The Peoria City Council on Tuesday approved a new ordinance limiting how close “convenience cash” stores can be to each other and residentially-zoned areas:
With a 10-1 vote, the council endorsed an ordinance that restricts new businesses from locating closer than 1,500 feet from each other or any residentially zoned property.
Any changes to allow for a cash store to locate closer than the 1,500 feet restriction will require a special permit granted with approval from the City Council.
The ordinance is designed to keep cash stores from clustering the way they have along University Street between War Memorial Drive and Forrest Hill Avenue, and to keep them from driving down residential property values. At-large councilman Gary Sandberg questioned whether the cash stores drive down values, or if they move into areas where property values are already depressed. He argued that cash stores are a symptom of a bigger problem, not the cause of the problem, and that the council should be looking for and dealing with root causes.
This is a step in the right direction. However, Jehan Gordon should be tapped to try and get those cash stores outlawed in the state.
Better usury laws, that adddress the terms of the payday loans, would be a step in the right direction.
Also, how about looking into the reasons people use these services? Perhaps the inflexible payment options when dealing with a utility shutoff? I have personally pleaded with Ameren/Cilco to adjust my payment due date by 24 hours, to avoid a shutoff — just until my paycheck actually arrives. No deal. I’m sure situations like these drive people to the payday/title loan store.
Conrad: Don’t expect any real reforms to the industry from Gordon, afterall, she took payday loan contributions in her campaign.
I expect nothing, but do beleive she ought to be given a chance to rise to the occasion.
If we wanted to help a tightly budgeted worker, who fixed his vehicle’s timing chain with his Ameren money so he can get to the jobsite, would we want to keep his loan rate artificially high? If we restrict the ease of entry into the lending market & create an oligopoly, wouldn’t fewer loan offerings allow more opportunity to hold prices high? Should a free market, business-friendly city restrict a new investor’s entry into a desirable portion of this market? Apparently, 10 to 1, I guess so.
Thank you Gary Sandberg for your critical thinking and not jumping on the bandwagon.