Is Driving Traffic to Big Box Stores True Economic Development?

In the fourth of a series examining a major transportation project in Minnesota, Charles Marohn of Strong Towns outlines how the “buttonhook” project in Baxter, Minnesota is a stark example of how transportation planning is often bent to the will of commerce, not traffic safety or congestion.

According to Marohn, the Minnesota Department of Transportation is painting the project as an economic development tool — by which they mean it will direct traffic easily and swiftly to the big-box stores surrounding the cluster of new roundabouts. The project is funded by a program called Corridors of Commerce, which, in Marohn’s view, defines economic development as easing freight movement and expanding capacity. 

Not resilient local businesses. Not entrepreneurship. Not neighborhoods where wealth circulates and grows over time. Instead: faster trucks, highway access for chain stores, and more square footage of disposable development.

To prove his point, Marohn digs into property tax data to understand whether the buttonhook will actually bring in more revenue than other options. “The state of Minnesota, through the Corridors of Commerce program, is spending $58 million to prop up $40.8 million of gas stations, strip malls, and big-box stores.” Essentially, Marohn finds that “The buttonhook isn’t an investment. It’s a life preserver. The only reason these properties in Baxter have any value at all is because the state built a highway to serve them.” 

Marohn concludes that it’s time for a new development paradigm. “We don’t need another $2 billion poured into fragile highway strips that can’t even pay their own bills. If we’re serious about commerce, let’s invest where the returns are real.”