I eagerly anticipate the arrival of Home Depot on Hampshire Road. The location is only a couple of blocks away from my office, and I have nothing but positive thoughts about the new store location opening in Thousand Oaks.
Among the reasons:
-- I support a quality business whose mission is to assist homeowners and do-it-yourselfers with the level of expertise and commitment to the customer.
-- There are no other such stores in the area for miles. Do It Center is grossly underserving the needs of those whose frequent a Home Depot or a Lowe's.
-- Businesses that use Home Depot for contracting and other service support can spend money in our city, thereby infusing more revenue to the city, rather than leaving to purchase materials in other cities. Sure it's a business that will make money -- hopefully, lots of it. But what's wrong with that? It benefits all of us to have more jobs, more tax revenue, more services, etc.
-- Jobs would be created for people in the area, including the entry positions and summer spots for students.
-- If you are concerned with environmental issues, consider that the current state of the property is not only an eyesore, it's hazardous to any vehicle that enters the premises thanks to the horrible shape of the pavement and the obstacles around the parking lot and vacated spaces.
-- Every day that goes by without a clean, community-minded tenant like Home Depot is a day of lost opportunity for the city and its residents.
-- The proposed location is already in a business district and is, in fact, nearly the farthest away from imposing on other residents and businesses, and it's close to the freeway entrances and offramps.
There are many more reasons that I can share, but know this: Environmental studies are holding up the process with no regard for history. The same naysayers wanted to stop the Costco complex from being built. Now it's a staple of the community. If Costco was to be so bad for us, why then is it so crowded, bringing to the city business, needed services and entertainment in the form of restaurants?
I sincerely hope it takes less time than anticipated.
-- Paul Kalil, Westlake Village