What kind of town are we building

As our community considers the possibility of another dollar store in Basin, I hope we will look beyond the promise of “more options or generating sales tax” and ask a more important question: what kind of town are we building, and what are we willing to risk losing?

For some people, a second dollar store may sound like convenience. But for many in Basin, especially our elderly residents, the issue is much deeper. We live in an aging community where many seniors do not drive and cannot simply go to another town for groceries and household necessities. Basin Market is not just another retailer. It is an essential part of the town’s daily survival. Valley Hardware is also an important local business that provides everyday household, cleaning, repair, and seasonal items many residents depend on close to home.

If a new dollar store pulls enough business away from local stores, the impact will not be limited to shopping habits. It can affect jobs, services, prices, and the long-term stability of our community. Basin Market employs 14 people, and Valley Hardware employs five people. In a small town, those are not small numbers. Those jobs matter. 

It’s not just pulling away from local jobs, it’s not creating very much in generated new sales tax, but rather pulls the sales tax already generated by Basin Market, Valley Hardware, and the already existing Family Dollar. By taking in local sales tax calculations and keeping in mind a Dollar General already exists in both Greybull and Worland, the probability of a Basin Dollar General generating any new sales tax, falls short with a mere $9,000 annually, and takes from three existing stores. That’s not creating anything new of significance compared what will be lost with the damage done to significantly important businesses with a long standing presence and contributed support in our community.  Let’s dive more into what that damage would look like. 

When locally owned stores lose sales, the first effect is often reduced employee hours, followed by less inventory, fewer services, and more pressure to raise prices. That means Basin Market could be forced to reduce staffing, shorten hours, or cut back on product selection. Valley Hardware could also be harmed if household goods, cleaning supplies, and seasonal items are shifted away from a business that currently helps meet those needs. What looks like “more retail choice” on paper can quickly become less stability for local employers.

The consequences would fall hardest on the people with the fewest options. Seniors on fixed incomes, residents with disabilities, and families without flexible transportation will feel it first. A weaker grocery store does not just mean inconvenience. It can mean less access to fresh food, fewer necessities close to home, more isolation, and greater dependence on neighbors or caregivers.

There is also a deeper employment issue that should not be ignored. Basin Market provides jobs that support dignity, routine, and independence in our town. Valley Hardware also contributes to local employment and local service in a meaningful way. In communities like ours, every job matters because there are not endless alternatives. When small-town businesses are squeezed, it is often part-time hours and flexible jobs that disappear first.

We should also consider what kind of economic value stays in Basin. Locally rooted businesses are more likely to recycle dollars back into the community through wages, relationships, school support, and day-to-day generosity. Corporate chains may offer convenience, but profits and most decision-making leave town. When a local business weakens, Basin does not just lose commerce. It loses local capacity.

This is not about being against business or against change. It is about understanding that not all development strengthens a town in the same way. A community can gain another storefront and still lose something far more important: resilience, stability, and the services that make life possible for the people who already live here.

Two dollar stores would prevent any future investors from wanting to create businesses downtown. Something our town desperately needs. Do we block true sustainability of our town by allowing something that is a symbol of poverty and decline of a small town to be here? Take a drive down rural America and see how many small towns have a Dollar General and a nonexistent downtown or one that is massively suffering. Is that really where we want to live? We’re at a fork in the road of the future of our town. And we should make decisions with understanding of what the consequences really will be. I have never moved to a town and thought, “oh thank goodness they have a Dollar General.” Anyone who wants to call a town their home focuses on a grocery store, hardware store and thriving downtown of small business owned by our friends and neighbors. Not a cooperate giant with little concern about the citizens that live here. 

How does this store affect our residence with large trucks pulling in and out of residential areas. Are the streets strong enough to support that size of trucks? These are things we need to think about. 

Before we celebrate a second dollar store as progress, we should ask whether it truly adds to Basin — or whether it risks undermining the very businesses and community members that already help keep this town liveable.

A healthy town is not measured only by what opens. It is also measured by what it manages to keep.

(Danae Bales is a resident of Basin.)