Say NO to Out-of-town Halloween Stores

[PetalumaPete]

The scariest part of Halloween this year are those temporary, out-of-town, quick-hit, wham-bam, see-ya-later outlets. Don't get sucked in. PLEASE know who you are giving your hard-earned money to and shop local dear Petelumians. We all need the money here!
Who's with me on this one?

[BQ]

I agree..especially since Halloween is my LEAST favorite "holiday". Shop local and locally owned is good policy.

[2182]

While I totally agree with the premise there Pete, if local merchants would offer things that people want and at a reasonable price...wouldn't that take care of alot of the problem?

[TJMack]

I'm not a big fan of Halloween, but I do like Heebe Jeebe all year round.

As far as a seasonal store.....what amount of sales tax is collected in the two-month period?

In case there are shoppers who do not want to go to Heebe Jeebe, isn't it better for them to shop at the seasonal store here in Petaluma rather than go to Novato Target or Rohnert Park Target?

-------> buy your masks at Heebe Jeebe!

[Homegrown petaluman]

just asking..................

I am ALL FOR buying local but..........AS someone here did say... If people are going to go out of town to these MEGA holloween stores anyway once a year.. wouldn't it be better to keep the tax dollars here, and not to mention the empty store front is occupied for a little while and at least 10-15 local (mostly teens) get work.

do the local stores hire people for this occasion?

Remember I am JUST ASKING

[JEH]

Excellent points Homegrown Petaluman!

I'm sure those six or eight-week temp jobs are highly appreciated by high school or college students. Local jobs for this age range are practically non-existent. Even a minimum wage situation could make a big difference to a struggling student.

I would say the 10 or 15 people who get these jobs in pop-up stores probably feel very lucky.

[2182]

While Homegrown makes good points, so do you JEH

Just where are those with little or no job experience supposed to gain that experience? If all jobs had a "living wage" who's going to hire an individul with no job experience? If I were a merchant, I certainly wouldn't give an unproven person a job for $13.00 an hour. Heck, even the military sends the youngsters to "baisic training" (and in many cases further training) before they're allowed in the field.

[TJMack]

Just noticed that the huge pop-upstore SPIRIT HALLOWEEN has opened in the old Safeway location (Washinton Square).

I stand by my comments from last year. Shop downtown, shop locally, but if it comes down to it.....keep your shopping dollars in Petaluma. (the pop-up store is better than Target Novato or Target Rohnert Park).

[SaveOurCity]

OK... so do any of these stores actually sell stuff MADE IN PETALUMA? Maybe even made in the USA... that would help me decide... if the same cheap plastic mask is sold by every store... are we really shopping locally? I miss the old Toy Store on Petaluma Blvd. North that tried to stock made in the USA and non sweat shop countries... sure you paid more but do we always have to buy the cheapest???? Ask the Green Bay Packers what they think of the NFL for using the "Cheapest" referees?

[tysonlee]

It's much worse than that, they knew about the charges against him BEFORE he was hired.