HEPPNER — When Drew Brannon heard Dollar General was interested in a piece of property in downtown Heppner, he was worried.

Brannon, who has taken to checking regularly to see if the company has purchased any property in town, said it hasn’t yet, and Dollar General has not responded to an inquiry sent last week by the East Oregonian about whether it has any plans to build a store there. A few Heppner residents appeared before the Heppner City Council recently and have started a petition, however, hoping to send a message early that they’re not interested in a large discount retail chain coming to town.

“It doesn’t match the history and culture here,” Brannon said. “We call Heppner our little island of paradise.”

Shopping and dining options in the Morrow County town of about 1,110 residents are generally limited to small, independent local businesses, such as Bucknum’s Bar and Grill or Sage Clothing Company. There is a Les Schwab Tire Center, but there is no McDonalds or other fast food chains, and people purchase their groceries at the local Heppner Market rather than a Safeway or Walmart.

For business owners like Brannon, who owns Breaking Grounds Coffee and a bread delivery service, a large company like Dollar General moving in feels like unfair competition. Such retail chains are able to use economies of scale to offer lower prices than a small, independently owned market or drug store.

“We want competition to come to town,” Brannon said. “It keeps us (from getting) complacent. But when Dollar General comes in, that competition element changes. We’re not just competing with one store, we’re competing with all the Dollar General stores.”

When that happens, he said, communities sometimes lose out on options previously available to them. He pointed to media reports in recent years spotlighting communities where Dollar Generals that sold mostly processed foods replaced grocery stores with healthier options. If Dollar General put the Heppner Market out of business, Brannon said, he worries residents will have to start driving 50 miles into Hermiston if they want fresh produce or meat.

For its part, Dollar General argues the company helps families and individuals on a tight budget stretch their money further, providing an affordable, convenient source of necessities ranging from socks to toilet paper, often in areas with limited shopping options. In May 2020, the company announced plans to add fresh produce to at least 1,000 of its approximately 17,000 stores by the end of 2020.

When the East Oregonian reached out to Dollar General in December 2020 to ask about its work with the city of Umatilla’s planning commission on another possible Dollar General location, about an hour’s drive from Heppner, spokesperson Angela Petkovic said in an email that the company strives to provide affordable options to customers who may not have affordable shopping nearby.

She also pointed to charitable efforts the company undertakes in the communities it serves, including grants to local libraries and schools.

“Our customers are at the center of all that we do, and meeting customers’ needs is Dollar General’s top priority when choosing store locations,” she wrote at the time. “In selecting store sites, we take a number of factors into consideration, carefully evaluating each potential new store location to ensure we can continue to meet our customers’ price, value and selection needs.”

Some Heppner residents have their doubts about such promises, however. John Murray, who owns Murray Drug, said he feels a store run by a big corporation isn’t right for Heppner because it could edge out businesses selling higher quality products. He gave an example of a class action lawsuit against Dollar General that involved the company selling motor oil that consumers purchased without realizing the instructions on the back of the bottle stated it was not suitable for engines built after 1988.

“That’s the kind of stuff we don’t need,” he said.

He said if a Dollar General opened in Heppner, there would likely be some overlap between products sold there and at Murray’s Drug, and while he believes most customers would stay loyal to the drug store, he would likely need to adjust the business somewhat in response.

Both Brannon and Murray said they would like to see the Heppner City Council pass an ordinance requiring that discount stores coming in to Heppner would have to devote a certain percentage of floor space to fresh produce and meat.

Kraig Cutsforth, Heppner’s city manager, said that at the most recent city council meeting, eight community members attended in person with about two dozen more over Zoom, and four people spoke up to ask the council to consider what it might do to restrict discount chains from coming to town.

In response, Cutsforth put together a written statement welcoming input, but also stating that the city does not have a business license system and therefore does not regulate which businesses operate in city limits. The city does follow zoning codes and work with those who have questions about what is allowed in various zones, he said, but so far no discount store has submitted an application asking the city to change any zoning.

“In regards of what information has been asked of the city, so far it has only been on permitted uses of the subject property and what utilities are available,” he wrote.

Dollar General has been expanding in Oregon recently. The Walla Walla Union-Bulletin reported in January that the company had broken ground on a new store in Milton-Freewater, and quoted City Manager Linda Hall saying the city always welcomes new business. Dollar General has been working with Umatilla’s planning commission on a possible location there. Each store would employ six to 10 people, the company said.

In Heppner, however, some residents are hoping the chain passes them by.

“I want to see growth, but I don’t see (Dollar General) putting into the community what I put into the community, and what my neighbors put into it,” Brannon said.