Let me take you back to the days when Flagstaff was a small town. When complaints were flying that you had to go to Phoenix if you wanted to shop. And when you could find a parking space downtown.  I’m talking about the time before the Flagstaff Mall, Wal-Mart, Kohl’s, and Target.  Oh, there were still lots of stores, even some large chain stores like Long’s Drugs, Thrifty Drug, and Safeway.  But there were also lots of unique little stores owned by folks who lived and worked in Flagstaff .

But that was twenty-five plus years ago. The town has grown and times have changed.  Phoenix shopping has arrived in Flagstaff and has brought with it both the good and the bad.  Prices, selection, and service have improved.  Traffic has increased.  Parking downtown is almost an impossibility.  And we’ve lost many of the unique little shops that once catered to the needs of Flagstaff and the surrounding area.

The Daily Sun’s coffers are probably overflowing with all the full-color ads and shopping inserts that added all the extra weight to our newspapers before Thanksgiving.  The stores were packed on the 26th as eager consumers lined up to grab the 25 to 50 percent off bargains from the shelves.  But were they really bargains?

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