Unfortunate Crackdown on Cheapskates

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Filed in City
January 25, 2007

Cheapskates Consignment stores have been kicking around the Dunbar strip for 20 years, selling decent second hand stuff to happy customers. Everything from dirt cheap old clunker bikes to high end racers, golf clubs to soccer shoes, sold at periodically decreasing prices until everything became irresistible (or free!). What a brilliant system. Me and countless others have fully appreciated the service these stores offered over the years, and I was shocked and saddened to hear on CBC this morning that the store is going to close due to an anti-theft bylaw the police have decided to take action on.

Anti-theft bylaws are fine and all, but in this particular case, even members of city council recognize that stores like Cheapskates are not the stores they mean to be targeting. (I won't get into the messy details here; that's all covered in the link above).

At any rate, it's a sad day that it's come to this, where stores like this shut down; stores who improve Vancouver in so many ways. How you might ask?

1. Good service and second hand products at reasonable prices (in an increasingly expensive city)
2. Getting lots more bikes into lots more people's hands and encouraging fossil-fuel free transportation
3. Easily providing sporting goods, encouraging activity and fitness, lessening strain on the health care sys
4. Keeping second hand goods in use, lessening our environmental footprint
5. And taking up less landfill space
5. Enrich and even exemplifying the community spirit

On that last note, do note that hundreds of people have written to city hall in order to save this part of the Dunbar community. I personally emailed the VPD this morning, and was shortly informed that I was barking up the wrong tree. Still, it's pretty sad that I only learned of this this morning, after Barry Gilpin seems to have already decided to shut down the joint. City counselor Peter Ladner did say, "... I would certainly encourage a review if people like Barry (Gilpin) are going out of business." So hopefully we're not so cynical as to think this whole thing a dead duck.
Do contact City Council if you want them to know that you're as disappointed as I am about the closure of these excellent stores.

Image courtesy of http://dailyphotovancouver.blogspot.com/

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Hello,
I found this on the bulleting board at work today:

To: clranton@vancouver.ca, clrball@vancouver.ca, clrcapri@vancouver.ca, clrladner@vancouver.ca, clrlee@vancouver.ca, clrstevenson@vancouver.ca, mayorandcouncil@vancouver.ca

Cc: thomas.osdoba@vancouver.ca, victoria.wakefield@vancouver.ca, carolyn.drugge@vancouver.ca

Subject: By-law and closing of Cheapskates promotes a drift away from sustainability

January 22, 2007

Dear Mayor and Vancouver Councillors,

I am writing to make you aware that it is a big mistake to enact a by-law the forces second-hand shops such as "Cheapskates" consignment store to close.

Shops that resell sporting equipment and other items such as clothes, as well as articles relating to babies and children, provide a very important service to the community and in many cases are crucial to helping families stay involved in sports and recreation without incurring prohibitive costs. Likewise the exchange of second-hand goods fosters the journey towards Sustainability which City of Vancouver is currently working hard to promote. Equipment and clothes that would otherwise be thrown out and sent to the ever expanding landfills are being reused because of the existence of these types of second-hand stores. And it is not just the wastefulness of having usable goods piling up in the landfill at issue here, but also the associated increase in energy use and greenhouse gases emitted which will result from having more new equipment and goods produced and imported to fill the void which is no longer able to be filled by the second-hand market. As you are aware, consumerism is a significant contributor to many of our environmental problems and these second-hand stores are an important instrument in curbing rampant consumerism.

You as our Vancouver Mayor and Councillors have the power to change or cancel the by-law to allow such second-hand stores to continue to operate. Many individuals and families along with the greater Vancouver community find this service essential and will struggle to get by without it.

Please exercise your power to reverse or alter the by-law in order to allow such enterprises to continue to operate.

Sincerely,

(your name)
Citizen of Vancouver

Posted by: Fabian at January 26, 2007 10:14 AM | Quote Comment

Sad! :( I love Cheapskates!

Posted by: Jen at January 26, 2007 11:22 AM | Quote Comment

Awesome. Thanks, Fabian.

Posted by: statusq at January 27, 2007 11:17 AM | Quote Comment

Is anyone listening to the city's side of the story? All the press I see is lamenting the loss of the store...

The point of the bylaw it to prevent the sale of stolen goods. How hard would it have been for Cheapskates to obey the bylaws?

It's a preventable loss.

Posted by: jray at January 28, 2007 1:12 AM | Quote Comment

A quick read of the Second-hand Dealers and Pawnbrokers By-law No. 2807 indicates that the word "purchase" is defined as "to buy, barter, deal in, take in exchange, take in part payment, acquire, acquire on consignment, or receive, but does not include pawning." Further, the requirement to hold all consigned goods for a minimum of 35 days is tantamount to treating every customer as a criminal. The identification requirements are quite insulting: it would be enlightening to know why race, hair, eye colour, height(cm), weight (kg) are required to consign a pair of size 1 child's skates? Clearly, the definition of purchase is too broad and the privacy implications are too vast for the public to ignore.
It is our responsibility as citizens to object to laws that are obviously drafted incorrectly.

Posted by: snow at January 28, 2007 6:04 PM | Quote Comment

it looks like city hall is going to rethink this, because Cheapskates doesn't give out cash, but instead mails cheques to the seller's home address, which would ostensibly weed out thieves. also, there has been so much protest by parents, etc, that they've caved a bit.

Posted by: degan at January 29, 2007 9:56 AM | Quote Comment

Doesn't it seem a bit coincidental that Cheapskates is located on some of the best real estate in the city? Dunbar and 16th area, beautiful views... an ideal spot for development, wouldn't you agree? I have a feeling that once Cheapskates is shut down, the other small businesses surrounding them will be forced out next, and another overpriced lifestyle condo development will go up in their place.
I don't see (and haven't heard of) any other second-hand stores and pawnshops in my neighborhood (Mount Pleasant) being subject to the pressure of this bylaw, or those in other neighborhoods, for that matter. I think developers have put pressure on the City to target small and inconvenient businesses so they can be removed effortlessly and with the City's bylaw-enforcing blessing.
How sad for Cheapskates. They have been a tremendous resource in this town for a long time.

Posted by: Terry Plummer at February 1, 2007 1:45 PM | Quote Comment