Quote:
Originally Posted by CityTech
Simply having a downtown grocery store isn't always enough - often these stores will cater to suburban lifestyles despite their location.
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That's a good point. It's one thing to have a suburban-style supermarket near downtown and quite another to have a bunch of supermarkets that are smaller but more geared towards urban lifestyles. Many people who live in dense areas tend to walk or bike to get their groceries several times a week, so they don't necessarily need a one-stop-shop kind of megastore.
Just for example, here in Montreal I have five small or medium-sized supermarkets within a 10 minute walk of my apartment, with a big-box style supermarket about 15 minutes away. There's also a half-dozen small food stores like fishmongers, butchers, greengrocers and other specialty shops. I almost never go to the big-box store because all the small and medium-sized stores meet my needs pretty well.
I really noticed the difference when I stayed with my friends who live in Toronto near Lansdowne subway. It's a pretty dense area, not all that different to where I live in Montreal, but there are no small greengrocers nearby. The only choices for groceries within a 15 minute walk are suburban-style Sobeys, FreshCo, Loblaws and Wal-Mart, all of which have big parking lots and aren't very pedestrian-friendly.