Big Box Evaluator

Although this class is all about living without ... I thought this would be of interest esp as a tool to fight.
FYI




Announcing Release of the

Big Box Evaluator Website and Tool


The tool that helps you learn
about the impacts of big box retail stores



October 10, 2007

For Immediate Release



Middlebury, VT -- The Orton Family Foundation enthusiastically
announced its release of the Big Box Evaluator tool, designed to help
communities and individuals learn about the impacts of big box retail
stores. The unbiased tool is designed not to take a stand on big
box development, but to help citizens make informed decisions based on
each community's specific characteristics and values.


Available free to the public at

www.bigboxevaluator.org, the web-based interface allows users to
learn about commercial and retail development in general, but also to
input specific information from their communities and receive customized
reports on economics, values, planning and municpal services, and ways to
improve the development process.


Citizens in communities facing proposals for big box development can
select the type of town that most closely resembles their own, and the
type of development proposed (neighborhood store to large
"supercenter"). Users can then enter specific information
and personal values in four categories (Economy, Environment, Society,
and Visual), ranging from expected tax revenues to amount of signalized
intersection work required, runoff mitigation requirements to the
importance of community character.


The Big Box Evaluator creates a customized report for each user based on
the specific inputs, with information like projected municipal costs and
revenues, change in average wages, and annual price savings for
family. Users are also given a list of action items based on the
input values, which store developers can consider in order to help meet
the community's concerns.


The Orton Family Foundation is a Colorado- and Vermont-based operating
foundation supported by profits from the

Vermont Country Store.




For more information contact:


The Orton Family

Foundation


802.388.6336

PO Box 111

Middlebury, VT 05753



bigboxevaluator@orton.org

www.orton.org