Trader Joe's moving into Castro district

This is a disaster for the neighborhood. Have you seen the long line of cars waiting to get into the Trader Joe's parking lot on Masonic. Imagine that line on Market. Parking in the neighborhood is already a disaster. Imagine what is going to happen when hundreds of Trader Joe's customers try to park in the area. Much more traffic, no more parking. You don't need a degree in math to see what's going to happen. It is going to destroy the neighborhood. Bevan Dufty sold out the neighborhood. Shame on him.

People have been bemoaning the death of the Castro for the past 25 years yet it's still there. As gays become more and more a target market expect more of the same.

Hell, just throw a roof over Castro Street from Market to 18th, call it a mall and be done with it.

I live in the Castro and would absolutely love it if a Trader Joe's came to the neighborhood. It will definitely do more good than harm. The Castro is a vibrant neighborhood in the middle of a large city and it is time to develop it accordingly.

Something big has to go in there. I can't think of anything I'd want more.
I grew up in New York City. They don't have parking lots for grocery stores. People do just fine. The reason there is a big line for Masonic TJ's is that there are only 4 TJ's in the city. Put more in and the demand for any single one will decrease. And here's an idea: don't drive everywhere. Don't buy more than two bags worth of groceries at a time. Or use a damn shopping cart. It's called city life.

Trader Joe's is a GREAT store that belongs in the Castro area. It'll be excellent for people living in this densely populated neighborhood. It's likely that most customers will walk rather than drive there. The gaping vacancy left by the exit of Tower Records will finally be replaced by a business that can only enhance that part of upper Market Street.

Trader Joe's is a fantastic idea! Unlike the local Safeway, they replenish stock all day long so there won't be the never-ending dismay of trying to buy food after work when shelves have been decimated and their clerks are crabby. The store will be in the middle of an urban area, which allows residents to walk or take the bus. I'm tried of hearing the anti-Joe's whining from Castro locals who have cars and parking garages and buy their groceries outside of the area. We love Trader Joe's for their prices, quality and variety. Just hope it doesn't take a year to open the doors!

Save The Castro wrote:

This is a disaster for the neighborhood. Have you seen the long line of cars waiting to get into the Trader Joe's parking lot on Masonic. Imagine that line on Market. Parking in the neighborhood is already a disaster. Imagine what is going to happen when hundreds of Trader Joe's customers try to park in the area. Much more traffic, no more parking. You don't need a degree in math to see what's going to happen. It is going to destroy the neighborhood. Bevan Dufty sold out the neighborhood. Shame on him.

I'm just curious...your message has your location as Concord. Do you actually live in the Castro? The Masonic Trader Joe's is in a car-centric location, which is an entirely different concept from the one that would be in the Castro. You can find hundreds of people actually walking on Market Street at any given time of the day or evening. You won't find that on Masonic. Our Farmer's Market was packed every Wednesday and there was no special parking for that. We have the F Car, the #37, the #24, the #22, the Muni trains, Bart, bicycles and legs, all of which are pretty useful when it comes to getting around - cars are really optional, but we manage to fit them in. Trader Joe's isn't going to change that, so let's encourage them to get here as fast as they can.