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Farmington residents interested in launching a community-wide, volunteer-driven Swap Shop appeared before the town board on July 26 to present their ideas. It was a harder sell than they may have expected.
Inspired by the success of Victor’s swap shop, which takes in more than 22,000 items annually and passes them on to interested residents free of charge, Jane Barry and other Farmington residents have been crunching the numbers and making phone calls in hopes of duplicating the project in their own back yard.
“I’m always trying to find something that someone needs and has asked for,” said Barry. “I want to help others get things that they normally couldn’t pay for — things like toys and dishes. We just recently had a street sale and I took five van loads to Goodwill. Who’s to say I couldn’t have taken it to the Farmington Swap Shop?”
According to Barry’s initial estimates, it would cost about $14,000 for the building, shelves, lights, power, safety items and signs. She has “no idea where the building would go, but we’re hoping the town will help us with that.”
At the meeting this week, Code Enforcement Officer Floyd Kofahl voiced several concerns, including the fact that Farmington doesn’t have a recycle center/transfer station to serve as a principal building.
An operation “like this would need a principal building so this would be an accessory building — for zoning purposes. Without having a principal building, it would require rezoning.”
Board member Mike Casale worried that the cost of putting up a building would fall on the town, and raise taxes.
“I don’t know that we should take this on at this point, with the highway garage and town court (projects ahead),” said Casale. “It was a lot easier for Victor because they were already set up for it.”
Councilman Tim Mickelsen said he would prefer to see this project done in the private sector.
“It would serve the function of getting useful things to people at no cost,” he said. “Once the government starts something, it always seems to grow.”
Town Supervisor Ted Fafinski had similar concerns.
“I’d like to see money go toward more urgent needs, like patching roads, providing ambulance services, equipping firefighters,” he said. “We don’t need to duplicate services” that the private sector already provides.
Victor town board member John Palomaki, a swap shop advocate, spoke of the shop’s value to the community.
“It’s a real service to the town,” he said. “I think if the Swap Shop (in Victor) were to close, there would be a revolt. It’s a meeting place for people in town. Not only that, it’s fun.”
What’s next for Swap Shop supporters? Residents will need to put a more detailed plan together and walk through the steps with Farmington’s Codes and Planning Department before returning to the board. Informal arrangements to meet one-on-one were put into place after the board meeting.
Farmington residents interested in launching a community-wide, volunteer-driven Swap Shop appeared before the town board on July 26 to present their ideas. It was a harder sell than they may have expected.
Inspired by the success of Victor’s swap shop, which takes in more than 22,000 items annually and passes them on to interested residents free of charge, Jane Barry and other Farmington residents have been crunching the numbers and making phone calls in hopes of duplicating the project in their own back yard.
“I’m always trying to find something that someone needs and has asked for,” said Barry. “I want to help others get things that they normally couldn’t pay for — things like toys and dishes. We just recently had a street sale and I took five van loads to Goodwill. Who’s to say I couldn’t have taken it to the Farmington Swap Shop?”
According to Barry’s initial estimates, it would cost about $14,000 for the building, shelves, lights, power, safety items and signs. She has “no idea where the building would go, but we’re hoping the town will help us with that.”
At the meeting this week, Code Enforcement Officer Floyd Kofahl voiced several concerns, including the fact that Farmington doesn’t have a recycle center/transfer station to serve as a principal building.
An operation “like this would need a principal building so this would be an accessory building — for zoning purposes. Without having a principal building, it would require rezoning.”
Board member Mike Casale worried that the cost of putting up a building would fall on the town, and raise taxes.
“I don’t know that we should take this on at this point, with the highway garage and town court (projects ahead),” said Casale. “It was a lot easier for Victor because they were already set up for it.”
Councilman Tim Mickelsen said he would prefer to see this project done in the private sector.
“It would serve the function of getting useful things to people at no cost,” he said. “Once the government starts something, it always seems to grow.”
Town Supervisor Ted Fafinski had similar concerns.
“I’d like to see money go toward more urgent needs, like patching roads, providing ambulance services, equipping firefighters,” he said. “We don’t need to duplicate services” that the private sector already provides.
Victor town board member John Palomaki, a swap shop advocate, spoke of the shop’s value to the community.
“It’s a real service to the town,” he said. “I think if the Swap Shop (in Victor) were to close, there would be a revolt. It’s a meeting place for people in town. Not only that, it’s fun.”
What’s next for Swap Shop supporters? Residents will need to put a more detailed plan together and walk through the steps with Farmington’s Codes and Planning Department before returning to the board. Informal arrangements to meet one-on-one were put into place after the board meeting.
