knew that, as evidenced by the 5-0 vote, with one alderman absent.

There are other alternatives to increasing parking in downtown. They include possible purchase or lease of the lot at Line and Commerce, and possible renovation of Commerce Street between Line and Johnson. Both of these options combined would cost taxpayers far less than $845,000!

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The council chamber was standing room only. Speakers for the leveling of EZ Mart, including Mineola Mayor Bo Whitus, spoke of merchants in downtown Mineola who are hurting because of a lack of parking.

Councilman John Storace pointed out that not one single downtown merchant or restaurant was at the meeting. When I mentioned this, Mayor Whitus told me that many downtown merchants did not want to speak publicly about the lack of parking and their opposition to the renewal because it would hurt their business.

A representative of EZ Mart was at the meeting and spoke to the council in the public forum. He stated that EZ Mart would do a complete facelift on the business and install new gas pumps and underground tanks.

End result? Mineola is getting a new, shiny EZ Mart.

Scott Hazard – Mineola Buzz

I asked Mr. Brown to  summarize the reasons for wanting the city to raze the EZ Mart and put a parking lot in that spot. His answer was that for a long time, leaders of the city have realized that they need more parking downtown. Adding parking to downtown will draw more people to local businesses and generate more tax revenue and income for the city.

My next question was: Will that parking lot generate enough income for the city to offset the loss of revenue generated by EZ Mart?

According to Mr. Brown, the EZ Mart is #2 in alcohol sales in Mineola, there is “no way they’re going to abandon Mineola.” Mr. Brown has it on good authority that if the city did not renew the lease, that EZ Mart would have a new store built and open by the time the original lease runs out. When asked if EZ Mart had been formally approached about this, he said he did not know if they had or not. When asked who owns the EZ Mart, Mr. Brown could not tell me who owns it. Mr. Brown is the Chairman of the Mineola Industrial and Economic Commission.

Is it the fact that EZ Mart sells beer and wine that is causing some people to have a problem with it?

Mr. Brown stated that he knows two former employees of EZ Mart who felt unsafe working nights, many “drunks” come into the store and the clerks apparently are sometimes uncomfortable with that. Being a former overnight clerk at a 7-11 in Arlington, I can understand that, but it is part of the job and that would not change at a new location. Mr. Brown then stated that the EZ Mart does seem to attract some “unsavory characters” because it brings people in to the town from outlaying areas to purchase beer and wine. Statistics at the Mineola Police Department will show a non-noticeable move in alcohol-related crimes in Mineola since the 2011 election when propositions one and two were approved by the voters of Mineola.

I came right out and asked Mr. Brown if the beer trucks were a problem. He replied that many people have complained about them being parked next to the Mineola First Baptist Church and Youth Center. I am in no position to make any offers on behalf of anyone, but to that I had to ask if the beer was delivered by non-branded trucks if that would make things any better. The answer was that every little bit helps, but in general, no. I see beer trucks at EZ Mart during the day on weekdays. I have never seen beer trucks or any other type of trucks for that matter, at the EZ Mart during or even close to church services or events.

When asked about the cost of removing the underground tanks and the cost of the associated cleanup, Mr. Brown initially stated that this would be the responsibility of EZ Mart. Since the city owns the land and EZ Mart leases it, we would then essentially tell a thriving Mineola business that they have to relocate then come back and clean up the previous location. I can’t imagine any business in that situation that would do that. After we discussed that point for a moment, he was also questioning how that scenario would work out.

When asked about the employees at the EZ Mart, Mr. Brown’s response was that if the company relocates, there would be more employees. When asked what would happen if they did not relocate, he referred to these as “minimum wage jobs.”

Mr. Brown stated that there are two large churches adjacent to the EZ Mart and that seems to be a problem with some. Soon after the 2011 beer/wine election, city officials were tasked with determining if EZ Mart was far enough away from the churches to legally sell beer and wine. Obviously, that determination was a “yes.”

In summary, my conversation with Warren Brown gained this:
I never said the word “church.” He used that word multiple times. If the EZ Mart draws unsavory characters, relocating it will only get them away from the church. The logic leads to a conclusion that the churches seem to be spearheading this movement. This theme was also mentioned by several commenters on our Facebook page.

I’d like to thank Mr. Brown for his time. Upon parting, I mentioned that I would see him at Monday night’s City Council meeting and he assured me he would be there.

If you are concerned about a small minority of people using their power to make changes to our town that the majority does not want, come to the City Council meeting on Monday, January 23rd at 6:00 PM. Your city needs to hear your voices! The city of Mineola is NOT behind this effort. They will, however, be the ones to act on it one way or another.

Scott Hazard – MineolaBuzz.com

Whether you like the EZ Mart or not, the fact remains that it is a thriving business in the city of Mineola. It generates sales tax revenue, it consumes utilities, it employs 8-10 people and it provides a valuable service to the people of Mineola in that it is open 24/7 for any emergency needs they may have in the middle of the night. Being open around the clock also serves those who go to work early, sportsmen who are out early and anyone else who might need something during the overnight hours.

When the EZ Mart lease came up on the agenda at last night’s meeting, it was referred to executive session, meaning that the council will meet on it privately before Monday’s regular City Council meeting. The council then may or may not bring it up for open discussion during the regular, public, city council meeting.

We mentioned this on our Facebook page last night and have gotten several comments from various viewpoints.

In the name of public information, we have provided a PDF copy of each of the petitions. They are worded slightly differently, but both ask for the same end result. We did not feel it necessary to print the addresses of those signing the petition, so they have been erased from the pages. Names that were scratched out were also removed.

Petition 1 –  Petition 2

If this is an issue that is of interest to you, please attend the Monday, January 23rd meeting of the Mineola City Council at City Hall at 5:30.