A Commitment to Community
My friend recently encountered a problem in negotiation for leasing a space for a business that I wanted to share here. My friend was told that the leasing/development company would only be able to do a 3-or-5-year lease with no option to renew after. This had me wondering why a development company would want to do this. Sure, I get that they are free and clear of commitment to a company that they aren't familiar with (any local/small business) and that they don't know will do well.
This development company has spend hundreds of millions of dollars on creating a community, so it felt strange to me that they would want to bring in a small business that is giong to provide community members with great services only to take it away from them after 5 years.
Does the development/leasing company have a responsibility to uphold the community that they work so hard to build? I think so. I think that responsibility will create jobs, services, and economic growth, and that without the commitment to small businesses, there will be no community. After all, community is what makes the economy grow--that's why the movement back to the urban core is smart and strong for the economy.
