Local Business (September 13)-With the opening of a Cainlen Superstore just two weeks away, the Bakert Merchants Association (BMA) has begun an initiative that encourages consumers to support local businesses. At least thirty stores have hung "Buy from Bakert" signs in their front windows. Like other Cainlen locations across the nation, the new Bakert store stretches over 180.000 square feet of land and will sell groceries, clothing, and electronics and boast a garden supply center and a photo developing lab. The massiveness of its floor plan meant that its construction was subject to public review regarding potential harm to plants and wildlife near its site on Todd Road. At that time, the BMA almost succeeded in blocking the development by pressing the city council to consider its effects in another area-that of local commerce. The BMA argued that Cainlen would put smaller retailers out of business and thus weaken the community in the long term. However, the council was more persuaded by Cainlen representatives' claims that the store would ultimately benefit Bakert by creating new jobs for its citizens and allowing them to enjoy the chain's famously low prices. BMA president and Bakert Sporting Goods owner Laura Comstock says the Buy from Bakert campaign "just asks people to think before they shop" and adds that it will continue "for as long as it feels necessary" | 
