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Letter: Having liquor in grocery stores crowds out essential food

A few days ago, I went to City Market and Safeway. At both stores I found almost every aisle had cases of wine loaded on big carts. Some wine had already been placed at the end-caps. The big lumbering carts majorly impacted the customers’ ability to get to the food items they had come to their grocery stores to buy.

A few days later, some of the aisles had been emptied, and bottles of wine had replaced all food. I worry that most of those replaced food items will be discontinued and that management will reset the rest of the store. So if the grocery stores are to carry wine now for the convenience of out-of-town shoppers, should we expect to see that the liquor stores will start carrying snacks or hors d’oeuvres … or even produce?

If this “Trading Places” is trending, how long will it be before Steamboat Springs has at least two Front Range-sized liquor stores and a few very small specialty food stores that used to be liquor stores? What is still City Market shares a common structural wall with what is still Central Park Liquor. Isn’t that close enough to be called “convenient” for out-of-town shoppers?



At that point, Steamboat locals will have to travel to the Front Range to stock up on their regular food purchases. And maybe the out-of-town shoppers will have to pick up any food they want for their wonderful vacation in Steamboat before they arrive here at their destination.

Meg Bentley



Steamboat Springs


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